Eurozone manufacturing sector suffers worst month in seven years October 1, 2019 The Eurozone’s manufacturing sector suffered its worst month in seven years in September, according to a closely-followed industry survey, as the malaise in the area’s economy shows no sign of relenting. Read more: Sterling sinks after ‘simply shocking’ manufacturing data Factory output decreased markedly in September, with IHS Markit’s Eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) [...]
Marketing trends 2019: Interactive content and voice search are in, annoying chatbots are out September 28, 2019 Marketing is an industry undergoing seismic changes. New technology, changing consumer attitudes and shrinking budgets mean marketers are constantly having to adapt. But while many large advertisers have tightened the purse strings, marketing remains a key way for businesses to drive growth. A recent report by marketing consultancy Lewis, which looked at the world’s 300 [...]
IFS: Johnson’s tax cut pledges will cost billions September 27, 2019 A bonanza of tax cuts promised by Boris Johnson will cost billions of pounds, an influential research group has warned. The Prime Minister’s pledge to raise the threshold of National Insurance contributions (NIC) and higher-rate income tax has come under damning criticism from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), which said this morning that the [...]
European factory ‘summer slump’ continues through August September 2, 2019 European factory activity stagnated further in August, as a gloomy spell for companies was extended by a continued fall in demand. Manufacturing output fell for the seventh month in a row, according to IHS Markit’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a closely-followed measure of sector activity. Economists recorded a PMI score of 47, where anything below [...]
How the offices of tomorrow can prepare for climate change August 22, 2019 Until relatively recently, climate change was spoken about as an abstraction. We knew it was a serious problem, but most people put it to the back of their minds. It felt too distant, too remote. We would agree on the need for “action”, nod sagely, then get back to our day jobs. That time has [...]
Rising charges: Customers pay up to £3,000 to make a car insurance claim August 19, 2019 Extra costs that come with making a car insurance claim have skyrocketed in recent years, according to research, with some drivers having to fork out up to £3,000 to claim money back after a fire or theft. Since 2012, the average extra charge of making a claim for fire, theft and accidental damage – known [...]
Admiral profits dented £33m by insurance regulation change August 14, 2019 Car insurer Admiral has taken a £33.3m hit to its profits following the introduction of changes to how compensation for those injured in accidents is calculated. The figures The government changed the Ogden rate, which governs how much insurers pay to people seriously injured in car accidents, in July. Admiral said the changes had cut [...]
Car crash: Hastings share price sinks as rate change hurts profit August 8, 2019 Insurer Hastings saw shares fall seven per cent this morning as profits were slashed nearly in half over the first six months of the year. Last month, the government changed the Ogden discount rate, which determines how much insurers have to pay out to people who have been injured in accidents, to a level which [...]
Don’t underestimate Boris Johnson, PM’s adviser tells Brussels July 29, 2019 Boris Johnson’s EU adviser has urged Brussels not to “underestimate” the new Prime Minister as he repeated the government’s pledge to leave the bloc on 31 October. David Frost, a former adviser to Johnson while he was foreign secretary, said many people were “inclined” to underestimate Johnson but that doing so would be a mistake. [...]
FCA tries to take consumers back to the nineties ahead of PPI deadline July 29, 2019 The animatronic head of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the eight-time world memory champion have been enlisted by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to help consumers remember if they were mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). With a month to go before the deadline for making PPI complaints to providers, the FCA has launched a campaign that aims [...]