Carlyle Group snaps up majority stake in funds firm Calastone October 26, 2020 Global investment firm The Carlyle Group is set to snap up a majority stake in funds network Calastone for an undisclosed amount, it said today. Carlyle said in a statement that it would buy the stake from current shareholders including venture capital firms Octopus Ventures and Accel. It comes with Carlyle nearing an agreement to [...]
Exclusive: Just 16 per cent of firms trust government on Brexit, according to poll October 24, 2020 Only 16 per cent of UK businesses trust the government to manage Brexit effectively, according to polling shared exclusively with City A.M. Just over 40 per cent of firms said the coronavirus pandemic had derailed their Brexit planning, the polling commissioned by logistics firm One World Express showed. The UK and EU gave themselves less [...]
FTSE 100 jumps amid strong earnings but US stocks mixed October 23, 2020 The FTSE 100 jumped on the final day of a tough week for markets, as investors found some optimism in company earnings, but US stocks were more mixed. The UK’s main stock index was boosted by upbeat results from lender Barclays (BARC). New stimulus measures from chancellor Rishi Sunak yesterday also helped stocks. Read more: [...]
Coronavirus: UK economic recovery stumbles as business growth slips October 23, 2020 The UK economy’s recovery stumbled in October, according to a new survey, with services sector growth slowing considerably amid rising coronavirus cases and new government measures. The IHS Markit/Cips preliminary purchasing managers’ index (PMI), a gauge of the private sector’s health, fell sharply to 52.9 in October from September’s reading of 56.5. A score above [...]
Deja vu: Eurozone businesses back in decline as Covid cases jump October 23, 2020 The Eurozone’s private sector slipped back into decline in October as coronavirus ripped through the region and new restrictions hit countries’ service sectors and wider economies, according to a new survey. The preliminary IHS Markit Eurozone composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) – which measures the health of businesses – dropped to 49.4 in October from [...]
UK retail sales smash expectations but analysts flag trouble ahead October 23, 2020 UK retail sales rose well beyond expectations in September, with Britons buying 1.5 per cent more goods than a month earlier as they stocked up on food and turned to online retailers. The 1.5 per cent growth was much better than economists had expected. It also beat the 0.6 per cent expansion in sales in [...]
Rishi Sunak’s new business support: What does it mean for you? October 22, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has overhauled key parts of his winter economy plan to support struggling businesses as coronavirus cases rise and the government imposes new restrictions. He made the job support scheme more generous for employers and boosted support for the self-employed. But what exactly will the new changes mean for employers, employees and the [...]
Wall Street rises as investors cling to hope of stimulus package October 22, 2020 US stocks edged higher after the open today as Wall Street held out for a deal on fiscal stimulus, while the FTSE 100 dipped amid concerns over increasing coronavirus cases in Europe. The benchmark S&P 500 rose as much as 0.26 per cent in the first half an hour of trading, while the Dow gained [...]
Businesses welcome Sunak’s change of tack but say many still ‘left behind’ October 22, 2020 Business groups have praised Rishi Sunak’s change of course on his winter economic support package, which the chancellor has made more generous to employers hit by Tier 2 restrictions. Yet organisations said there was a lack of support for companies further down supply chains, for freelancers and for many self-employed people. Addressing Parliament today, Sunak [...]
JP Morgan strategists: Markets desperate for more stimulus at US election October 22, 2020 The markets want a decisive outcome from the 3 November US presidential election that will lead to big near-term fiscal stimulus, which the country’s economy “really needs”, strategists at JP Morgan Asset Management have said. Karen Ward, the London-based firm’s chief market strategist for Europe, said investors were now seeing the election in a “completely [...]