Consumer confidence among millennials jumps during lockdown May 28, 2020 Consumer confidence among millennials has jumped during the UK coronavirus lockdown, according to the latest research. Sentiment in the 25 to 34 age group has risen from minus seven in April to 16 this month, a survey tracking expectations of future disposable income and shopping behaviour showed. The age group has overtaken the 18 to [...]
Talktalk to go private after £1.1bn Toscafund deal December 17, 2020 Talktalk has this morning announced that it will be taken private in a £1.1bn deal with shareholder Toscafund and private equity firm Penta. Under the offer, shareholders of the broadband supplier will receive 97p per share, a 16 per cent premium on shares as of 7 October, when the offer was first made. The deal [...]
UK house prices: What will happen to property values in 2021? January 16, 2021 The UK residential property market boomed in 2020, with house prices ending the year at a record high, despite the shutdown of the sector during the first coronavirus lockdown. Government measures such as the stamp duty holiday helped revitalise the market, while the lifting of lockdown restrictions prompted a surge in demand. Lockdown also inspired [...]
UK economy’s rebound cools amid coronavirus worries September 23, 2020 The UK economy’s recovery from lockdown “lost some of its bounce” in September as government support schemes were reduced and consumers worried about coronavirus, according to survey data. The first estimate of the IHS Markit/Cips composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) slipped to 55.7 in September after jumping to 59.1 in August. The gauge measures how [...]
Tui to refund all customers by the end of the month September 16, 2020 Travel giant Tui UK will refund all package holidays cancelled due to the coronavirus by the end of the month, the UK’s competition watchdog announced this morning. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had launched an investigation into the firm after receiving thousands of complaints from customers who had not been refunded. Under consumer protection [...]
Chefs spy light at end of Covid tunnel after Sunak budget March 3, 2021 Chefs and restaurateurs across London have welcomed Rishi Sunak’s “life saving” budget plans announced today. A raft of measures aimed at keeping the embattled hospitality industry afloat until it can fully reopen in June includes an extension of the furlough scheme, grants of up to £18,000 for pubs and restaurants, and an extension of the [...]
UK car sales sink 35 per cent in June despite post-lockdown restart July 6, 2020 UK new car sales plunged a third in June despite the easing of lockdown measures, new data showed today, after worse falls in April and May. New car registrations sank 34.9 per cent in June year on year, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). But that marked what the body called [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile this week? May 5, 2021 City A.M.‘s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. OneBanks hires ex–Lloyds chief as its first CTO Shared branch banking venture OneBanks has appointed a former Lloyds Bank executive as its first chief technology officer (CTO) this week. Andy Willmot, once [...]
UK PMIs: Manufacturing beats forecasts to rise for sixth month in a row December 1, 2020 UK manufacturing activity increased for the sixth straight month in November as factories brushed off the impact of the second national lockdown. The IHS Markit/Cips manufacturing purchasing managers (PMI) index stood at 55.6 in November, with any score above the 50 mark indicating growth. The score came in ahead of flash estimates of 55.2, as [...]
Car industry straps in for rough ride in 2021 January 23, 2021 2020 was one of the worst years the UK car industry has ever experienced, with shuttered factories and closed showrooms due to Covid-19 leading to a record slump in production and sales. But barring a disaster on the same scale, the industry is confident that it will begin to recover this year, even though the [...]