Steel makers face another tough year ahead, says Moody’s December 10, 2019 European steel makers have been dealt a gloomy forecast for next year, as Moody’s ratings agency predicted slowing demand and deteriorating profitability for the industry. Key sectors using European-made steel such as the automotive industry are likely to need less of the material next year amid a wider market slowdown, it said. Read more: New [...]
Wetherspoon’s boss Tim Martin says he is concerned about Labour’s plans for the economy December 10, 2019 Wetherspoon’s boss Tim Martin said today that he is concerned about the Labour Party’s plans for the economy. “I’m worried by [Jeremy] Corbyn and [John] McDonnell’s plans. Wetherspoon has thrived in a free market economy under Conservative and Labour governments and the current Labour leadership prefers state ownership and control,” he told City A.M. A [...]
Turtle Bay’s profit dives in challenging casual dining market December 10, 2019 Caribbean-style restaurant chain Turtle Bay suffered a sharp drop in profit in its last trading period, following a pattern seen across the UK’s casual dining sector. Profit fell from £4.43m last year to £1.39m in the year ended 2 March, as the company grappled with economic uncertainty and rising costs. Read more: Chilango confirms plans [...]
German investor morale unexpectedly climbs December 10, 2019 German investors were much more upbeat than expected in December, a survey has shown, with recent economic data fuelling hopes for an uptick in Europe’s biggest economy. The index of economic morale from research institute ZEW picked up to 10.7 this month from minus 2.1 in November. The score was well above expectations of a [...]
Election 2019: Johnson ratchets up plans for Foreign Office takeover of Dfid December 10, 2019 Boris Johnson is considering rolling the Department for International Development (DFiD) into the Foreign Office, as part of a huge money-saving exercise if he returns to Number 10 this week. The Prime Minister – who was foreign secretary for two years under Theresa May – has charged officials at both the FCO and DFiD to [...]
Election 2019: Labour frontbencher Ashworth recorded slamming Corbyn’s electoral appeal December 10, 2019 Labour’s shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth has sought to downplay a recording of him criticising Jeremy Corbyn, insisting the conversation was just “banter” between friends. Ashworth appeared to suggest Corbyn posed a threat to national security, saying the civil service would “pretty quickly move to safeguard security” if Labour won the election. He also said [...]
UK GDP: Economy stagnates in run up to General Election December 10, 2019 The UK economy stagnated in October under the weight of yet more political uncertainty and a global slowdown, official figures showed this morning. British GDP’s failure to grow was worse than the 0.1 per cent expansion economists had expected. It marked an improvement from the 0.1 per cent fall seen in September, however. Read more: [...]
Six in 10 financial services workers worried about threat of Brexit December 10, 2019 Six in 10 financial services workers fear the aftermath of Brexit will be the single biggest challenge the sector has to face over the next 12 months, according to a report published today. The survey of more than 500 financial services workers by content software firm Nuxeo also identified other potential threats on the horizon [...]
Mothercare sinks into deeper loss as sales slip December 10, 2019 Retailer Mothercare fell further into the red in the first half of the year, with its loss before tax rising to £21.2m in the six months to the end of October. The baby wear retailer also saw net debt rise to £24.5m in the period, representing a 14.4 per cent increase year on year. Read [...]
This country has not had enough of experts December 10, 2019 Michael Gove famously said that the “people in this country have had enough of experts”. Of course, that’s not the full story — at the time, Gove was specifically targeting experts who, he claimed, kept getting things wrong. But regardless, the “had enough of experts” quote went viral, and came to be viewed as something [...]