Twitter’s share price is tanking: Stock swoops below $26 IPO price August 20, 2015 The rapidly declining share price of Twitter has swooped lower than its IPO price of $26 – a new nadir for the troubled social network. Twitter shares have fallen by more than six per cent in early afternoon trading, sending stock as low as $25.94 per share, and tumbling past the marker which signals the [...]
Indices tumble as concerns rise on slowdown – New York Report August 20, 2015 The S&P 500 hit a more than six-month low yesterday, closing in negative territory for the year, on concern a deceleration in the Chinese economy would translate into slower global growth. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 358.04 points, or 2.06 per cent, to 16,990.69, the S&P 500 lost 43.88 points, or 2.11 per cent, [...]
Have we hit peak smartphone? Global growth hits two-year low as China’s sales decline for first time ever August 20, 2015 Is Peak Smartphone upon us? Drooping sales in China have caused smartphone sales to hit the brakes with the slowest growth rate since 2013, according to Gartner’s latest report, released today. In China, the world’s largest market, sales have fallen for the first time ever, with a four per cent decline year on year. Anshul [...]
iPhone 6S or 7: What to expect from the new Apple handset including rumours, release date and features August 20, 2015 Apple has a new phone due out and, as ever, rumours abound about what it will be like. Here’s what we (might) have to look forward to… Better Camera The smartphone space-race always promises thinner, lighter and faster. That, and a better camera. Apple’s iPhone already takes stunning pictures, although this is largely down to [...]
Meet the Gartner Hype Cycle for 2015: It’s all about self-driving cars and smart dust in emerging tech trends August 18, 2015 You've probably heard of the self-driving car, but smart dust probably isn't on your radar just yet. That's because the autonomous vehicle trend has hit what's known as the peak of inflated expectation. Smart dust on the other hand, is at the earliest stage of innovation, as defined by Gartner in its annual research on [...]
New peer-to-peer payment app Square Cash lets you transfer money to your friends using Apple Watch August 18, 2015 Next time you’re splitting a restaurant bill or paying your mate back for a shared Uber ride, there’s no need to reach for your wallet to pay anything. Or even reach for your phone, for that matter. You can now send your friends money directly from your wrist, as new peer-to-peer payment app Square Cash [...]
British smartphone users couldn’t care less about gimmicky features like curved displays – they care more about basics like battery life and reception August 18, 2015 Forget the curved screens and eyeball trackers – just get us a phone with a battery life worth having. This is the message smartphone users have for manufacturers, according to a new survey from price comparison site uSwitch. Wacky features abound when smartphone manufacturers launch their flagship models, with Samsung unveiling a curved display in [...]
Restaurant review: Fall down the culinary rabbit hole at Céleste at the Lanesborough hotel August 18, 2015 Céleste at the Lanesborough 9 Hyde Park Corner, SW1X 7TA Tel: 020 7259 5599 These are halcyon days for the London restaurant scene, a time when seemingly everybody is a foodie and every borough in London has at least half a dozen restaurants worth visiting. You can start to take it all for granted, [...]
Why the government should take outsourcing a radical step further August 17, 2015 Government raids on the methodology of business are commonplace. Some are more successful than others. But as the challenge of George Osborne’s edict to contemplate departmental cuts of as much as 40 per cent sinks in, the search will intensify. As I sat recently in the splendidly refurbished BT Tower – a guest of [...]
Executive pay: Capping bosses’ salaries will not raise the salaries of people at the bottom August 17, 2015 Today’s briefing paper from the High Pay Centre (HPC) has zoned in on the gap between FTSE 100 chief executive pay and the average salary of UK workers in 2014: 183/1. Perhaps it is the HPC’s emphasis – or perhaps it is the world’s recent focus on inequality – that has most people, in the media and [...]