Exclusive: One in every four shops in Cheapside are empty February 21, 2022 Oone in every four shops in Cheapside are empty, reveals research shared exclusively with City A.M. The shop vacancy rate in the shopping precinct between Bank and St. Paul’s stations has shot up from just 3.4 per cent in 2019, before the pandemic, to nearly 25 per cent this year, according to Colliers. Retailers’ income [...]
The Notebook: Sir Rocco Forte on the hated tourist tax, counteracting climate hysteria and Boris Johnson’s legacy June 26, 2023 The Notebook is a column where interesting people say interesting things. Today, it’s hotel industry giant Sir Rocco Forte, chairman of Rocco Forte Hotels My hotels in Italy, Germany and Belgium are booming. But occupancy in London is not what it was last year nor what we saw pre-pandemic. Official statistics bear this out, showing [...]
A third of Brits worried about paying their rent or mortgage October 23, 2020 Nearly a third of Brits are worried about paying their rent or mortgage at the moment, a new survey has found. Polling conducted by Ipsos Mori showed that 30 per cent of people in the UK have such concerns at the moment, while 31 per cent are worried about making payments in a year’s time. [...]
Trainline seeks Whitehall reassurance as rival ticketing app spooks businesses February 6, 2022 Trainline’s bosses have been fretting over a possible government-funded ticketing competitor, saying it could destroy the business. The group has reportedly sought reassurance from Whitehall that ministers’ plans to create a new ticketing app will not undermine its business, the Sunday Telegraph reported. According to Peel Hunt analyst James Lockyer, after a meeting where Trainline’s [...]
Green shoots of recovery for UK high streets after Omicron measures ease February 3, 2022 The lifting of plan B restrictions spurred the UK back to shopping destinations but January footfall dropped on December levels. According to the latest footfall insight data from Springboard, footfall worsened slightly in January over the month as a whole, to 20.8 per cent below pre-pandemic levels. This was compared to footfall that was down [...]
Mark Kleinman’s 2024 bold predictions: A BP bid, a new gig for Rose and much, much more January 4, 2024 Mark Kleinman gets the City of London talking - and his ten bold predictions for British business in 2024 will certainly do that
Topps Tiles snags majority stake in online tiling supplier March 10, 2022 Topps Tiles has snagged a majority stake in an online tiling supplier, in a bid to bolster its retail and commercial brands. The London-listed tiling company has acquired a 60 per cent share of the supplier for £5.3m in cash. Chief executive Rob Parker added that the deal also moves the company closer to its [...]
Mark Kleinman: Britain’s fibre infrastructure proves hard to digest August 22, 2024 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly City A.M. column. Today, he looks at the UK’s altnet sector, a jilted housebuilder and Thames Water’s leaky boardroom. Britain’s fibre infrastructure proves hard to digest Time to hang up? That’s the way many investors feeling about [...]
More retail job losses forecast unless office workers return, industry warns September 4, 2020 More store closures and retail job losses are expected unless office workers return and consumers are encouraged to visit city centres, a retail industry body warned this morning. Despite an uptick in footfall in the final week of the month due to back to school shopping and the final days of the Eat Out to [...]
FTSE 100 close: Tumbling pound boosts London index as Ocado slides June 28, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 sprang higher today, aided by the pound clocking a dreadful day. The capital’s premier index jumped 0.52 per cent to 7,500.50 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, leapt 1.98 per cent to 18,412.81 points. Early advances in the City [...]