Mothercare replaces senior leadership as firm gets to grips with new life January 23, 2020 After closing all 79 of its stores last weekend, collapsed retailer Mothercare has this morning announced wholesale changes to its leadership. Following on from November’s transformation plan, when the group announced plans to become an international franchise operation, the firm today said that chief executive Mark Newton-Jones would step down. He will remain as an [...]
CMA clears $4.3bn Roche-Spark deal as US drags feet December 16, 2019 Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Roche today won UK regulatory approval for its $4.3bn merger with gene therapy firm Spark Therapeutics. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) unconditionally cleared the tie-up in the latest milestone in Roche’s $114.5 per share offer. Read more: Roche faces fresh delay in $4.3bn Spark merger The deal had faced intense scrutiny [...]
City of London pledges plastic waste cut July 19, 2019 The Square Mile’s policy-making body has vowed to cut down on its use of plastics at The Mansion House and Guildhall. New plans to eradicate “unnecessary single-use plastic waste” have been unveiled by the City of London Corporation, which is bringing in new staff procurement rules in a bid to reduce its environmental impact. Read [...]
Jose Mourinho must improve Tottenham’s attack and arrest Harry Kane’s waning club form November 20, 2019 Jose Mourinho arrives at Tottenham with a to-do list that includes arresting a year-long slump that threatens the club’s status as Champions League regulars and rehabilitating his own weathered reputation. But chief among the former Manchester United and Chelsea manager’s priorities in North London should be reinvigorating an attack whose threat has dissipated to the [...]
UK unemployment: 650,000 Brits lose jobs in lockdown July 16, 2020 Around 650,000 people lost their jobs between March and June, official figures showed today, as the UK labour market “weakened markedly” during lockdown. Job losses led to a 0.3 per cent drop in total pay in May compared to a year earlier, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. That is a 1.3 per cent [...]
Private Equity firm 3i posts 10 per cent return November 14, 2019 Listed private equity firm 3i has reported an increased half-year return of 10 per cent, boosted by good trading performance across its portfolios. The company notched up a total return of £767m for the first six months of the year, a 10 per cent increase on the previous year’s figure. Read more: Cobham buyer Advent [...]
Fuel prices knock UK inflation rate down to 1.5 per cent in March April 22, 2020 The UK inflation rate fell 0.2 per cent in March to 1.5 per cent, as coronavirus restrictions hit fuel prices. A drop in the price of fuel and clothing resulted in the largest downward contribution to the change in the UK inflation rate between February and March. The rate marks eight consecutive months below the [...]
Shipping sector proposes $5bn fund to cut emissions December 18, 2019 The global shipping industry will this morning submit a proposal to form a $5bn research and development fund for decarbonising the industry. Shipping currently accounts for two per cent of all global emissions. Read more: Global banks are leading the charge to decarbonise shipping The fund, which will operate over a ten-year period, is designed [...]
Amazon to appeal Pentagon decision to award Microsoft $10bn cloud contract November 15, 2019 Amazon will appeal the US department of defense’s decision to award Microsoft a major cloud contract. Amazon, which already provides cloud computing for the Central Intelligence Agency, had been favourites to win the contract worth $10bn over 10 years. Read more: Nike pulls clothes and shoes from Amazon amid digital push The company has now [...]
Rescue this: Last-minute Valentine’s Day gifts you can buy in the City February 14, 2020 You’ve left it late, but there’s still time. Here’s where to find everything you need for Valentine’s Day this year without leaving the Square Mile. Windsor Flowers 25 Old Broad Street; windsorflowerslondon.co.uk Nothing says Valentine’s Day quite as succinctly and warmly as a good bunch of flowers. Not your wilting supermarket affair that looks like [...]