Plan B Omicron curbs derail pubs and restaurants’ vital Christmas trading period January 11, 2022 The re-emergence of curbs to tamp down on the spread of Covid-19 derailed the vital Christmas trading period for Britain’s hospitality sector, reveal new figures published today. Brits pulled back sharply on spending at pubs, bars and restaurants over the festive period, according to research undertaken by Barclaycard. Spending at restaurants sunk over 14 per [...]
Central London continues to feel impact of Plan B measures January 10, 2022 Central London has suffered another blow to its recovery as shoppers stay away from the city’s retail hotspots. Footfall in the West End and other areas dropped by more than a quarter (25.6 per cent) last week compared to the week before. “With employees continuing to work from home the drop in footfall in Central [...]
We discover the perfect family-friendly ski retreat in Austria’s Arlberg January 10, 2022 “So glad you’re here”: the oft repeated words from hotel and restaurant owners who have just emerged from a strict lockdown and are, for the first time in months, welcoming tourists. We had chosen the Arlberg region (specifically St. Anton and St. Christoph) for a pre-Christmas ski when all things Covid were looking up. As [...]
Gas prices will remain high over winter says experts January 10, 2022 UK gas prices are unlikely to revert to pre-pandemic levels "anytime soon" according to Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.
Aldi had its best Christmas ever as sales go through the roof January 10, 2022 Aldi has hailed its “best ever” Christmas sales as trading rebounded in December. The discount supermarket chain revealed that sales increased by 0.4 per cent against the same month last year, when sales across grocery stores had been buoyed by lockdown measures across hospitality firms. Aldi claimed figures from research firm Kantar show it was [...]
Restaurant groups suffer £673m in losses as bosses call for tax relief January 10, 2022 The country’s top restaurant groups saw losses skyrocket in a year, hitting £673m, as bosses have called for more cash to help ailing venues. The top 100 groups saw losses increase 174 per cent in the year to the end of September 2021, according to an analysis of company accounts by accountancy firm UHY Hacker [...]
Morning snapshot: Your Daily Dose of pre-market news January 10, 2022 It’s Monday 10 January. Here is a quick overview of the stories that are making headlines this morning in the UK and around the world. UK POLITICS Cladding: Developers must agree a £4 billion plan to fix dangerous cladding on low-rise flats by early March or risk new laws forcing them to act, Housing Secretary [...]
Getting boosted is a small contribution to protect our dearest Square Mile January 10, 2022 During Christmas and New Year, the news has been dominated by Omicron – as we may all have expected. Yet there is much to be proud of in our fight against this virus. Thankfully, there are early signs that we may be passing the peak in London, and that the damage caused by Omicron in [...]
Southern rail services return to Victoria, while The Drain makes a comeback January 10, 2022 Southern rail services have returned to London Victoria today, after the latest wave of the pandemic led to a staffing crisis across the public sector. Victoria station commuters will see eight Southern services each hour to a string of London suburbs including East Croydon, Balham and Sutton. After effectively halting all services out of [...]
Hong Kong flight ban strands executives and risks curbing economic growth January 9, 2022 Hong Kong’s flight ban has left exeutives stranded outside of the global finance hub, which Fitch Ratings has said could curb its economic growth prospects. The two-week circuit breaker comes after the city recorded its first Covid-19 cases at the end of December, after three months without community transmission. “We believe the tightening of restrictions [...]