Financial news

• UK Pushing Lenders to Boost Iran Trade | Financial Tribune - Financial Tribune

  20-01-2017 23:32
  
  Financial Tribune
  UK Pushing Lenders to Boost Iran Trade | Financial Tribune
  Financial Tribune
  The British government is coaxing lenders into facilitating trade with Iran. Recently, British officials have sought to boost business ties with Iran—a year on from ...en meer »
  
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• UK retail sales hit biggest monthly fall in four years

  20-01-2017 20:41 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  RETAIL sales suffered their biggest monthly fall for four years in December as consumer spending power was tested by price increases.
  
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• Nissan to review Sunderland plant's competitiveness after Brexit

  20-01-2017 20:17
  
  Carmaker’s head says at WEF in Davos that company will ‘re-evaluate’ situation once UK’s relationship with EU is settled Nissan will conduct a review of its Sunderland plant’s competitiveness once the UK’s future relationship with the EU is settled, the head of the Japanese carmaker has said.Carlos Ghosn’s remarks on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos may raise concerns about the commitment of company to the UK, following its pledge in Oc
  
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• Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie: faces of the new 'global citizen class'?

  20-01-2017 18:50
  
  Research finds tens of thousands of ultra-rich individuals buying multiple homes in the planet’s most desirable locationsIt was revealed during their divorce last year that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt owned no fewer than 12 multimillion-dollar homes across the world. Now new research reveals that Jolie and Pitt are part of a growing “global citizen class” of multimillionaires who spend their lives jetting between multiple properties in the world’s most desirable location
  
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• The war on austerity has begun … in Surrey | Deborah Orr

  20-01-2017 18:23
  
  Conservative councillors want to raise council tax by 15%. So why aren’t Labour and the Lib Dems more enthusiastic?The people of Surrey have been invited to show the rest of Britain what they are made of. Sugar? Spice? All things nice? Either way, the leader of the county’s Conservative council, David Hodge, has done something politically bold and worthy of national attention. Related: Surrey confirms plans to raise council tax by 15%Continue reading...
  
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• They call it fun, but the digital giants are turning workers into robots | John Harris

  20-01-2017 18:19 via theguardian.com
  
  With perfect timing, a new film highlights how employee monitoring is taking over people’s lives“Secrets are lies; sharing is caring; privacy is theft.” So run the three Orwellian aphorisms at the heart of Dave Eggers’ 2013 novel The Circle, whose film version – starring Emma Watson and Tom Hanks – will arrive in cinemas this spring. Given that the story centres on an omnipotent hybrid of Google, Twitter and Facebook, and asks exacting questions about their sh
  
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• Davos 2017: Hammond fires Brexit warning; Kissinger says Trump must help rebuild world order - as it happened

  20-01-2017 17:56
  
  UK chancellor tells WEF that Britain will reinvent itself if it has to, as Davos ends with comments from veteran diplomat Henry KissingerLatest: Kissinger on Brexit, Trump and more....Hammond: We’ll leave economic mainstream if we have to Hammond: Blair allowed ‘tide’ of migration into UK in 2004Oxford’s Ngaire Woods: UK risks smashing own kneecapsHammond: UK inflation is going up Hands up if you think Brexit won’t happen 4.56pm GMTOh, one last thing. You’ll n
  
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• Buy, George? World's largest fund manager hires Osborne as adviser

  20-01-2017 17:53
  
  Former chancellor’s lucrative new role as BlackRock adviser follows controversial US speaking tour that netted £600,000George Osborne is taking on a lucrative six-figure role as an adviser to BlackRock, the world’s biggest fund manager.The former chancellor has already earned considerable amounts in the private sector since Theresa May sacked him as chancellor, with speeches to Wall Street banks helping to make him the highest earning MP in 2016. Continue reading...
  
