Eddie Jones will be under the spotlight on his first return to Murrayfield since being ‘verbally and physically abused’ in 2018 February 7, 2020 There can be few places Eddie Jones would rather avoid more than Murrayfield this weekend as he leads England north of the border amid growing doubts about his team. Despite taking them to a Rugby World Cup final just three months ago, last weekend’s 24-17 defeat to France in the opening round of the Six [...]
Aluminium group EN Plus to buy back a fifth of shares February 6, 2020 Russian aluminium and power producer EN Plus said it would buy back a fifth of its shares from state bank VTB for $1.6bn (£1.24bn) in response to the US lifting sanctions on the group. Oligarch Oleg Deripaska, who has close ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin, offloaded his controlling stake in EN Plus to VTB [...]
Coronavirus: Opec agrees provisional 600,000 barrel oil production cut February 6, 2020 Oil cartel Opec’s technical committee has recommended a 600,000 barrel per day production cut in an attempt to counter falling demand due to China’s coronavirus outbreak. Sources told Reuters that the group was awaiting Russia’s decision on the potential cut, which is larger than the 500,000 barrel curb that had been mooted. If approved by [...]
Total chief warns of coronavirus impact as annual income falls February 6, 2020 The chief executive of French oil firm Total today warned that coronavirus would have a significant impact on oil demand as the company reported a 13 per cent fall in annual income. Patrick Pouyanne said that the outbreak, which has killed 563 people thus far and knocked oil prices by about $10, said the impact [...]
Republicans acquit Donald Trump in impeachment trial February 6, 2020 President Donald Trump was acquitted yesterday in his Senate impeachment trial, saved by fellow Republicans who rallied to protect him nine months before he asks voters in a deeply divided America to give him a second White House term. The businessman-turned-politician, 73, survived only the third presidential impeachment trial in U.S. history – just like [...]
Rory Stewart: We need less politics and more action to tackle terrorism February 5, 2020 Speaking to a man in Streatham who’d cradled a bleeding victim after Sunday’s terrorist attack reminded me of many places far away. I remembered the attack on my compound in southern Iraq, the screams and wreckage of bombs in Baghdad and Kabul, my friend Haider who was killed by terrorists, because he worked for me [...]
Danske Bank warns profit could almost halve amid fallout from money-laundering scandal February 5, 2020 Danske Bank warned this morning that its profit could almost halve this year as continued fallout from a €200bn money-laundering scandal and negative interest rates weigh on the Danish lender. The bank’s 2019 net profit was flat at 15.1 billion Danish crowns (£1.7bn), but Danske forecast that the total would fall to eight to 10 [...]
Oil price edges up on Opec production cuts hopes February 4, 2020 Oil prices showed signs of recovery this morning as officials from oil cartel Opec were set to meet in Vienna to discuss the rapid fall in prices due to China’s coronavirus outbreak. Brent crude clawed back 0.7 per cent to reach $54.92, whilst West Texas Intermediate, which on Monday breached the $50 mark, gained 1.5 [...]
Super-rich international shoppers flock to UK department stores February 4, 2020 The UK is the second most popular shopping destination in the world for super-rich tourists, with visitors spending up to €35,000 each with luxury British retailers, according to the latest research. Britain attracts 31 per cent of international “elite shoppers”, second only to France which took a 36 per cent share last year. Super-rich visitors [...]
Oil prices waver as Opec mulls further production cuts to offset coronavirus impact February 3, 2020 Oil prices were largely steady today despite growing economic disruption from the coronavirus outbreak amid rumours that producer cartel Opec is considering even deeper cuts to oil output. Brent crude fell 0.2 per cent to $56.49, whilst West Texas Intermediate showed a small gain of 0.4 per cent to reach $51.74. Last week prices fell [...]