Aspinal of London prepares to close stores due to low city centre footfall September 17, 2020 Luxury brand Aspinal of London is the latest retailer to launch a restructuring process as it seeks to close stores due to a sharp drop in city centre footfall during the coronavirus pandemic. The firm, which has 10 stores as well as concessions in Harrods and Selfridges, has unveiled a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposal [...]
Virtual Events With WIBF This Autumn September 16, 2020 We’re delighted to be able to offer all of our current events online via Zoom. Open to members and guests WIBF look forward to welcoming you! How Do You Use Language to Build Trust? Wednesday 16th September 2020 8:30am to 9:30amMember : FREE Guest : £6 WIBF and HSBC are delighted to welcome Anya Zhuravkina [...]
UK unemployment: Experts say job losses to jump as furlough ends September 15, 2020 UK unemployment has finally started rising. Months of economic hardship and the winding down of the furlough scheme meant 695,000 people lost their jobs between March and August, according to payroll data. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the unemployment rate rose to 4.1 per cent in the three months to July. That was [...]
M&A sprees are addictive… and they cause me to sell, sell, sell September 15, 2020 Aswath Damodaran has a blunt message for companies considering an acquisition: “Don’t do it.” “I firmly believe that acquisitions are an addiction, that once companies start to grow through acquisitions, they cannot stop,” Aswath Damodaran, Professor of Finance at New York University Stern School of Business, told the audience at the CFA Institute Equity Research [...]
Deloitte starts audit split – the first of the Big Four to do so September 11, 2020 Deloitte will set up an audit governance board, making it the first of the Big Four accounting firms to make headway with demands from the UK regulator. The audit governance board will be effective from 1 January 2021. It will be chaired by Baroness Margaret Ford, who currently chairs Scottish media group STV and real [...]
UK economy grows 6.6 per cent in July as recovery continues September 11, 2020 The UK economy grew 6.6 per cent in July as it bounced back from the coronavirus lockdown of the spring, setting the stage for rapid GDP growth in the third quarter, official figures showed. The growth was slower than the 8.7 per cent expansion seen in June, however, and was from a low base after [...]
Signs of a positive Q4 despite lingering crisis September 9, 2020 Going into Q4 2020, we’re seeing EMEA starting to peek its head over the crest of the global pandemic. The just-released SS&C Intralinks Deal Flow Predictor for Q4 2020 forecasts that M&A announcements may see a YOY uptick of +6 percent, within a range of +15 percent to -2 percent. Distressed M&A deals have risen slightly here, but [...]
UK retail sector shows ‘promising’ signs of recovery in August September 8, 2020 UK retailers showed “promising” signs of recovery last month as sales jumped, the latest research showed. Retail sales increased 4.7 per cent on a like-for-like basis compared to August last year, when they had decreased 0.8 per cent. Total sales were up 3.9 per cent last month, against a decline of 0.4 per cent last [...]
Brits ignore PM’s diet plea as spending on takeaways surges September 8, 2020 Worried about the nation’s weight, Prime Minister Boris Johnson launched an anti-obesity drive in July. But the latest spending data suggests Britons resoundingly ignored his advice. Spending on takeaways and fast food jumped 20.7 per cent year on year in August, according to Barclaycard data released today. That was the biggest rise since the measure [...]
FTSE 100 reshuffle: ITV set to tumble from the big league September 1, 2020 The FTSE 100 is set for another dramatic reshuffle as the blue-chip index adapts to life during the coronavirus pandemic, with telly stalwart ITV almost certain to drop from the list and bargain retailer B&M likely to rise. FTSE Russell, which runs the index, will decide who’s up and who’s down according to prices at [...]