Wall Street opens flat as investors await Fed minutes August 18, 2021 Wall Street’s main benchmarks opened broadly flat today as investors held back from making any sudden moves until after the publication of minutes from the Fed’s latest Federal Open Market Committee meeting. The blue-chip S&P 500 edged 0.07 per cent higher to 4,450.73 points, while the Dow Jones inched down 0.07 per cent to 35,321.59 [...]
Ocado sales dip as pre-pandemic habits return, supermarket data finds August 17, 2021 The UK’s return to normality has been accompanied by a return to pre-pandemic shopping habits, with online and overall grocery sales declining. The latest grocery market share figures from Kantar for the period ending 8 August show that grocery sales fell by four per cent. The latest twelve weeks saw the lowest level of online [...]
Editorial: Slashing staff pay for remote work is a slap-dash response to the shifts of the pandemic August 11, 2021 To say the cost of living in London is more expensive than the cost of living in rural Sussex is so obvious, it hardly bears repeating. By every price index, rent, transport, coffee, pints or food, London tops the charts. Companies have always forked out more money for employees who live in expensive metropolitan cities. [...]
Ocado allows employees to work from abroad for a month August 9, 2021 Ocado Group has announced its employees will be allowed to work remotely from a country of their choosing for up to a month. The online grocer’s Chief People Officer, Claire Ainscough, confirmed the policy in comments to The Times, stating that the company is still encouraging a return to the office. The news comes as [...]
Slowing US labour market recovery tempers Wall Street August 4, 2021 US shares dropped sharply on Wednesday morning after weaker than expected payrolls data tempered investor sentiment. The blue-chip S&P 500 dipped 0.42 per cent to 4,404, while the Dow Jones was clipped 0.78 per cent to 34,848. The tech-heavy Nasdaq edged down 0.06 per cent 14,752. Read more: Demand ‘peaks’ as US services recovery slows [...]
Power of 10: UK more than doubles number of $10bn companies amid tech boom July 21, 2021 The number of UK tech businesses worth at least $10bn (£7.3bn) has more than doubled in the last six months, marking the latest sign of a boom in the British tech sector. Fintech darling Revolut, recently-listed Wise and online grocery giant Ocado are among the businesses to gain the title of decacorn in the first [...]
Companies boosted by Covid rank among the worst market performers July 19, 2021 Companies boosted by the onset of the Covid crisis rank among the worst performers on the market over the last year. Takeaway delivery company Just Eat Takeaway.com has benefitted from a surge in orders since the arrival of the virus as a result of Brits rushing to find substitutes to dining out during lockdowns. However, [...]
Ocado: Thousands of orders cancelled as robots cause fire July 19, 2021 A fire at an Ocado fulfillment centre in south-east London on Friday has caused the online grocer to cancel thousands of orders. The blaze occurred when three of the robots that help pick groceries collided at the Erith site. About 800 staff members had to be evacuated and firefighters worked through the night to stop [...]
Ocado fears disruption after south London warehouse fire July 19, 2021 Ocado fears disruption this week after a major fire at a south east London warehouse. Several dozen firefighters were called to the company’s depot in Erith on Friday afternoon after a robot collision resulted in the conflagration. The Erith site handles up to 150,000 orders a week. Ocado was forced to cancel a host of [...]
US stocks muted as Powell moves to temper inflation fears July 14, 2021 US stocks were broadly flat on Wednesday morning after Fed Chair Jay Powell suggested that inflation could run hot in the coming months. The blue-chip S&P 500 edged up 0.08 per cent, while the Dow Jones added 0.01 per cent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.02 per cent during the morning session. Read more: Powell: US [...]