Nick Taylor, Pebble Beach and the importance of a golfer’s second win February 10, 2020 They say that plenty of people can win one golf tournament but that it takes a real player to win two. That’s a sentiment that Nick Taylor will appreciate after the Canadian held off Phil Mickelson to win the Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Sunday, more than five years on from his maiden PGA Tour title. [...]
Ofgem to lower the energy price cap by £17 for 15m households February 7, 2020 Ofgem will cut the energy price cap by £17 from April as lower wholesale costs drive the price downwards, the regulator confirmed today. That will leave the default price cap at £1,162 for April to September, down from its previous level of £1,179. Ofgem said 11m households will benefit from the lower cap. The pre-payment [...]
Record number of cheap energy deals available for UK households February 5, 2020 UK households now have a far wider choice of cheap energy deals, with 78 tariffs now priced under £1000 a year. According to consumer group Which, the number of these tariffs has exploded since the energy price cap was introduced last January, when there were only 12 available. There are also 25 deals now under [...]
The ethical executive is coming to a boardroom near you February 3, 2020 We are undergoing a paradigm shift in our political, economic, and commercial worlds — and it’s truly stranger than fiction. Donald Trump, Brexit, Cambridge Analytica, the weaponisation of data, deep fakes, and artificial intelligence (AI) — phenomena that would have seemed inconceivable a decade ago are now our day-to-day reality. While some businesses are ahead of [...]
France 24-17 England: Four things we learned as Les Bleus dazzle in Six Nations opener February 2, 2020 If France were seeking a performance to answer sceptics who suspected their latest fresh start might prove another false dawn, then this resounding Six Nations defeat of England ought to silence most. Les Bleus married their trademark attacking flair with uncharacteristically resolute defending as they swept into a 24-0 lead on Sunday at the Stade [...]
Carney goes out not with a bang but a whimper January 31, 2020 There may be a part of Mark Carney that will be glad to see the back of the Bank of England. His eight-year tenure, which ends in March, has been dominated by political turbulence and so, perhaps inevitably, rows about the politicisation of the Old Lady. Threadneedle Street is not alone in being pulled into [...]
‘Enough is enough’: Two thirds of South Western Railway passengers fed up with fares January 28, 2020 Barely a third of South Western Railway passengers feel they are getting value for money, after months of strikes and delays caused misery across the network. According to the National Rail passenger survey, just 34 per cent of customers were satisfied with fares, the lowest score of any franchise in the country. Overall passenger satisfaction [...]
What happened to the pound, euro and US dollar in 2019? January 20, 2020 It has been a year of ups and downs for sterling, largely dominated by political and geopolitical factors. Investors’ concern over the outcome of Brexit largely overshadowed other factors. Despite celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2019, it wasn’t a banner year for the euro. Over the last 20 years, the euro has strengthened by 27 [...]
Do central banks have enough firepower to fight the next recession? January 17, 2020 By the end of 2019, the UK and US had achieved a decade recession free. That’s an impressive feat, but fears of a recession remain. In fact, those fears peaked last year due to worrying signals from financial markets. When the next recession does raise its head, it will be up to our central banks [...]
World’s largest hedge fund sees gold price rising 30 per cent amid global uncertainty January 15, 2020 The co-chief investment officer of the world’s biggest hedge fund has said gold could surge to a record high above $2,000 an ounce as global political uncertainties increase. “There is so much boiling conflict,” Greg Jenson, who helps oversee over $160bn at Connecticut-based Bridgewater Associates, told the Financial Times. Read more: Gold and oil prices [...]