House prices rebound unexpectedly in February on hopes of stamp duty extension March 2, 2021 House price growth beat expectations last month rising 0.7 per cent month-on-month, according to Nationwide’s latest figures. It brings year-on-year growth to 6.9 per cent from 6.4 per cent in January, beating the consensus 5.5 per cent. It more than offsets the 0.2 per cent monthly decline recorded at the start of the year. No [...]
Takeover target Signature Aviation swings to $24m loss March 2, 2021 Takeover target Signature Aviation today hailed its “resilient performance” in 2020 as the private jet firm swung to a $24m (£17.3m) loss before tax. After the worst year in history for aviation, the company said that its flight activity was down just 17 per cent in February, compared to 77 per cent last April. It [...]
London market recovery continues following grim start to the week April 22, 2021 London’s main market continued to rise on Thursday, after rebounding yesterday following a disastrous Tuesday, in which the market fell two per cent in one day. By mid-afternoon the FTSE 100 was up 0.42 per cent, boosted by mining and industrials stocks, although the gains were capped by a stronger pound. Meanwhile, the mid-cap FTSE [...]
Housebuilder stocks soar as property prices climb another £3,000 to new record high June 7, 2021 House prices in the UK rose again last month by around £3,000, bringing the average property price up to a record high of £261,743. May’s 1.3 per cent price increase means the average home in the UK has increased by more than £22,000 – or 9.5 per cent – in the last 12 months, according [...]
CMA investigates publisher Penguin’s $2.2bn takeover of Simon & Schuster March 22, 2021 The competition watchdog is investigating if the $2.18bn takeover of Simon & Schuster by publisher Penguin Random House may hurt competition. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has until 19 May to decide whether to refer the merger to a more in-depth ‘phase two’ investigation, A spokesperson for Penguin Random House said: “We announced last November that Penguin Random [...]
British Gas engineers face mass firings after rejecting contract offer March 29, 2021 Hundreds of British Gas engineers face being sacked on 1 April after rejecting a revised contract offer earlier this month, according to the GMB Union. A string of strikes has been held by thousands of engineers since February, in opposition to the company’s ‘fire and rehire’ tactics. The union said engineers were told they had [...]
FCA ends probe into car dealership Lookers March 2, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has this morning closed its investigation into car dealer Lookers for the possible miss-selling of products. The regulator said that it would not impose penalties on the FTSE 250 firm, but said it had made its concerns clear about the “historic culture, systems and controls”. As a result, Lookers said [...]
Investors unshaken by inflation surge as Wall Street opens higher May 28, 2021 Wall Street’s main indexes opened higher today as investors shrugged off data showing a rise in inflation. Consumer prices rose 0.7 per cent in April after a 0.4 per cent increase in March, exceeding economists’ predictions of a 0.6 per cent gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite [...]
CMA set to approve Viagogo’s £3.2bn takeover of StubHub March 22, 2021 The mega-deal between ticket reselling giants Viagogo and StubHub is heading for approval, after the companies reached a preliminary deal with the Competition and Markets Authority. The watchdog said earlier today it “proposes to accept” a series of promises from the companies, which would include selling off StubHub’s international arm. Viagogo’s £3.2bn deal to take [...]
Housebuilder Vistry to double profit in 2021 as Sunak extends property tax cuts March 4, 2021 Housebuilder Vistry Group predicted that it would at least double its profit before tax over the coming financial year after a strong start to the year. As a result of the positive outlook, the firm said that it was reinstating a final dividend of 20p per share. It follows fellow builder Taylor Wimpey in reintroducing [...]