Nationwide hit by mortgage loan crackdown despite first quarter profits rise August 18, 2014 Nationwide’s profits more than doubled in the first quarter of its 2014 financial year, the building society said yesterday. But its mortgage lending volumes were hit hard as tougher new rules came into force in April. Gross mortgage lending came in at £5.8bn in the three months from April to the end of June, down [...]
Food sales lead May uplift for UK pubs and restaurants June 11, 2015 Britain’s pubs and restaurants enjoyed brisk trading in May, offsetting what had been a slow start to the year in the sector. Figures released yesterday by the Coffer Peach Business Tracker revealed like-for-like sales climbed 2.1 per cent compared to the same period last year. The strong growth comes after the tracker, which analyses sales [...]
Ocado targets international deals after beating profit expectation June 30, 2015 The figures Ocado delivered better-than-expected pre-tax profit of £7.2m in the first half of the year, amid reports the grocery delivery giant is closing in on a deal with an international retailer. Read more: Ocado's making robots that will help in the workplace Despite intense price competition in the UK's supermarket sector, Ocado enjoyed a 15.7 [...]
House prices set to be bolstered by scant supply June 4, 2015 HOUSE prices dropped in May, one of the UK’s major mortgage providers said yesterday, but analysts expect a quick rebound. Houses lost 0.1 per cent of their value from April to May, according to figures published by Halifax. However, house prices are up 8.6 per cent compared to May 2014. Nationwide said earlier this week [...]
The ultimate connection: Hyperoptic’s Dana Tobak on recalcitrant councils and politics in taxis October 18, 2015 The thing some have been slow to come to terms with is that BT is not the only solution," says Dana Tobak, when I ask her what the UK is doing wrong when it comes to internet provision. Tobak co-founded fibre-based internet service provider Hyperoptic in 2011. She and business partner Boris Ivanovic, who she [...]
Train strike: Transport for London warns commuters of disruption from bank holiday Network Rail walkout May 21, 2015 UPDATE: The RMT has followed the TSSA union in suspending strike action after an improved offer from Network Rail. The nationwide Network Rail strike on bank holiday Monday will cause some Transport for London (TfL) services to also suffer delays and disruption. A 24-hour walk out has been called by rail union bosses from 5pm on Monday 25 May, [...]
Apple Pay in the UK: These are the retailers and restaurants signed up for the July launch June 9, 2015 Some of the UK's biggest retailers are lining up to start accepting Apple Pay when it launches in the UK next month. As well as being able to use your iPhone or Apple Watch to seamlessly glide through ticket barriers on the Tube, the Silicon Valley giant has its finger hovering over the button [...]
BHS hires 250 new staff in food retail push amid withheld credit insurance rumours April 27, 2015 BHS announced its intention to take on 250 staff yesterday, and denied rumours its suppliers were seeing their credit insurance withheld. The struggling department store is hiring the extra staff as it seeks to expand into food retail following a successful trial in its Romford, Staines and Warrington stores. BHS has signed a contract with [...]
Surveyors say housing level at crisis point as rising UK house prices and weak supply spark “national emergency” May 13, 2015 House prices across the country climbed further last month as new listings fell at their fastest rate in six years, according to a new report published today. Thirty-three per cent more surveyors nationwide, and 28 per cent of respondents in the capital, saw prices rise in April, according to the latest Royal Institution of [...]
Majestic Wine share price falls after buying Naked Wines for £70m and naming Rowan Gormley chief executive April 10, 2015 Wine companies Majestic and Naked are toasting a multi-million pound deal. Majestic, Britain's largest specialist wine retailer, has bought Naked Wines, a boutique online wine seller, for £70m, combining their online and offline businesses to create a wine retailer with greater international clout. Naked founder and chief executive Rowan Gormley will take the helm of [...]