Chris Tremlett: India tours pose unique challenges, even more so at this time February 3, 2021 An India tour can feel very alien for a cricketer, as England’s players there for a Test series that begins on Friday will know. It is a completely different culture to other places you visit, like Australia, South Africa and the Caribbean, and poses unique challenges. Cricketers are like gods to Indians, so when you [...]
Sony raises profit outlook by a third amid lockdown home entertainment boom February 3, 2021 Japanese electronics and media giant Sony Corp on Wednesday hiked its full-year profit outlook by a third as it taps surging demand for video games, music and movies as people feast on home entertainment amid Covid19 lockdowns. Reuters reports this morning. Sony now expects 94bn yen ($8.95bn) in operating profit in the 12 months through [...]
Why baijiu is set to take the UK spirits business by storm February 2, 2021 The famous Chinese poet Li Bai of the Tang Dynasty had some very precise ideas about drinking. He once wrote, “One’s drinking companions should be elegant, unrestrained, forthright, understanding, old friends or beautiful”. He further counselled that “The best places for drinking should be in front of flowers, in the bamboo forest, in a high [...]
Get your lockdown foodie kicks with a YORStory Zoom night February 2, 2021 As the current lockdown drags into its third month, simple pleasures like a meal at a restaurant or a trip to the pub are becoming increasingly distant memories. For those of you desperate for gustatory experiences and human contact, YORStory has launched a weekly series of food and drink themed workshops to rescue your Thursday [...]
Covid restrictions drive online food shopping to record high as customers eat in to help out February 2, 2021 Online grocery shopping hit a record 14 per cent share of the UK grocery market in January, as customers bought more food to enjoy from home. The growth was boosted by a 229 per cent year-on-year rise in online spending by retired households. Supermarkets saw sales growth accelerate to 12.2 per cent in the last [...]
Best of travel: From Canada to Mexico to find Trump’s legacy February 1, 2021 To tide us over until we’re able to travel again, we’re republishing classic travel stories from our archives. This week we revisit Ashwin Bhandari’s coast-to-coast trip across America to try to understand the Trump phenomenon. ••• The Seattle skyline, with the iconic Space Needle against the backdrop of Mt Rainier, may be familiar from TV [...]
Covid cases begin decline as ‘lockdown has worked’ January 28, 2021 Covid cases have begun to decline across the UK, according to the latest government-backed study, after England’s chief scientific adviser said there were early signs “lockdowns have worked”. The latest figures from Imperial College London’s React study showed around 1.57 per cent of people in the UK had the virus between 6 and 22 January — slightly [...]
J20 and Tango owner Britvic suffers slump in sales due to hospitality restrictions January 28, 2021 Soft drinks group Britvic, which owns J2O, R White’s lemonade and Robinsons, suffered a slump in sales in the first quarter due to restrictions on pubs, bars and restaurants. The FTSE 250 firm said this morning that total revenue declined 9.8 per cent to £328.1m in the three months ended 31 December. The Hemel Hempstead-based [...]
Brexit Transition: what businesses must do now January 28, 2021 The UK and the EU wrapped up a trade deal on Christmas Eve, bringing to an end years of negotiations. But though a deal has been struck, that doesn’t mean nothing’s changing. The UK has left the EU, and December 31 marked the end of the Brexit Transition period. The UK’s fresh start means that [...]
Fever-Tree to beat revenue expectations as supermarket sales soar in lockdown January 28, 2021 Fever-Tree expects to beat revenue expectations for last year following strong supermarket sales of its soft drinks and mixers during the pandemic. The firm said this morning that total revenue for 2020 is expected to be £252.1m, ahead of guidance provided in September. Revenue will be down three per cent on the previous year due [...]