Trump vows action on Chinese companies ‘in coming days’ August 2, 2020 US President Donald Trump will take action against Chinese companies sharing data with the Beijing government “in the coming days”, secretary of state Mike Pompeo said today. “President Trump has said ‘enough’ and we’re going to fix it,” Pompeo said on Fox News this afternoon. “He will take action in the coming days with respect [...]
Microsoft shelves plans to buy US arm of Tiktok August 2, 2020 A potential sale of video platform Tiktok to Microsoft is reportedly on hold after US President Donald Trump vowed to ban the Chinese-owned app over national security concerns. Tiktok owner Bytedance yesterday told the White House it was seeking a sale of its US operations to Microsoft, in a bid to curb restrictions on the [...]
The City View: Tom Tugendhat MP on China, Russia and foreign affairs July 30, 2020 Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS Today Andy is joined by Tom Tugendhat MP, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Commons Select Committee. Tom responds to the latest warnings from the Chinese ambassador, warns Beijing it should not attempt to “bully” Britain, and Hong Kong’s economic future. He also offers us his take on the [...]
Openreach to deliver fibre to 3.2m extra homes as it slams government inaction July 29, 2020 BT’s infrastructure arm Openreach has pledged to extend its fibre service to 3.2m extra homes by 2025, as it said the government was “running out of time” to meet its connectivity targets. Openreach today unveiled plans to bring full-fibre broadband to the UK’s “hard-to-reach” areas, as part of BT’s £12bn plan to connect more than [...]
Sales plunge at Gucci owner Kering as 2020 outlook remains unclear July 28, 2020 Luxury group Kering said sales plunged almost 44 per cent in the second quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic, adding it could not provide a forecast for the second half of 2020. The Gucci owner’s revenue was a touch better than analyst expectations, however, with those at UBS citing estimates for a 46 per cent [...]
Chinese hackers target senior Tory MP in impersonation campaign July 28, 2020 Chinese agents are believed to be behind a series of cyber attacks on senior Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat, including email personations and hacking attempts. Tugendhat, chair of the Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee and co-founder of the Sino-sceptic China Research Group, last night said he had been subjected to cyberattacks intended to smear his reputation. [...]
Gold hits record $1,980 high as dollar weakens July 28, 2020 Gold hurtled to record peaks today before the sheer scale of its gains drew a burst of profit taking, which in turn helped the dollar up from two-year lows. The precious metal had stormed almost $40 higher at one point to reach $1,980 an ounce XAU=, only for a wave of selling to slap it [...]
Markets live: Aviation stocks drag on FTSE 100 but US stocks climb July 27, 2020 The FTSE 100 fell today as the UK added Spain back onto its quarantine list, but US stocks rose as investors pegged their hopes on the likelihood of more stimulus. The UK’s blue-chip index was down 0.2 per cent at 6,110 points in afternoon trading. The FTSE 250 was 0.6 per cent lower. Read more: [...]
Gold hits all time high amid US-China tensions July 27, 2020 Gold hit an all-time high today as growing tensions between the US and China sent investors scrambling for safe haven assets. Gold rose one per cent to fresh heights of $1,920.9 per ounce, beating a record last set in September 2011. Washington last week ordered China’s consulate in Houston to close, prompting Beijing to respond [...]
Vodafone shares slide as operator ‘calculates cost’ of Huawei ban July 24, 2020 Vodafone shares dipped more than five per cent this morning as the telecoms firm said it was still “calculating the cost” of removing Huawei kit from its 5G network following a government ban on the Chinese vendor. Vodafone chief executive Nick Read told reporters this morning the firm was “clearly disappointed” in the government’s decision [...]