Beware the unintended consequences of making a Living Wage mandatory November 4, 2013 IT’S LIVING Wage week, and many are endorsing the principle of raising low pay, whether by boosting the minimum wage, or by forcing local authorities and pressuring other private employers to pay the Living Wage. It’s an attractive proposition, advocated by politicians as varied as Ed Miliband and Boris Johnson. But it is worth pausing [...]
Merlin set to close books early after strong demand November 4, 2013 MERLIN Entertainment is planning to close the books on its £3bn stock market flotation ahead of schedule thanks to the strength of demand from institutional investors. The operator of Legoland, Alton Towers and Madame Tussauds is now expected to close the book on its initial public offering (IPO) later this week, instead of 11 November [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 04 November 2013 November 4, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Aircraft carrier cost to rise to £6.2bn Britain will this week reveal another substantial increase in the cost of building its two new aircraft carriers, declaring that total funding for the programme will rise by another £800m to £6.2bn.Philip Hammond, defence secretary, is expected to say that a new set of demands – [...]
Rothschild to advise on Poundland’s flotation November 4, 2013 BUDGET retailer Poundland has lined up Rothschild to advise on its upcoming public offering, which is expected to value the firm at more than £700m. The investment bank, which declined to comment on the issue, is expected to bring in other advisers to work on the flotation in the next few weeks. Poundland – which [...]
London Report: Recovery looks on track in busy reporting week November 3, 2013 SERVICES figures due out this week, plus the latest updates on industrial and manufacturing production, look set to show continued recovery for the British economy. “September’s industrial production figures are likely to show that overall output partially recovered from its surprise 1.1 per cent monthly fall in August,” said Martin Beck, of Capital Economics. “Manufacturing [...]
Sorry to be a party-pooper, but this is the wrong kind of growth October 31, 2013 EVEN the Bank of England sometimes makes mistakes. It was forced to correct its most recent data on consumer borrowing yesterday, in a development that confirmed what many of us feared all along: credit is beginning to surge dangerously. Yes, the economy has rebounded; but in many ways we are seeing the wrong kind of [...]
The CBI boss on why political risk is now the biggest threat to business October 31, 2013 John Cridland tells Allister Heath and Elizabeth Fournier that investors are beginning to worry about the UK AFTER more than two decades spent inhabiting the CBI’s offices in Centre Point, the shockingly ugly high-rise just off Tottenham Court Road, John Cridland is on the move. When not kept busy preparing his submission to the chancellor [...]
We must stop using water bills as a limitless environmental credit card October 31, 2013 WHILE all attention has been focused on rising energy bills, Britain’s water industry is facing its own troubles – with its recent history characterised by drought orders, hosepipe bans, and tariff hikes. But the efficiency of the UK water supply is an issue that can no longer be ignored. There is new management at water [...]
Westfield turns five years old October 29, 2013 WESTFIELD London is celebrating its fifth birthday today having racked up £4bn in retail sales and 130m visitors since it first opened its doors 2008. The Australian retailer recently won consent to push ahead with £1bn plans to extend the shopping centre in Shepherd’s Bush, with John Lewis understood to be close to agreeing to [...]
London looks to build on Islamic investment lead October 28, 2013 A GUIDING principle of the World Islamic Economic Forum is that business and trade connections can bring the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds closer – politically, culturally, and economically. Today, speakers including Lord Green, the UK’s trade and investment minister, Kamal bin Ahmed, acting chief executive of Bahrain’s Economic Development Board, and Jaguar Land Rover chief [...]