Annual spending on ethical products soars past £100bn for first time December 31, 2021 British shoppers spent more than £100bn on ethical products and investments last year, as the twin crises of the pandemic and climate change prompted significant lifestyle changes. Plant-based food, and products, and secondhand clothes, furniture and even cars saw demand surge in the last year with ethical spending rising to £122bn in 2020 – up [...]
Furlough factor: Number of UK companies falling into administration dropped to record low this year December 31, 2021 A record low number of UK firms are set to have fallen into administration in 2021 despite the heavy toll of the pandemic, according to industry experts. Insolvency specialists at Interpath Advisory said furlough measures particularly reduced the number of non-voluntary insolvencies over the year but warned there could be a rise next year. Latest [...]
Atome Energy debuts in London as investors wait to warm up to green hydrogen December 30, 2021 Atome Energy shares debut in London today, as the power sector looks towards green hydrogen amid the sustainable energy push. President Energy, which owns a stake of Atome, saw its shares plunge by 19 per cent to 2.03p per share near market close after selling off a chunk of the newly-listed company. The green hydrogen [...]
Omicron curbs and roaring inflation could tip economies into double dip recessions, warns World Bank top economist December 29, 2021 A return to strict restrictions on daily life to curb the spread of Omicron and roaring inflation could plunge the world’s leading economies into double dip recessions, according to the World Bank’s chief economist. Speaking to The Telegraph, Carmen Reinhart, the organisation’s top economist, said the emergence of the new strain of coronavirus and historically [...]
Poverty looms for millions of UK families as energy bills climb by £1200, inflation rises and taxes jump 1.25 per cent in 2022 December 29, 2021 Soaring energy bills, inflation and rising taxes are likely to lead to a ‘cost of living catastrophe’ for millions of UK families, an economic think tank warned this morning. The Resolution Foundation (RF) said from next April families would typically face a £1,200-a-year hit to their incomes as the energy price cap is raised and [...]
Energy crisis: Govt and energy firms agree runaway gas and electricity bills should be avoided in 2022 but they fail to say how December 28, 2021 The government and UK’s largest energy companies agreed late last night that “UK customers have to be protected” from soaring gas and electricity prices in 2022, although it was not clear how they plan to do that. The meeting with Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng came after Labour and a boss of a major energy provider [...]
Energy boss calls out government inaction ahead of crunch meeting December 27, 2021 The boss of Ovo Energy has called for urgent government action warning the current market structure "isn't fit for purpose."
Yamal-Europe pipeline reports reverse flows for sixth day running as Europe’s energy crisis deepens December 26, 2021 The Yamal-Europe pipeline has been sending fuel eastwards for the sixth day running as fears over energy shortages this winter continue to rise.
Energy groups push for government action as power prices reach record highs December 23, 2021 Energy UK is the latest industry voice calling for government support as the energy sector struggles with record wholesale gas prices.
Markets bet on Bank of England hiking spree in 2022 December 23, 2021 Traders are ramping up bets on the Bank of England going a hiking spree this coming year. The Bank will look through economic risks posed by the Omicron variant of coronavirus and lift rates above one per cent by the end of 2022, the first time that level has been breached since 2009 in the [...]