Chinese Hony Capital eats up Pizza Express July 14, 2014 PIZZA Express became the latest UK brand to be snapped up by a Chinese buyer after it was announced that the restaurant chain would be sold to Chinese private equity firm Hony Capital for around £900m. The sale of Pizza Express is part of a recent trend that has seen Chinese buyers take ownership of [...]
First-time buyers need to save eight years to build up deposit January 13, 2013 THOSE looking to get their foot on the housing ladder are taking eight years to save up the necessary deposit, according to research out this morning. The average deposit on a first home was £31,059 during 2012, Barclays said today, meaning potential buyers had to save eight times as long as in 1995, when a [...]
UK house sales at their highest since 2007, but seasonally adjusted figures show drop July 22, 2014 There was another sign that the UK property market may be cooling, after the HMRC released figures showing that the number of properties sold in the month of June had dropped – when the numbers are adjusted by season. Although the raw number of sales for June, 109,580, is the highest since November 2007 (and [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 02 June 2014 June 2, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Tony Blair to call for Europe reform Tony Blair will today call for Europe to reform itself in the wake of victories for anti-EU parties across the continent last week. In his first big speech on the subject since the European election results last weekend, the former prime minister will tell leaders in [...]
Italy v Uruguay spread betting June 23, 2014 IF ALL had gone to plan for England then we would be looking ahead to their final group game against Costa Rica. But since this afternoon’s clash is now a dead rubber, with Roy Hodgson’s men already eliminated, we’ll focus on Italy’s meeting with Uruguay, where it’s winner-takes-all and the spotlight will firmly be on [...]
MPs to grill Bank’s Mark Carney on Osborne interest rate pact claim August 18, 2014 Bank of England governor Mark Carney will be quizzed by MPs next month over whether he has faced any political pressure to keep interest rates at their historic low. Carney and chancellor George Osborne have been hit by suggestions this week that they struck a deal to keep rates low until after the election. Mark [...]
Middle East sets sights on UK real estate June 17, 2014 It is estimated that investors from the Middle East will spend $180bn on commercial real estate abroad in the coming decade, and that nearly half of that will be directed at the UK. The research, conducted by CBRE, predicts that $85 will flow into the UK and a further $60bn to continental Europe: in total [...]
Britain set to boom as global economy slows November 19, 2013 THE UK will defy the weak global economic trend next year as the recovery takes hold in Britain, analysts at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) predicted yesterday. The world’s economy will only grow by 2.7 per cent this year and 3.6 per cent next year, the think-tank said – slashing 0.4 percentage [...]
Why TSB’s share price has jumped by 13pc on its first day June 20, 2014 On its first day of trading TSB shares have moved up by more than 13 per cent, buoyed by strong investor demand. Lloyds floated the bank at 260p per share, valuing the bank at £1.3bn. The sale was 10 times oversubscribed. For now, trading is only conditional – institutional investors are involved but none of [...]
Why Bitcoin won’t be the money of the future – but cryptocurrencies might be August 18, 2014 PROPONENTS of Bitcoin like to suggest that it will be the money of the future. Critics point to its price volatility, evidence of a Bitcoin bubble and other problems. With the price of Bitcoin having just fallen below $500 for the first time since May, both sides make valid points. Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, a [...]