FTSE 100 dips as coronavirus infections come back into focus November 18, 2020 The FTSE 100 has fallen for a second day as investors return their focus to rising coronavirus cases and new restrictions after positive vaccine news boosted global markets. London’s blue-chip index was down 0.5 per cent shortly after the open, taking it to 6,336 points. The FTSE 250 of slightly smaller firms was 0.2 per [...]
Editorial: London cannot be kept under lock and key a moment longer than planned November 17, 2020 Over the past fortnight, since new national lockdown restrictions came into force, there has been something of a suspicion abroad in London and the south-east that our part of the country has been collateral damage as a result of increasing cases and deaths elsewhere in the country. To our untrained eye, new data released Tuesday [...]
Exclusive: Tube use hit post-lockdown peak on day before new restrictions November 17, 2020 Tube use peaked on the day before the second national lockdown came into effect as Londoners rushed to offices and shops ahead of the new restrictions. New figures from Transport for London reveal that there were nearly 1.8m journeys on the London Underground on 4 November, around 400,000 more than the same day a week [...]
Sarah Frankland on how to get into lockdown baking through macarons November 17, 2020 Just as lockdown 1 started there was a huge spike in people making baking-related google searches, with “banana bread” and “cheesecake” becoming almost as popular as “coronavirus” and “the end of civilisation as we know it”. Now we’re well into the sequel of lockdown, which is somehow both more dangerous and more boring, people are [...]
FTSE 100 and US stocks slip as investors focus on virus November 17, 2020 The FTSE 100 fell along with global stocks after jumping yesterday, as investors eased off on their rush into risk assets with months of uncertainty still ahead for the global economy. Drug firm Moderna’s announcement that its vaccine had shown to be almost 95 per cent effective in late-stage trials cheered markets yesterday, sending the [...]
Coronavirus vaccine could pump £41bn into London’s economy November 17, 2020 The effective rollout of a coronavirus vaccine would likely inject £41bn into London’s economy and save tens of thousands of jobs, according to new research. Under a “best case scenario”, a vaccine rollout would see office workers return to their desks for four days a week, generating an extra £41bn for the economy, according to [...]
UK retail footfall ‘more resilient’ in second lockdown November 16, 2020 Retail footfall has been more resilient during the second coronavirus lockdown compared to the first closure of non-essential stores in March, the latest analysis showed. Between Thursday and Saturday footfall in retail destinations rose by an average of 13.2 per cent from the same three days in the week before, when the lockdown began. Shoppers [...]
Arcadia taking ‘appropriate steps’ amid second lockdown but denies administration November 16, 2020 Sir Philip Green’s retail empire Arcadia has said it is taking “all appropriate steps” to mitigate the impact of a second lockdown and hit back at claims it is about to enter into administration. The second lockdown in England comes at a precarious time as retailers prepared for the Christmas period hoping to salvage the [...]
Explainer: What are green bonds? And how will the UK’s first green gilts work? November 15, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced yesterday that Britain will issue its first green government bond next year, in a bid to capitalise on growing investor demand for assets that fund environmentally-friendly projects. The market for investments with an environment, social, or governance (ESG) focus has increased exponentially in recent years. Around $250bn (£189bn) of green bonds [...]
Councils pile pressure on firms over unpaid business rates during pandemic November 12, 2020 Local authorities have begun to turn up the heat on businesses that have been unable to pay rates bills during the pandemic, with some pursuing claims through the courts. According to property consultancy Colliers International, an increasing number of clients are receiving letters demanding payment or court summons. Office occupiers were not granted a business [...]