The Mandalorian Season 2, Episode 8 – S2E8 finale is pure Star Wars brilliance December 18, 2020 *** SPOILERS AHEAD: If you haven’t watched the most recent episodes of The Mandalorian Season 2, look away now*** So here we are at the end of season two, with The Mandalorian having been largely successful in its second season efforts. The show has managed to raise the stakes while not losing the episodic nature [...]
Tesco completes £8bn Malaysia and Thailand business sale prompting £5bn shareholder windfall December 18, 2020 Tesco has completed the £8bn sale of its Thailand and Malaysia businesses and is gearing up to pay a £5bn special dividend to shareholders. The supermarket announced this morning that the division’s have been acquired by C.P. Retail Development Company, which is backed by Charoen Pokphand Group, CP All Public Company and Charoen Pokphand Foods. [...]
FTSE 100 slips but global markets hit fresh highs on vaccines and stimulus December 17, 2020 The FTSE 100 slipped, weighed down by a rising pound, as global markets hit a new all-time high amid optimism about vaccines and fiscal and monetary stimulus. Despite the rise in global stocks, the FTSE 100 lagged behind as the pound rose 0.8 per cent to $1.360, a 32-month high. A higher pound weighs on [...]
The Mandalorian Season 2, Episode 7 – S2E7 hots up December 11, 2020 *** SPOILERS AHEAD: If you haven’t watched the most recent episodes of The Mandalorian Season 2, look away now*** We’re coming into the home stretch with this second season of The Mandalorian, a series that has been the jewel in the Disney+ crown and no doubt was behind their recent decision to greenlight shows for [...]
Supermarkets supplying N. Ireland to get three month grace period after transition period December 9, 2020 Supermarkets selling into Northern Ireland will have a grace period to adapt their supply systems to the post-Brexit trading reality, Michael Gove said today. When the Brexit transition period ends at the end of the year, Northern Ireland will remain aligned to the EU’s single market and goods arriving in Northern Ireland will be subject [...]
Mike Ashley’s firm should pay its debts to pensioners and taxpayers before it tries to buy Debenhams December 8, 2020 We are living in extraordinary times. At all levels of society people are being asked to make sacrifices — and this includes businesses. This week, news broke that Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is making a last-minute bid to purchase Debenhams. His company — of Sports Direct fame — has been thriving throughout the crisis, and [...]
Kingfisher joins supermarkets in returning business rates relief December 7, 2020 DIY retailer Kingfisher has joined a list of retailers announcing plans to repay millions in business rates relief it received at the start of the pandemic. The FTSE 100 firm has announced it will pay back £130m in tax relief, pointing to strong sales since it reopened its UK stores in April amid high demand [...]
The Mandalorian season 2 episode 6: S2E6 sees a legend return December 5, 2020 *** SPOILERS AHEAD: If you haven’t watched the most recent episodes of The Mandalorian Season 2, look away now*** After a few episodic adventures, the larger picture of this season of The Mandalorian seems to be coming together. Last episode we got a huge chunk of information about The Child – or Grogu, as he [...]
Lidl pays back £100m in business rates relief December 4, 2020 Budget supermarket Lidl has joined the Covid repayment train in announcing it will pay back millions in business rates relief it received at the start of the pandemic. In March, the supermarket sector along with other retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England, was granted a business rates holiday for 12 months. Lidl today said [...]
Supermarket heavyweights the Co-op and Waitrose face mounting pressure to return business rates relief December 4, 2020 High street titans the Co-op Group and Waitrose are facing mounting pressure to follow their peers and hand back millions of pounds of business rates relief dished out to keep the companies afloat during the pandemic. The Co-op is facing growing disquiet from members after refusing to emulate rivals Tesco, Morrisons, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Aldi, [...]