Wall Street: Bulls run again as S&P 500 climbs 20 per cent above October low June 9, 2023 Stocks rose just enough for Wall Street to barrel into a new bull market on Thursday as the S&P 500 keeps rallying off its low from last autumn. The index rose 0.6 per cent to carry it 20 per cent above a bottom hit in October. That means Wall Street’s main measure of health has [...]
Online shopping sales slump to lowest levels since before pandemic June 9, 2023 The cost of living crisis has hindered the online shopping sales boom with digital sales falling to their lowest levels since before the pandemic. The number of online sales fell by 3.3 per cent during May as punters, under the cosh, have had to cut down on the number of goods they buy from digital [...]
Link chief John Howells on bank branch closures, payments and the battle for cash June 8, 2023 Link's chief John Howells says the nation can't "abandon" its cash users.
Sunak in DC: Britain to host AI summit amid creators’ ‘nuclear war’ risks June 8, 2023 The UK will host the first global summit on artificial intelligence (AI) safety, Rishi Sunak announced ahead of talks on the issue with Joe Biden. The summit, which will be held in the autumn, will consider the need for international co-ordinated action to mitigate the risks of the emerging technology. Ahead of Thursday’s meeting with [...]
Boris ‘hosted friend’ at Chequers during lockdown – reports June 8, 2023 Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie hosted a close friend at Chequers in May 2021 for an overnight stay while some Covid-19 restrictions were still in place, according to reports. A spokesman for the former prime minister said that the visit was “entirely lawful”, after The Guardian newspaper reported that events organiser Dixie Maloney stayed [...]
Jimmy Choo: The shoes I still haven’t designed, and my fight to save London’s creative industry June 7, 2023 The name Jimmy Choo might remind you of Carrie Bradshaw’s shoe infatuation on Sex and the City – “No!” she cried in one episode, dropping her stilettos off the edge of the Staten Island Ferry. “My Choos!” What it’s unlikely to remind you of is the City of London. But Jimmy Choo has always lived [...]
Bike theft now ‘decriminalised’ as Met fail to solve nine out of ten cases June 7, 2023 More than nine in ten bike thefts reported to the Met Police went unsolved in 2022, according to Home Office statistics. Some 93.7 per cent of reported thefts went unsolved in the capital last year, higher than the national average of 89 per cent. The Lib Dems, who crunched the numbers, said the figures suggested [...]
Exclusive: Tao Group to open its first UK venture at new Marylebone hotel June 6, 2023 Hakkasan owner Tao Group Hospitality will launch its first new UK restaurant at the new The BoTree hotel in Marylebone, which is set to open its doors this summer. The hospitality offering will include flagship restaurant Lavo, which will serve “coastal Italian fare” as well as a more casual dining option and bars. New York-based [...]
Three years after Covid began, Japan is welcoming tourists June 5, 2023 Just hours after arriving in Japan from London, a geisha girl is teaching me a drinking game. She sings a lilting, nursery rhyme-style tune as we take turns tapping the small wooden box between us, trying to catch each other out by whipping the box away so the other person must lay a closed fist on the [...]
The Notebook: Andy Coulson on Succession, female leaders and Monday madness June 5, 2023 After five days of ‘spoiler alert’ dodging, I settled down to watch the finale of Succession this weekend. Having caught the odd review headline, I was poised for something special. And yet … why did I find the ending just a bit disappointing? The answer, of course, is simple: It Should Have Been Shiv. Tom’s [...]