Car manufacturing ‘paralysed’ by no-deal Brexit threat as output drops for ninth straight month March 28, 2019 British car manufacturing suffered its ninth consecutive month of decline in February, as the industry continues to suffer from Brexit uncertainty and plummeting demand in China. Car makers produced 123,203 vehicles last month, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a drop of 15.3 per cent on the same period last year. [...]
Airbus shares soar after plane maker lands 300-aircraft order to China worth £25.7bn March 26, 2019 Airbus shares rose this morning on yesterday’s news that it signed a deal worth around €30bn (£25.7bn) to sell 300 planes to China. The plane maker was up 2.4 per cent this morning after announcing the sale of 290 of its A320 models and 10 A350 XWB aircraft to China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS). [...]
WPP hunts for replacement as last Chinese board member steps down March 25, 2019 WPP is on the hunt for a new Chinese board member after it emerged a long-serving director from the country will step down, Sky News reported. Ruigang Li, who founded venture capital giant China Media Capital (CMC) and has served on the WPP board since 2010, has reportedly told colleagues he will not stand for [...]
Britain leads falling European stock markets as US recession risk grows March 25, 2019 European stocks fell today, with Britain's leading the drop, while US equities were volatile as investors weighed up global economic headwinds and recession fears. The US’s S&P 500 was down 0.4 per cent soon after opening at 1.30 pm UK time, but rebounded to rise 0.3 per cent for the day, while the Dow Jones [...]
Non-EU investment in London commercial property rose 75 per cent in 2018 March 25, 2019 Purchases of London commercial property by non-EU investors soared last year, rising 75 per cent on 2017. But investment from within the EU dropped sharply, according to figures from real estate research company Datscha. Read more: Retail property value set to plunge as online shopping rises Non-EU investors racked up £8bn in purchases in 2018. That [...]
London tourism industry pivots to long-haul markets in the face of Brexit March 24, 2019 Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the royal family: London is blessed with renowned attractions wrapped in tradition and heritage most cities can only dream of. But with Brexit looming, the UK tourism industry, which supports more than one tenth of the country’s jobs, has hit turbulence. Almost every industry representative I spoke with used the [...]
Tesla sues former engineer for allegedly passing tech secrets to Chinese rival Xiaopeng March 22, 2019 Tesla has accused a former employee of stealing trade secrets and handing them over to a Chinese rival. Elon Musk’s firm has filed a lawsuit alleging one of its former engineers, Guangazhi Cao, copied the source code for its Autopilot self-driving technology before joining Chinese startup Xiaopeng Motors. Read more: Tesla launches new Model Y [...]
Hermes bags profit boost as demand from Asia drives surge in sales March 20, 2019 Luxury bag maker Hermes has posted double-digit profit growth for the full year as rising demand in Asia helped boost sales across all business lines. Read more: Asos confident on full-year targets despite 'challenging' markets The figures Hermes’ net profit rose 15 per cent to €1.4bn (£1.2bn). Consolidated revenue was up 7.5 per cent to [...]
Corbyn fails yet again to grasp the magic of competitive markets March 19, 2019 It is not the worst thing that Jeremy Corbyn has ever said. But it’s certainly one of the most revealing. A year ago, the Labour leader was explaining why he wanted to leave Europe’s Single Market while staying in the customs union – a stance memorably described by my fellow think tanker Kristian Niemietz as [...]
All the world’s a sound-stage March 13, 2019 Johnny Hon loves a show and he loves a stage. Unlike most globe-trotting international investors, he also finds time to invest in them. Hon, the founder and chairman of venture capital business and angel investor the Global Group, is a showbiz impresario, acting as an executive entertainment producer as an enjoyable sideline. UK-educated Hon is [...]