Trevor Steven: Gareth Southgate tops my football roll of honour for 2018 December 18, 2018 It has been a year when quality coaching came to the fore in football. The World Cup and the Premier League is full of top bosses who are getting the best out of their players. Here are my highlights. Southgate shines in Russia Where else to start but with England’s efforts at the World Cup? [...]
Billionaire Mike Ashley and The Entertainer may bid for iconic toy store Hamleys December 14, 2018 Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley and British toy retailer The Entertainer are among the bidders interested in a takeover of Hamleys, according to a report. The world's biggest toy shop has been owned by Chinese fashion conglomerate C.banner since 2015, but Sky News reported this morning that bids are now being considered for an acquisition [...]
European politicians blast Gazprom over Nord Steam 2 pipeline December 13, 2018 Shares in Russian energy giant Gazprom dropped earlier today after the European Parliament voted to condemn the construction of Nord Stream 2, a pipeline running through the Baltic Sea. Shares initially fell 1.8 per cent to 153.30 rubles as markets opened in Moscow. But they later rebounded, ending the day up 0.45 per cent to 156.49 rubles. [...]
IEA: Opec cuts hit the spot as oil set to stabilise at $60 per barrel December 13, 2018 A cut in output from oil-producing cartel Opec will hit the spot as oil prices look set to stabilise at a floor of around $60 per barrel after a volatile year, the International Energy Agency said today. Prices hit a year high of $86 in early October as investors feared supplies would drop as the US [...]
Trump denies asking former lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law December 13, 2018 Donald Trump has denied directing his former lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law following Cohen’s sentencing for making hush-money payments to aid Trump’s election campaign. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison yesterday after pleading guilty to the violation of campaign law and lying to Congress about a proposed Trump Tower project in [...]
Oil prices drop as Saudis hint Opec output cuts could be lower than expected December 6, 2018 Oil prices have dropped sharply this morning as Saudi Arabia hinted that a proposed cut in output could be smaller than expected. International standard Brent Crude fell 4.9 per cent bringing the price to $58.71 per barrel. Oil producers’ cartel Opec is meeting today in Vienna in order to decide on a possible cut in [...]
UK Investors forecast returns of 8.1 per cent – with UK millennials expecting more December 6, 2018 UK investors expect annual returns of 8.1 per cent over the next five years, according to a major new global study. The finding, part of the Schroders Global Investor Study 2018, marked a notable fall from an expectation of 8.7 per cent in the UK in last year’s study. The returns, based on the average expectation of [...]
Rigged and ready: After recent gains, are oil prices set to recover? December 4, 2018 The oil market has had a tough time this year, with prices sliding since October. And yet, there’s been a radical turn of events over recent days, with the picture looking drastically different as the markets opened for trading this week. In fact, one of yesterday’s biggest market movements was oil, with brent crude surging [...]
Oil prices soar as US and China agree to hold fire in trade war December 3, 2018 Oil prices soared overnight after a ceasefire in the US-China trade war was announced yesterday. International standard Brent crude was up 4.7 per cent to $62.42 a barrel this morning UK time. At the G20 meeting in Argentina over the weekend the US and China, the world’s two largest economies, agreed not to impose new [...]
Qatar quits international oil cartel Opec amid ongoing regional tensions December 3, 2018 Qatar will leave the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) next month, its energy minister said today. “Qatar has decided to withdraw its membership from Opec effective January 2019 and this decision was communicated to Opec this morning,” Saad al-Kaabi, the country’s energy minister said at a press conference. The decision came after Qatar, [...]