London’s hotel mojo is back as occupancy rates climb albeit pandemic recovery remains ‘uphill battle’ June 29, 2022 Recovering occupancy rates and food and beverage sales are rapidly powering a recovery in the London hotel market, albeit slower than the industry had anticipated. For the first time since prior to the pandemic, occupancy rates in London are now exceeding the rest of the UK, at 66.9 per cent, overtaking UK rates of 68.4 [...]
Three in four Brits need to take action to make ends meet as merciless cost of living crisis matures June 29, 2022 Four out of five Brits are concerned about making ends meet as living costs surge and three-quarters need to take action to cope with the financial pressures, a new report has found. Over a third (35 per cent) plan to cut back on non-essential leisure and holiday spending, according to the Scottish Widows data, while [...]
Are we heading for a global recession? June 29, 2022 Keith Wade, Chief Economist, discusses what central bankers’ next move might be, what markets are pricing in and what the probability of a recession is. People are worrying about a global recession and with good reason. But what if the factors driving rising prices are beyond the limits of policymakers’ control? The squeeze on living [...]
DeFi-ing the rules: five opportunities and five risks of decentralised finance June 29, 2022 In the Star Wars universe, the Force is a mystic energy field generated by living beings that binds the galaxy together. The ability to wield the Force gives Jedi Knights their superhuman abilities, making them peacekeepers of the galaxy. But how powerful would the Jedi be if every ‘transaction’ that used the Force had to [...]
Digital debt collector braced for ‘uncomfortable’ growth amid soaring cost of living June 29, 2022 The boss of fintech debt collector Ophelos said the cost of living crunch would lead to a surge in demand for its services this year as it revealed a fresh £5m funding round today to double down on growth.
B&M quarterly sales dip after retailer warns shoppers could cut back amid high inflation June 29, 2022 Discount retailer B&M has seen sales plummet in its first quarter, against strong lockdown comparatives, as cash-strapped Brits cut back on discretionary spending. In a trading update for the 13 weeks from 27 March to 25 June, the London-listed business said group revenue had dropped 2.2 per cent on a constant currency basis. Across the [...]
Stagecoach returns to growth as bus journeys bounce back to 81 per cent of pre-Covid levels June 29, 2022 Britain’s biggest bus company Stagecoach today said it now in a “good financial position” after “recovering customer demand” saw passenger journeys bounce back to 81 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. The public transport operator said it had “firmly returned to growth” after its profits more than doubled year on year, from £17m in the financial [...]
Central banks have fooled themselves into thinking they have power over inflation June 29, 2022 If we look under the bonnet of central banks, we find a debate which is almost theological in its nature.
BEIS Select Committee raises alarm bells over UK’s ‘dire’ climate progress report June 29, 2022 BEIS has raised alarm bells over a key report on Government’s progress to net zero, deeming it "dire", and "catastrophic for the country/
Letters: Talking it out (but no mail) June 29, 2022 [Re: Postal services face summer mayhem as strikes loom, June 28] I do hope that Royal Mail delivery workers going on strike won’t lead to unnecessary delays in the arrival of ballot papers to any other industry thinking of strike action. That would truly be a “confuse an American” level of irony. Lee Kelley [Re: [...]