UK employment figures hit record high as wages rise by 2.5 per cent January 24, 2018 UK employment surged to a record high of 32.2m people in work between September and November 2017, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), pushing the pound up by 0.7 per cent against the dollar. The employment rate, which is the proportion of people aged from 16 to 64 who were in [...]
RBS is selling its London Bishopsgate headquarters in cost-cutting drive January 23, 2018 Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which is currently majority-owned by the UK government, is planning to flog its London headquarters post-2019 as it pushes ahead with an extreme cost-cutting drive. The bank will move out of the 280 Bishopsgate building back down the road to number 250, which it is planning to revamp later this [...]
Asset manager consolidation continues as Franklin Templeton swallows up Edinburgh Partners January 17, 2018 The big fish of the asset management world are continuing to hunt down their smaller rivals, as Franklin Templeton Investments today announced it is set to buy Edinburgh Partners. The Scottish asset manager, which currently manages around $10bn (£7.2bn), is speculated by market sources to have sold for a value in the region of £200m. [...]
Red alert on Brexit risks to financial services given by City of London Corporation January 14, 2018 Top lobbyists at the City of London Corporation have upped their rating of the risks posed by Brexit, according to their latest audit of the risks facing the Square Mile. The Corporation’s report for a meeting this week of the risk and audit committee shows an updated “red” rating in its corporate risk register, an [...]
It’s all about the midterms: Donald Trump is a wildcard, and Congress hangs in the balance January 12, 2018 At the very end of 2017, the Republican party finally passed its first major piece of legislation since the Trump administration came to power. After a year in which its opponents criticised it again and again for a lack of new policies, the party managed to push through the biggest overhaul of the tax system [...]
Trust the process: Philadelphia 76ers executives explain the mantra that defined an NBA revolution January 10, 2018 If the Philadelphia 76ers, one half of Thursday night’s NBA match at the O2 Arena, had come to London in another of their more recent seasons, the most effective marketing may have been to position the game as a basketball freak-show. Far from a showcase for globetrotting greats of the sport, a 76ers’ game would [...]
Micro Focus share price plummets after putting “operational improvement plans on hold” January 8, 2018 Shares in Micro Focus, the UK’s biggest technology firm, dived this morning after the group reported sales had dipped. Micro Focus, which bought Hewlett Packard Enterprise Software last year, was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100, initially falling over 12 per cent before easing back. Shares are currently 9.45 per cent lower. Reported six-month [...]
What the advertising industry should watch out for in 2018 January 3, 2018 We ask advertising bosses what’s in store for the year ahead. Alex Hesz, chief strategy officer, Adam&eveDDB In the era of fake news, advertising has emerged as an unlikely standard-bearer for scrutiny. We have long embraced the necessity of third-party regulation to verify what is fact and what is fantasy. Our job is to tell [...]
Donald Trump hits out at Amazon as he calls on US Post Office to hike prices December 29, 2017 Donald Trump has hit out at Amazon in a call on the “US Post Office” to raise prices. He seems to be referring to the US Postal Service, which he also claimed was becoming “dumber and poorer”. The US President made his remarks via Twitter, writing: “Why is the United States Post Office, which is [...]
Hamilton London review: Believe the hype, this American smash has all the makings of a modern classic December 23, 2017 Victoria Palace Theatre Believe the hype: there's plenty of it. Ever since Lin-Manuel Miranda's hip-opera made its Broadway debut two years ago, it's been a cult phenomenon, catapulting Alexander Hamilton, previously America's most overlooked Founder, into one of its most revered overnight. Many Brits have been playing the soundtrack on repeat in eager anticipation of [...]