UK businesses to get £125m innovation boost July 10, 2019 UK businesses will receive a £125m cash boost from the government to help them turn their bright ideas into money-spinners, City A.M. can reveal. Read more: Skills gap is costing UK economy billions each year The government will add £100m of the sum to its “smart grant” programme that looks to help businesses take ideas [...]
US stock markets hit record highs as Fed chair hints at rate cuts July 10, 2019 Chairman of the US Federal Reserve Jay Powell has boosted the market’s expectations that the first interest rate cut in ten years will come this month with a gloomy testimony to a congressional committee. Read more: Fed holds interest rates but hints at future cuts In a prepared statement Powell said “trade tensions and concerns [...]
FTSE 100’s best and worst performers in 2019 so far July 10, 2019 By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. The blue-chip index jumped over 10 per cent in the first half of this year, but which one surged 68 per cent? It’s been a year of widespread and significant gains in the FTSE 100 index, with blue-chip stocks surging by as much as 68 per cent during the first half of 2019. [...]
Sir Kim Darroch quits as UK ambassador to US in wake of leaked Trump emails July 10, 2019 Sir Kim Darroch has resigned from his post as UK ambassador to the US, saying his leaked about President Donald Trump have made it “impossible” to continue in his role. Darroch’s leaked emails sparked a diplomatic row between the UK and US as Trump lashed back at the envoy’s criticisms before Prime Minister Theresa May [...]
UK economic growth beats expectations but contraction worries remain July 10, 2019 The UK economy expanded by 0.3 per cent in the three months to the end of May, official statistics have shown, beating analysts’ expectations of just 0.1 per cent growth. Read more: UK service sector ‘close to stagnation’ as economy slows The better-than-predicted growth, shown in data released today by the Office for National Statistics [...]
Dyson sweeps up Singapore luxury apartment for record sum July 10, 2019 British billionaire James Dyson has snapped up what is thought to be the most expensive flat in Singapore. The entrepreneur has paid roughly £43.5m for a “super penthouse” spanning three stories at the very top of the city’s tallest skyscraper. Equipped with a private garden, 600-bottle wine cellar and a swimming pool, the self-styled “bungalow [...]
Take two: Ex-Change UK MPs forge new alliance called The Independents July 10, 2019 A splinter group of MPs who were part of Change UK have embarked on another rebranding, forming a new political alliance called The Independents. Read more: All Change UK: Tory and Labour MPs disband after election failure Four MPs have founded a so-called “co-operative of independent politicians” after quitting Change UK early last month, when [...]
Blue on blue: Three key talking points from the Conservative leadership debate July 10, 2019 It’s that time again. The Tory leadership race is reaching its zenith, and the final two candidates last night took part in the first of several televised Conservative leadership debate head-to-heads as Tories choose the next Prime Minister. Read more: Can Boris Johnson turbocharge the UK economy? In a spirited and at times ill-tempered affair, [...]
John Major vows to seek judicial review to avoid parliament closure July 10, 2019 Former prime minister John Major has threatened to seek a judicial review if Britain’s next leader sought to suspend parliament to proceed with a no-deal Brexit. Read more: Boris can deliver a bold economic vision for UK, says Remainer MP Calling any such suspension “utterly and totally unacceptable”, Major told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme [...]
J D Wetherspoon sales growth slows again July 10, 2019 J D Wetherspoon expects like-for-like sales to rise at a slower rate in its pubs over summer as boss Tim Martin warned investors about a £3m non-cash loss this financial year. Read more: Glass half empty? Wetherspoon shares fall as sales growth slows Like-for-like sales are expected to grow 6.9 per cent for the 10 [...]