Tech stocks – slow-down or slump? July 27, 2021 With the COVID-19 pandemic accelerating the shift towards a digital-first world; technology stocks rose to all-time highs in 2020, as people spent more time online.1 However, as economies have begun to reopen following the rollout of highly effective coronavirus vaccines; tech stocks sold-off as investors rotated towards sectors set to benefit from reopening. In this [...]
Moonpig more than doubles revenue as lockdown delivers trading boom July 27, 2021 Online card retailer Moonpig has more than doubled its revenue in its first annual results since a bumper London stock market float earlier this year. The greetings card specialist posted revenue of £368.2m in the year to the end of April, a huge jump from the £173.1m recorded in the previous year. Reported pre-tax profit [...]
Average UK house price 30 per cent up on 2007 market peak July 27, 2021 The average price of a home in the UK has risen to a new high of £230,700, up 30 per cent on the 2007 market peak. Since June of last year, the average price has risen by 5.4 per cent, more than double the year on year price growth recorded 12 months ago, when annual [...]
Exclusive: London businesses call on Williamson to tackle capital’s skills crisis July 26, 2021 A group of London businesses have called on Gavin Williamson to tackle London’s growing skills shortage, warning that the capital’s recovery from the pandemic was on the line. In a letter to the education secretary, coordinated by London First and seen by City A.M., the businesses call for a swathe of new policies to be [...]
Senior management redundancies spike in the wake of Brexit July 26, 2021 Structural changes to the financial services sector following Britain’s exit from the EU has led to a spike in redundancy rates for senior managers. Research from Fox & Partners indicates a nine-fold increase in senior management redundancies. Last year saw 559 senior managers in the sector lose their jobs, up from 61 the year before. [...]
Amazon plans to accept Bitcoin payments while institutional investors show interest July 26, 2021 CryptoCompare data shows the price of Bitcoin (BTC) started the week at $31,000 and quickly fell below its support at $30,000 before recovering and slowly climbing upward over the last few days.
Vaccine rollout and surging consumer spending to fuel fastest economic growth since WW2 July 26, 2021 The rapid rollout of Covid vaccines and a surge in consumer spending has prompted forecasters to improve their outlook for the UK economy. Forecasts published by EY Item Club predict that the UK economy will grow 7.6 per cent this year, the fastest pace of expansion since 1941. The recent burst in consumer spending triggered [...]
The wellness tax: providing healthy meals and fitness classes for staff should be tax-free for employers July 25, 2021 Over the last 18 months, we’ve heard a lot about the impact of the pandemic on mental health, and with good reason. According to the Office for National Statistics, around 1 in 5 adults experience some form of depression in early 2021 – more than double the number before the pandemic. More than half of [...]
Context is everything when it comes to solving the pingdemic, we need measured rules on self-isolation July 24, 2021 Rising app deletions, over 600,000 pings in one week, stores trying to quell panic buying, conflicting advice from the Government when it comes to notifications. The NHS contact tracing app is facing a nightmare backdrop as infection rates rise across the country. It should be a major asset. Instead, the frequent un-contextualised notifications demonstrate that [...]
London Tories call for Khan to reopen van and lorry scrappage scheme July 23, 2021 London’s Conservatives have today written to Mayor Sadiq Khan urging him put £50m from City Hall’s business rates reserves towards reopening scrappage schemes for vans and heavy vehicles ahead of the expansion of the ULEZ zone. Although Khan has so far provided £61m to drivers looking to trade in non-ULEZ compliant vehicles, the van and [...]