Financial news

• The Brexit crash will make all of you poorer – be warned | George Soros

  20-06-2016 23:00
  
  My 60 years of experience tells me the pound will plummet, along with your living standards. The only winners will be speculatorsDavid Cameron, along with the Treasury, the Bank of England, the International Monetary Fund and others have been attacked by the leave campaign for exaggerating the economic risks of Brexit. This criticism has been widely accepted by the British media and many financial analysts. As a result, British voters are now grossly underestimating the true costs of leaving.Too
  
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• George Soros: EU exit risks 'black Friday'

  20-06-2016 23:00
  
  Exclusive: Currency speculator warns devaluation would mean more disruption than when UK dropped out of ERM in 1992George Soros: the Brexit crash will make all of you poorerThe world’s most famous currency speculator has warned a vote on Thursday for Britain to leave the EU would trigger a bigger and more damaging fall for sterling than the day he forced Britain out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism almost a quarter of a century ago.George Soros, writing in the Guardian, said that a Brexit vo
  
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• Judge allows Starbucks customers to sue over underfilled lattes

  20-06-2016 20:52
  
  Coffee giant is accused of overcharging customers by serving lattes that are 25% too small, based on a recipe it adopted in 2009 to save money on milkA federal judge said two Starbucks customers may pursue a lawsuit accusing the coffee chain of cheating patrons by underfilling lattes.
  In a decision on Friday, US district judge Thelton Henderson in San Francisco said the California plaintiffs may seek damages for fraud and false advertising from Starbucks Corp in their proposed nationwide class a
  
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• BHS pension trustees were concerned at sale to Dominic Chappell

  20-06-2016 19:50
  
  Documents released by MPs’ committee investigating demise of BHS raise new questions about why the deal went aheadThe BHS pension trustees were concerned about the sale of the retailer to Dominic Chappell for £1 and believed it was “materially detrimental” to the pension scheme, newly published documents have revealed.The documents, released by the parliamentary committee investigating the demise of BHS, raise new questions about why the deal was allowed to go ahead and i
  
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• Morrisons' treatment of suppliers again highlighted by watchdog

  20-06-2016 19:10
  
  The grocer had demanded some suppliers pay extra lump sums of £2m in 2015 after similar breaches the year beforeMorrisons has been forced to repay cash and discipline staff after it was found to have breached the grocery market code of conduct for a second time by demanding lump sums of about £2m from suppliers.The grocery market watchdog said Morrisons admitted to making 19 requests which were above and beyond agreed deals with suppliers in contravention of an industry code in place
  
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• Lidl makes 'fruit and veg pledge' to back British farmers

  20-06-2016 19:03
  
  German discounter joins rival Aldi in signing up to farmers’ union-backed code that aims to boost profitability of suppliersLidl has become only the second grocer to sign up to a 12-month-old scheme to back British farmers by promising to buy more of their produce and offer long-term supply deals.The German discounter joins its close rival Aldi, which almost a year ago became the first retailer to sign up to the National Farmers Union-backed “fruit and veg pledge”, which aims t
  
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• German prosecutors investigate ex-VW chief over emissions scandal

  20-06-2016 18:58
  
  Braunschweig prosecutor’s office looking into Martin Winterkorn and another senior figure over suspected market manipulationGerman prosecutors have opened an investigation into the former Volkswagen chief executive Martin Winterkorn over allegations of market manipulation in relation to the company’s diesel emissions scandal. According to the state prosecutor’s office in Braunschweig, there was “sufficient concrete evidence” that Volkswagen had deliberately delayed
  
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• EU referendum: issues savers and homeowners need to consider

  20-06-2016 18:56
  
  With economists warning Brexit could cause the pound tumble and interest rates to rise, here are some of things worth considering before you voteA vote to leave the European Union in the referendum on 23 June could cause the pound to plunge and interest rates to rise, according to some economists. Here are some of the issues that savers, homeowners and investors should consider before voting. Continue reading...
  
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• Potential Brexit vote sees mortgage rates drop

  20-06-2016 17:16
  
  Investors leaving riskier shares for government bonds have caused mortgage rates on five- and 10-year deals to decreaseThe cost of taking out a fixed-rate mortgage over five or 10 years has fallen to a record low, in a surprise side-effect caused by money markets reacting to a possible Brexit.Exclusive figures prepared for the Guardian by financial firm Moneyfacts show the average interest rate on a five-year fixed-rate deal has fallen to 3.16%, down from 3.18% a month ago and 3.34% in June 2015
  
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• Nissan to sue Vote Leave campaign over EU referendum flyer

  20-06-2016 17:14
  Japanese carmaker to take legal action after its name and logo were used on leaflets urging voters to back BrexitNissan is to take legal action against the Vote Leave campaign after the Japanese carmaker’s logo was used on leaflets calling for voters to back Brexit in Thursday’s referendum.On one flyer the Nissan logo appeared next to those of four other major companies, including Unilever and Vauxhall, with the message: “Major employers … have all said they’ll sta
  
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• Twitter acquires AI startup Magic Pony for a reported $150m

  20-06-2016 16:45
  
  The social network says the London startup’s technology would be used to enhance live and video offerings Twitter has bought London-based AI startup Magic Pony Technology for a reported $150m (£102m) as the company moves to strengthen its position in image-sharing, video and live video.Founded in 2014, Magic Pony uses machine learning to build improved systems for visual processing. The company said it was excited to be joining forces with Twitter “to improve the visual experie
  
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• Morrisons faces £20m liability over struggling My Local chain

  20-06-2016 15:21
  
  More than 2,000 jobs at risk as bosses of convenience stores, bought from supermarket group, consider its optionsMorrisons is facing a potential liability of up to £20m as My Local, the group that bought the Bradford-based group’s convenience store chain, looks at options for the business, including administration.More than 2,000 jobs are at risk as My Local, which operates 120 stores, has brought in accountancy firm KPMG. Continue reading...
  
