London offices get facelift in lockdown despite pandemic May 17, 2021 New construction starts in London have jumped by one-fifth in the six months to March 2021, despite the pandemic and changing working practices, research by Deloitte has found. New office starts are up to 3.1 million square feet, Deloitte found, with 32 new schemes breaking ground during the six months. More than half (56%) of [...]
Standard Chartered profits surge as loan-loss provisions fall sharply August 3, 2021 Standard Chartered posted a better-than-expected 57 per cent jump in first-half pre-tax profits as it followed fellow banking giants in releasing a wave of capital set aside in anticipation of a surge in Covid-related customer defaults. Pre-tax profit for Standard Chartered, which has a strong presence in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, rose to [...]
New City of London Corporation Finance Committee Chairman elected May 6, 2021 Jamie Ingham Clark has today [6 May] been elected as the new Chairman of the City of London Corporation’s Finance Committee. Jamie, who previously served as Deputy Chairman, will lead the Committee responsible for stewardship of the City Corporation’s funds. The Committee aims to ensure the organisation achieves value for money in all its activities and maintains a [...]
City Giving Day returns to the Square Mile September 27, 2021 The sun shone on The Lord Mayor’s Appeal’s eighth annual City Giving Day, which saw over 500 businesses and charities turn the City of London red. This brilliant event enables City companies and employees to celebrate and showcase their philanthropic and volunteering achievements and encourage others to get involved. This year saw a welcome return of [...]
Best of 2022: How Games Workshop founder Ian Livingstone created a £3bn giant December 19, 2022 In a leafy enclave of West London, Ian Livingstone is balanced precariously upon a chair in his study, grasping for a top-shelf box filled with incredibly rare figurines. The legs of the chair creak in protest, and there is a moment when I fear I may be responsible for the untimely death of the man [...]
US stocks reach record high after strong jobs report July 2, 2021 US stocks hit a record high on Friday after the Labour Department posted better than expected jobs figures. The blue chip S&P 500 gained 0.31 per cent, up to 4,333, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.43 per cent to hit 14,585, both record highs. US businesses embarked on a hiring spree last month as the [...]
FTSE 100 creeps up as surging pound dents exporters February 24, 2021 The FTSE 100 crept back into the black today as the index’s exporters were hit by the pound rising to its highest levels since 2018. Having opened down 0.6 per cent at 6,599 points, London’s premier index was up 0.3 per cent at 6,643 points just after midday. The slight rise came as sterling neared [...]
Confidence in London business creeps up in January January 29, 2021 Business confidence in London rose five points during January to three per cent, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank. The rise marks the first positive reading on the barometer since the Covid-19 outbreak began. The business barometer quizzes 1,200 businesses monthly. This month companies in the capital reported higher confidence in their [...]
Sadiq Khan slaps down Boris Johnson call for Ronald Reagan statue outside parliament April 21, 2021 Sadiq Khan has today turned down a call by Boris Johnson to erect a Ronald Reagan statue just outside of the Houses of Parliament. Tory MP Andrew Rosindell today told MPs that a statue of the former US president had been removed from a square in Mayfair and called on Johnson to place it in [...]
Of dice and men: How Ian Livingstone conquered the nerd universe November 11, 2022 In a leafy enclave of West London, Ian Livingstone is balanced precariously upon a chair in his study, grasping for a top-shelf box filled with incredibly rare figurines. The legs of the chair creak in protest, and there is a moment when I fear I may be responsible for the untimely death of the man [...]