February retail sales perform well but warnings for mid-level retailers as living costs spike March 4, 2022 Purchases of clothes have driven retail sales growth, thanks to the easing of Covid restrictions. Total like-for-like sales swelled 49.6 per cent in February, according to the BDO’s February High Street Sales Tracker. This was from a base of minus 3.1 per cent in February 2021, when the country was in the throes of a [...]
‘The plan is working’: Sunak hails falling inflation – but PM warned targets still in jeopardy August 16, 2023 Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt have welcomed today’s dramatic fall in inflation to 6.8 per cent, with the prime minister saying it shows his “plan is working”. The government welcomed today’s news of falling headline inflation, despite expectations the Bank of England is still likely to hike interest rates for a 15th straight time. However, [...]
Death of the office? Don’t tell City businesses as leases shoot up in the first quarter April 26, 2022 London’s office market looks fitter and healthier than ever before, according to the two of the UK’s largest property firms, despite the lures of working from home. Take up of office leases in central London shot up 89 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter, CBRE data shared exclusively with City A.M. revealed. City firms [...]
UK to clock weakest growth in rich world amid economic ‘stagnation’ June 8, 2022 The UK will clock the weakest growth in the rich world caused by households retrenching amid the worst cost of living crisis in a generation, according to new forecasts released today. Rampant inflation driven by accelerating global energy prices as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ongoing supply chain disruptions caused by China’s [...]
Government confirms Russia can still send oil and gas to the UK despite port sanctions March 2, 2022 The government confirms Russia can still send oil and gas to the UK, despite a ban on the country's ships docking at British ports.
Oil prices dip below $100 per barrel following IEA pledge to flood markets April 7, 2022 Oil prices dropped below $100 on both major benchmarks today - with markets weighed down by pledges from the IEA to boost supplies.
UK risks green ambitions with levies and planning hurdles, warns Siemens Energy December 7, 2022 The UK's planning restrictions and levies on renewable producers threaten what should be an attractive market for green projects.
Scrimping and saving by culling more transport investment will hurt all of us November 4, 2022 If ministers think HS2 doesn’t work in its current planned form, why not work out a way in which it does, rather than simply abandoning it as a white elephant?
Marks & Spencer profit dented as Ocado joint venture books £0.7m loss November 9, 2022 Marks & Spencer’s half-year profit slid on Wednesday after it said its joint venture with online grocer Ocado had suffered a £700,000 loss. In half-year results to 1 October, M&S said its group profit before tax was £205.5m, versus a £269.4m sum the previous year. Bosses pointed to a lack of business rates relief compared [...]
We should be encouraging more savings for retirement, but instead we’re capping them August 25, 2022 You may not have heard of them yet, but pension dashboards promise to be the next big thing for retirement savers. Just like your mobile banking app, they will allow savers to access all of their pension schemes in one place. They are another example of technology making personal finance more efficient. What’s more, their [...]