Construction industry stumbles but don’t blame Brexit yet August 12, 2016 The stumble in UK construction in the run-up to the referendum was worse than economists first feared, as housebuilding and property development fell back in the second quarter of the year. Construction output dropped by 0.9 per cent in June, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning. The decline [...]
Police are treating the death of a man found in Hyde Park this morning as “suspicious” August 12, 2016 The Metropolitan Police force has confirmed a body was found in Hyde Park in the early hours of the morning. Reports suggested the man's body was found near Speaker's Corner. A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: "Police in Westminster were called to Hyde Park, W2, at 05.50 on Friday following concerns for a man officer attended [...]
Alibaba’s shares are on a tear after a huge revenue jump August 11, 2016 Alibaba certainly isn't feeling the effects of the Chinese slowdown just yet. Shares in Alibaba – the world's largest retailer – have climbed by almost six per cent in the US pre-market after it posted revenue far ahead of expectations. Alibaba's shares were already up around seven per cent so far this year. A rise in revenue was bolstered [...]
Manufacturing sector shrunk in June as industry fears prolonged slowdown August 9, 2016 The UK's manufacturing sector started life after the EU referendum on the back foot, official statistics released this morning have confirmed. The industry shrunk by 0.3 per cent in June, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showing the slowdown started in the days before the UK's historic vote to untangle itself from [...]
UK posts mighty trade deficit in month of EU referendum August 9, 2016 The UK trade deficit ballooned to a huge £5.1bn in June, far ahead of expectations and raising more questions about how the UK's exporters and importers will fare after the referendum. The figures, released this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), also showed imports reached their highest ever level in a single month [...]
City Moves for 9 August 2016 | Who’s switching jobs August 9, 2016 Metamako Metamako, a specialist in deterministic network devices for the world’s financial institutions, has appointed Kevin Covington as CEO. With a long career in the fintech industry, Kevin has many years’ experience of growing and developing financial technology companies. He was one of the creators of the concept of co-location. In his previous position as [...]
Is May set to abandon Osborne’s China dream? August 8, 2016 It's almost a month since David Cameron left office. With his entire staff to the right of him and his family to the left, the outgoing PM delivered his final address to the nation in a typically calm and confident fashion. As he did so, the famous door behind him hid scenes of frantic activity. [...]
What businesses can expect from Theresa May’s self-consciously pragmatic Conservatism August 4, 2016 From what retailers sold in their shops to their advertising, David Cameron seemed to have a view on everything businesses did. While they might not have approved of it all, businesses understood what he was thinking. Not so with Theresa May. May intervenes in public debate sporadically, on bigger issues and with more focus. She [...]
Office Depot to close stores and cut costs after its Staples tie-up failure August 3, 2016 US stationery supplier Office Depot is planning to close a further 300 stores over the next three years to help cut costs by $250m (£187m). The announcement came as the company posted profit of $210m, or 38 cents a share for its second quarter, from a loss of $58m in the same period a year ago. [...]
Construction sector leader calls on government to do more to amid spiralling material prices August 1, 2016 The construction sector is being battered by high material prices, a weak pound, private sector uncertainty and a lack of public housing investment, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) said today. In the week that sees two of the largest building suppliers release their results, the FMB said that two-thirds of bosses were anticipating further rises in material costs [...]