Retailers brace for tough Christmas trading as confidence slumps October 8, 2019 Retailers are bracing themselves for a challenging Christmas trading period as consumer confidence this autumn slumped to a five-year low. Only 21 per cent of shoppers think they will have more disposable income in the coming year, while 28 per cent expect their amount of extra cash to decrease, marking the lowest autumn sentiment levels [...]
Fuel prices knock UK inflation rate down to 1.5 per cent in March April 22, 2020 The UK inflation rate fell 0.2 per cent in March to 1.5 per cent, as coronavirus restrictions hit fuel prices. A drop in the price of fuel and clothing resulted in the largest downward contribution to the change in the UK inflation rate between February and March. The rate marks eight consecutive months below the [...]
UK GDP shrinks: Economists warn worst yet to come as lockdown persists May 13, 2020 The UK economy shrank by a record 5.8 per cent in March, thanks almost entirely to just over a week of coronavirus lockdown that began on the 23rd. In the first quarter as a whole GDP contracted by two per cent, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today. This was its worst performance since [...]
Auditor ranking race narrows as FTSE 100 firms spread out September 2, 2019 Prized FTSE 100 clients are now more evenly spread out among the Big Four accountancy giants than at any time in almost 15 years, with some of the UK’s top auditors losing out to their rivals after an intense year of scrutiny and high-profile failures. The blue-chip client league table for auditors has “never been [...]
Crypto markets gearing up for institutional money June 2, 2020 Prime brokers are the key to institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies and digital assets – but are they ready for prime time? Current estimates place the number of crypto hedge funds in the hundreds, and recent research from PwC revealed that assets managed by these funds doubled in the last year alone. With more and more [...]
Puregym expands in Europe with £350m acquisition of Fitness World December 12, 2019 The UK’s largest gym operator Puregym today announced the acquisition of European business Fitness World in a £350m deal. Puregym was acquired by private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners in 2017 in a deal that valued the business at £600m. Its acquisition of Fitness World gives the business a market-leading position in Denmark as [...]
DEBATE: With PwC letting workers choose their own hours, is the 9-to-5 working week still relevant? September 3, 2018 With PwC letting workers choose their own hours, is the 9-to-5 working week still relevant? While the idea of the traditional 9-5 might be shifting in terms of where and how we work, we certainly shouldn’t abandon the principle of specific working hours altogether. There is no denying that technology is a fantastic enabler which [...]
Eddie Stobart given breathing space by creditors ahead of takeover vote November 24, 2019 Struggling haulier Eddie Stobart has been given more than a year’s extra time to get its finances in order by its creditors as it prepares to put a takeover deal to its shareholders. Allied Irish Bank, Bank of Ireland, BNP Paribas, and KBC – who are owed £200m between them – will postpone loan repayments [...]
Rate cut reaction: Businesses welcome Bank of England emergency stimulus March 11, 2020 UK businesses, banks and academics have welcomed the Bank of England’s emergency interest rate cut and raft of other measures to support the economy as it slows amid the coronavirus outbreak. The Bank slashed rates to 0.25 per cent – the joint-lowest on record – at an emergency meeting this morning. It also offered banks [...]
UK economy: Is the Bank of England’s 2021 rebound scenario too optimistic? May 7, 2020 The Bank of England today said the UK economy could suffer its worst economic crash in 300 years this year as the coronavirus lockdown batters the economy. Yet it said it is likely to bounce back relatively quickly. Despite the dire report it stopped short of launching more bond-buying or “quantitative easing” (QE) and left [...]