Catering giant Compass Group to raise £2bn to shore up finances during coronavirus crisis May 19, 2020 Catering giant Compass Group has launched a £2bn share offer this morning as it seeks to raise extra cash to strengthen its balance sheet during the coronavirus crisis. Compass, which is the world’s largest caterer, also scrapped its outlook for 2020, saying the coronavirus pandemic has had a “profound impact” on the company. Many of [...]
Landmark post-Brexit immigration bill returns to parliament May 18, 2020 The government’s landmark post-Brexit immigration bill will return to parliament today for its second reading before MPs. Under the new legislation, freedom of movement for EU citizens will cease, and will be replaced by a so-called points-based immigration system. Home secretary Priti Patel said that the bill would “give the UK full control of our [...]
UK economy receives fresh warnings before Rishi Sunak addresses MPs May 18, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is preparing to address MPs today following new dire predictions of the impact of coronavirus on the UK economy. Sunak is set to face questions over how the UK will pay for huge public borrowing currently propping up the economy. The Treasury boss extended his job retention scheme to October last week, [...]
The office is changing – and that means a shift in the real estate market, too May 15, 2020 When businesses emerge from lockdown, many will seek ways to reduce their operating costs to maintain margins in a post-COVID-19 world, when revenue generation is likely to be appreciably more challenging. Real estate often represents the second largest operating cost of most businesses, after staff salaries. It’s regrettably very likely, then, that headcount and office [...]
Video-by-default and a silver surfer generation: Predicting a post-pandemic tech world May 15, 2020 Everybody is in the business of prediction these days. The path of the pandemic, and its impact on health services. The shape of the impending recession, the stock market or the oil price. Unemployment figures or the size of the national debt. As a venture investor, I can’t predict the future better than anyone else. [...]
WH Smith revenue dives 85 per cent during coronavirus lockdown May 14, 2020 WH Smith reported an 85 per cent drop in revenue for last month after the coronavirus lockdown forced the retailer to close high street and transport hub stores. The newsagent chain said travel revenue plunged 91 per cent due to travel bans around the world, and high street revenue was down 74 per cent. WH [...]
Twitter allows staff to work from home permanently May 13, 2020 Twitter has told employees they can work from home “forever” as the social media firm adapts to new working conditions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. In a company-wide email yesterday chief executive Jack Dorsey said Twitter had been one of the first adopters of the flexible working model and would allow staff to continue to [...]
UK GDP shrinks: Economists warn worst yet to come as lockdown persists May 13, 2020 The UK economy shrank by a record 5.8 per cent in March, thanks almost entirely to just over a week of coronavirus lockdown that began on the 23rd. In the first quarter as a whole GDP contracted by two per cent, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today. This was its worst performance since [...]
Coronavirus: UK economy shrinks two per cent in first quarter of 2020 May 13, 2020 The UK economy shrank by two per cent in the first three months of 2020 due to the impact of coronavirus, official GDP data showed today. The slump showed the UK economy’s contracted at its fastest rate since the height of the financial crisis in 2008. The lockdown, which started on 23 March, saw the [...]
Advice: Staying alive with a bounce back loan May 13, 2020 Business owners watched the Prime Minister’s broadcast with bated breath on Sunday. Hope of clarity for when and how companies will get back to some form of normality were soon extinguished. The vague roadmap to recovery leaves the majority in limbo, reliant on diminishing cash reserves and government support. One bright spot on the long [...]