Peering through the Brexit haze: What we know so far September 16, 2019 One of my favourite intellectual exercises that we use in my political risk firm is what we call “seeing through the fog”. When a long-standing geopolitical topic seems to resemble nothing so much as King Minos’ labyrinth, senior staff and I repair to a good wine bar and spend an afternoon not talking about all [...]
The City is looking to India for future partners September 16, 2019 As people back home enjoy what we hope is an Indian summer, I am heading to the subcontinent this week for a five-day visit to Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai – just as monsoon season draws to a close. The political weather in the UK may be stormy, but when the dust settles, one thing is [...]
Number of private equity takeovers of UK businesses falls 12 per cent September 16, 2019 The number of private equity acquisitions of UK businesses has fallen 12 per cent this year, from 311 in 2017/18 to 274 in 2018/19, according to data from law firm Mayer Brown. The firm’s corporate co-head Perry Yam said private equity fund managers were delaying investments pending the outcome of Brexit. However, the value of [...]
UK house prices see first September fall for nine years September 16, 2019 UK house prices have witnessed their first September fall since 2010, according to a closely-watched gauge, as Brexit uncertainty continues to dampen sales. The average price of property coming to market fell by 0.2 per cent in September, the house price index from real estate website Rightmove showed. “As we approach yet another Brexit deadline, [...]
Business groups say Brexit impasse hurting firms and growth September 16, 2019 Two British business groups have warned of the damaging effect of the Brexit impasse on UK firms and predicted lower investment and growth. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) today downgraded its growth forecast for Britain and predicted that business investment will plummet 1.5 per cent this year and fall 0.1 per cent in 2020. [...]
UK financial sector optimism falls as bosses brace for economic slowdown September 16, 2019 The majority of top executives at UK financial institutions are less optimistic about the country’s economic outlook than they were a year ago. Almost 60 per cent of organisations said they expected UK economic growth to slow in the next 12 months, roughly twice as many as held that view last year, according to a [...]
Thomas Cook ‘scrambles to seal rescue deal’ amid concerns over bondholders September 15, 2019 Troubled travel company Thomas Cook is said to be looking to delay a pivotal bondholders’ meeting on Wednesday to give it more time to agree a £900m rescue deal with majority shareholder Fosun. The 178-year-old holiday firm is still scrambling to wrap up the terms of a restructuring deal with the Chinese conglomerate, but fears [...]
Lib Dems vow to scrap Brexit if they win general election September 15, 2019 The Liberal Democrats have vowed to cancel Brexit if they win a majority at the next general election. Members of the party today voted in favour of a motion to revoke Article 50 – the mechanism that allows the UK to leave the EU – if they emerge as the largest party in a national [...]
Sadiq Khan: Revoke Article 50 to end the Brexit ‘panic’ September 15, 2019 Sadiq Khan has said Article 50 should be revoked to “take away the panic” of leaving the EU on 31 October. The London mayor also said the Labour party was the “party of remain” and that in any second referendum on Brexit it should campaign to stay in the EU. Read more: Tom Watson pushes [...]
Sam Gyimah is the latest MP to join the Liberal Democrats September 15, 2019 Former Tory MP Sam Gyimah has become the latest MP to join the Liberal Democrats. The former Tory leadership hopeful was one of the 21 Tory MPs to have the whip removed for supporting a bill to block a n o-deal Brexit last week, which became law on Monday. Read more: Liberal Democrats to vote [...]