‘Open for business’: US rolls out Covid travel requirements starting November 8 October 26, 2021 The Biden administration has said that minors and people from a dozen countries with a shortage of vaccines will be exempt from new rules that will require most travellers to the U.S. to be vaccinated against Covid-19. The government said it will require airlines to collect contact information on passengers regardless of whether they have [...]
THG ramps up governance overhaul and begins search for independent chair October 26, 2021 UK e-commerce company THG said this morning it has appointed a consulting firm to begin a search for a new independent chair for the company, in its latest attempt to appease City investors with doubts about the governance and transparency of the business. Alongside its third quarter results this morning, the group announced it had [...]
Central London office take-up hits highest level since 2019 October 25, 2021 Central London office take-up has reached its highest level since the end of 2019, according to real estate advisor CBRE. According to CBRE’s analysis of deals in central London, take up of office space has seen another increase for the third consecutive quarter. For the third quarter, some 2.7m sq ft was taken on, with [...]
Just Eat Takeaway urged to sell Grubhub by activist investor October 25, 2021 Just Eat Takeaway (JET) has been urged to sell or spin-off its US arm Grubhub by an activist investor by the end of the year. Investor Cat Rock Capital has said the food delivery firm’s management “failed to fix the deep and damaging undervaluation of its equity by taking tangible action to unlock the value [...]
Business confidence drops after tax hikes, says FSB report October 25, 2021 Forthcoming hikes to national insurance have dented business confidence ahead of the Budget, according to the latest quarterly report from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The group’s small business index (SBI) has decreased from 18.6 points in Q2 2021 to 16.4 in Q3 2021. FSB surveyed 1,383 small businesses in late September and the [...]
The Week Ahead: Markets set for flurry of big bank earnings, ahead of the Budget October 25, 2021 It was contrasting week for US and European markets last week, with the Dow and S&P500 once again setting the pace with more record highs, while European stocks lagged behind, finishing the week lower, despite a valiant attempt to recoup their losses from an early week sell-off. The recovery in the latter part of the [...]
Rishi Sunak is risking his Conservative credentials if he ignores business rates October 25, 2021 For anyone who watches economic policy, reforming business rates seems rather like changing the House of Lords: everyone agrees it’s absolutely vital, the system needs to be modernised to enhance our productivity, but no one away from the think-tank fringes actually wants to get involved. The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, promised in March 2020 to review [...]
Green, open and fiscally responsible: business demands revealed ahead of Budget October 25, 2021 UK businesses are calling on the Chancellor to focus on attracting investment back into the country as well as using incentives, rather than purely taxes, to transition to a greener economy. Data from EY’s Budget survey revealed that two third of the 1,000-plus businesses interviewed listed attracting investments as their main priority. However, respondents also [...]
Green, open and fiscally responsible: business demands revealed ahead of Budget – CityAM : CityAM October 24, 2021 UK businesses are calling on the Chancellor to focus on attracting investment back into the country as well as using incentives, rather than purely taxes, to transition to a greener economy. Data from EY’s Budget survey revealed that two third of the 1,000-plus businesses interviewed listed attracting investments as their main priority. However, respondents also [...]
Pizza Express and IHG back calls for VAT freeze October 24, 2021 More than 200 hospitality bosses have called on the Chancellor to freeze VAT for the sector at 12.5 per cent. CEOs of big names including Stonegate, Pizza Express and IHG Hotels, have urged Rishi Sunak to announce a permanent reduced rate on the Budget on October 27. They said businesses need more support to fully [...]