Franco Manca owner on a bargain hunt despite revenue hit December 18, 2020 Restaurant group Fulham Shore is on a bargain hunt for expansion sites despite a 44 per cent fall in revenues in the six months to September. The group, which operates more than fifty Franco Manca pizza restaurants and 19 The Real Greek outlets, saw revenues fall from £36m in 2019 to £19.9m as lockdowns took [...]
Shock as government policy works! Why we need to keep the stamp duty holiday December 17, 2020 The stamp duty holiday is working — actually really, really well. So, of course, the government plans to reverse it shortly. Governments tax things either to raise money to spend, or to discourage you from doing them. Income tax and national insurance raise more than 40 per cent of all the annual £825bn tax revenue. [...]
Crossrail failed to carry out survey work on historic Soho venue despite ‘high risk’ to punters December 16, 2020 Crossrail failed to carry out survey work on a historic cellar bar in Soho despite receiving warnings from its own contractors that weak vaults posed a “high residual risk” to punters. The report, which was carried out in 2016 by consultants WSP and has been seen by City A.M., says that the vaults in the [...]
FTSE 100 slips ahead of London lockdown as job losses mount December 15, 2020 The FTSE 100 slipped into the red as London prepared itself for a new lockdown and job losses climbed, with the index bucking the trend of European and US markets which rose amid positivity about coronavirus vaccines. London’s biggest index was down 0.5 per cent in afternoon trading to 6,501 points. The FTSE 250 was [...]
How much should I be saving for retirement? December 14, 2020 Investors globally are saving actively toward their retirement, but how much is enough? It is a question that has confounded people for generations: how much is enough when it comes to saving for retirement? The unfortunate truth is that no one can know for sure. Our desires and needs in retirement change – as do [...]
UK housing market ‘to grow four per cent’ in 2021 December 14, 2020 British house prices are set to grow an average of four per cent in 2021, according to property website Rightmove, despite the looming end of a tax break and forecasts of rising unemployment. Rightmove said asking prices for property first advertised between 8 November and 5 December were 6.6 per cent higher than a year [...]
The week ahead, 14-18 December: Shaftesbury, SSP, Petrofac, and interest rates December 13, 2020 All eyes will be fixed firmly on Brussels this week, as businesses across the country hold their breath to see if the UK can finally reach a deal with the EU. With markets on edge as they await the outcome of the talks, there’s little to distract traders, with only a handful of firms reporting [...]
Vaccine optimism spurs near-record equity inflows December 9, 2020 The long-awaited announcement of effective vaccines saw investors pile back into equity funds last month at a near-record level. Renewed optimism among investors saw a net £2.3bn added to equity funds, according to fund network Calastone’s latest data. It is the second highest month of inflows on record after April 2020 when investors welcomed coronavirus [...]
Cryptosplosive demand December 9, 2020 Technological and Technical Convergence Technology stands at a major global tipping point. Numerous industries are converging due to blockchain which serves as the backbone to the whole cryptospace. At hand is the emergence of convergence in money, gaming, social networks, legal, supply chains, and intellectual property. Bitcoin is the base layer protocol which is the [...]
UK extends commercial tenant eviction ban until March December 9, 2020 The UK’s ban on commercial property eviction has been extended today to March 2021. Housing secretary Robert Jenrick announced that this will be the final extension of the business eviction ban, after it was originally supposed to end in September this year. A statement from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said the [...]