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• Homes in need of renovation – in pictures

  20-06-2016 14:18
  
  From a posh block of flats to a Cotswold farmhouse, all these properties need bringing up to date Continue reading...
  
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• Goldman Sachs’ email censorship sends the wrong message | Stefan Stern

  20-06-2016 14:00
  
  The principle at stake here is more important than the bank’s bottom line. The bank is directing its workers to adopt language that’s unhealthily similar to Orwell’s NewspeakFirst they took away the smoking room, and I said nothing, because I was not a smoker. But now they are coming for our email, and, comrades, we must fight back. To explain: an internal memo from Goldman Sachs has leaked, which lists all the words and phrases that should not be used in emails, unless you wan
  
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• Majestic Wine sales rise for first time in four years

  20-06-2016 13:59
  
  Retailer’s purchase of Naked Wines helped boost total sales by 11% to £402.1m but pre-tax profit fell 75% to £4.7mMajestic Wine has increased underlying sales for the first time in four years after scrapping its minimum purchase and stocking more English wine, craft beers and spirits.Retail sales at stores open a year or more rose 4.8% in the year to 28 March compared to a year earlier, as active customer numbers increased 12% to 775,000. Total sales increased 11% to £402
  
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• The budget holidays that offer sun, sand, sea … and safety

  20-06-2016 11:46
  
  Terrorist attacks have seen a surge in demand for safer resorts, putting pressure on availability– and raising costs. But savings can be made at lesser known alternativesNot that long ago the beaches of Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia were popular holiday destinations for families taking their summer break. But after a series of terrorist attacks, northern Africa and the near east are no longer options for many families who want to remain closer to home – and safer.The increased popularity
  
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• Let languages shout out your business benefits

  20-06-2016 09:00
  
  English may dominate but businesses are finding that minority languages can give brands a competitive edgeIrial Mac Murchú knows how a minority language can help to win business: the former journalist’s television production company has grown from a one-man show in 1993 to become the largest in Ireland, employing the equivalent of 50 full-time staff.Nemeton TV may be located in the unlikely, if striking, setting of Mac Murchú’s native An Rinn in County Waterford, but th
  
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• Stung by phone call scam after switching to TalkTalk

  20-06-2016 08:00
  
  I received a message to call a premium number on day of switch and was charged almost £700 even though I disconnected quicklyI moved my mobile phone contract to TalkTalk in January. On the day my number was ported over I received a voicemail with a request to call a premium number. I assumed it was TalkTalk.I realised it was a scam when I rang back so quickly disconnected the number. The next day I discovered I’d been charged £678.60 for this call. Continue reading...
  
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• My manager's mannerisms stress me out – what do I do?

  20-06-2016 08:00
  
  He pounds on the keyboard and raps his knuckles on the desk all the time
  Twice a week we publish problems that will feature in a forthcoming Dear Jeremy advice column in the Saturday Guardian so that readers can offer their own advice and suggestions. We then print the best of your comments alongside Jeremy’s own insights. Here is the latest dilemma – what are your thoughts?I work in an open-plan office and my desk is beside my project manager, who is also my line manager. We general
  
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• Billy bookcases and the ​definitive meatball – inside the new Ikea museum

  20-06-2016 08:00
  
  The Swedish flatpack goliath has launched a permanent exhibition celebrating its history. What does it say about the evolution of our homes?There is no mistaking the Ikea Museum. The room sets for each decade are arranged inside giant cardboard boxes. One glass cabinet is dedicated to a single meatball on a fork. Another displays a humble Allen key, giver of life to flat-pack furniture. The museum, housed on the site of the chain’s first store in Älmhult, in southern Sw
  
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• Mars' 100% renewables pledge: a cause for celebrations?

  20-06-2016 06:00
  
  The switch to renewables by Mars and other companies is welcome, but building clean power facilities on-site should be the ultimate goalOn a beautiful barren stretch of the Scottish Highlands, just south of Inverness, spin 20 brand new 3,300-kilowatt wind turbines. The second these industrial-scale turbines came on stream last month, all Mars UK’s factories and offices became immediately zero carbon. The US confectionary giant negotiated with the UK arm of Eneco, the Dutch utility behind t
  
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• Which? slams 'scissor-happy' Isa providers

  20-06-2016 01:01
  
  Consumer group says too many banks and building societies are cutting rates for instant-access cash IsasToo many Isa providers are “scissor-happy” when it comes to chopping savers’ rates, according to Which?The consumer group analysed 212 instant-access cash Isas from 21 banks and building societies to find the “worst offenders” when it comes to rate cuts over the past six years. It looked at how many cuts were made and the number of cuts per account. Continue readi
  
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• Richard Branson starts his own campaign to keep Britain in the EU

  20-06-2016 01:01
  
  Billionaire founder of the Virgin empire is warning Britons about economic and political dangers of a BrexitSir Richard Branson is stepping up his pro-EU efforts, launching a nationwide campaign to urge people to back remain and warning of the economic and political pitfalls of a Brexit vote. Continue reading...
  
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• Asking prices for homes in England and Wales rise to record high

  20-06-2016 01:01
  
  Figures from property website Rightmove show that asking prices are 5.5% higher than in June 2015, at an average of £310,471Asking prices for homes in England and Wales have risen to a new record high, and sales are being agreed quicker than at any point since 2010, according to latest figures from the property website Rightmove.The site, which measured asking prices for just under 150,000 properties listed over the past month, said they had risen by 0.8% in June, to an average of £3
  
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