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• Losing the plot: courgette crisis spreads to other vegetables

  20-01-2017 17:35
  
  Snow across Spanish farming areas means tomato, lettuce, pepper and celery shortage - and higher prices - may last into springBritish shoppers have been told that shortages of courgettes, aubergines and many salad ingredients, including lettuce and celery, will continue until spring –and that if they manage to find stock in their local supermarket they can expect to pay substantially higher prices.The lion’s share of fresh vegetables we eat in winter comes from Murcia and Valencia in
  
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• Ikea’s effect on the antiques trade: here’s how to turn the tables

  20-01-2017 17:31
  
  Our fondness for the Swedish manufacturer has contributed to falling antique sales – and our inability to appreciate other furniture. Here’s a list of six design classics to set the flat-packs packingI have a confession to make. I am a design critic, and my house is full of Ikea products. There are Billy bookcases and Tarva chests of drawers, Vate table lamps and Pokal glasses galore. We have odd 1950s things from junk shops too, stuff made by friends, and one hallowed Eames side tab
  
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• Let’s move to Scarborough, North Yorkshire: ‘Where seasiding began’

  20-01-2017 17:30
  
  It has it all – donkey rides, ice-cream sundaes, fish and chips, penny slots and a miniature railwayWhat’s going for it? I’ll warn you: I’m saving Scarborough for me. It’s mine, all mine. You can keep your Costa Brava and all of that palaver. This, where seasiding began in the 17th century, has all I require in life balanced beautifully in the perfect resort recipe: one measure donkey rides to two parts ice-cream sundaes, a dash of kiss-me-quick, a sprinkling of ecc
  
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• New US administration unlikely to be awed by China's year-end spurt

  20-01-2017 17:21
  
  GDP growth improved to 6.8% but only after a 19% increase in public investment and a lighter touch on real estate borrowing
  The silver lining in China’s disappointing 2016 growth figures was the pickup in performance at the end of the year. Or so it seems.Annualised GDP growth improved to hit 6.8% in the final three months of 2016, compared with the previous quarter’s 6.7%, in a show of strength that a wary Donald Trump will see as further evidence of Beijing’s trading prowess.
  
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• EUROPE'S WAKE UP CALL: Mass migration and fury at Brussels caused Brexit, admits Schaeuble

  20-01-2017 17:18 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  BREXIT was the moment Europe woke-up to the rising tide of anger over its immigration polices, Germany's finance minster has admitted.
  
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• Chinese growth slips to slowest pace for 26 years

  20-01-2017 17:04
  
  With fears about the Trump presidency, rising debt levels and an unwinding property boom, the world’s No 2 economy is set for an uncertain 2017China’s economy slowed further last year to expand at its weakest pace for quarter of a century, with warnings that it risks losing further momentum in 2017 as Donald Trump’s presidency creates new challenges for the trading superpower.The world’s second-largest economy grew 6.7% last year, according to China’s statistics off
  
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• Davos 2017: what we learned at the WEF

  20-01-2017 16:14
  
  Banks got a warm welcome, Britain got a cool reception and climate change fears abounded at the World Economic ForumDonald Trump has been on everyone’s mind, even though he has been on the other side of the Atlantic this week preparing for his inauguration. Continue reading...
  
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• ScotRail boss resigns after pressure over firm's performance

  20-01-2017 15:47
  
  Phil Verster’s departure for another rail job raises doubts about future of Scotland’s transport minister Humza Yousaf Phil Verster, the beleaguered boss of the ScotRail franchise, has resigned after weeks of pressure over the company’s poor performance.His decision to quit to take up another rail industry job has plunged the Scottish government into an unexpected crisis, raising further questions about the future of the transport minister, Humza Yousaf. Continue reading...
  
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• Rolls-Royce sent agent to 'retrieve' document from India tax office

  20-01-2017 14:52
  
  Latest revelations in bribery scandal involve anonymous intermediary ‘paying large sum’ to recover an incriminating list of contacts used by multinational Rolls-Royce sent an agent to “retrieve” an incriminating document from tax officials in India to avoid the investigation and prosecution of its employees. The agent told the engineering giant that he paid a large sum to get the document from authorities, avoiding the company being banned from operating in India for 25 y
  
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• Whistleblower wins 13-year campaign against HSBC

  20-01-2017 14:17
  
  Thousands of customers will be compensated for excessive credit card charges thanks to dogged efforts of 59-year-old Nicholas Wilson
  A lone whistleblower has won a 13-year “David and Goliath battle” against HSBC and Britain’s chief financial watchdog, resulting in a multimillion-pound compensation payout to thousands of people.
  The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said HSBC had voluntarily agreed to set up a £4m compensation scheme for people who had lost out financially
  
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• Harrods stops taking cut of tips in its restaurants after protests

  20-01-2017 13:39
  
  Store was targeted by United Voices of the World union after keeping half the discretionary 12.5% service charge Luxury department store Harrods has agreed to let staff keep 100% of the money raised from restaurant tips following a union campaign. The store was targeted by protesters earlier this month after it emerged that the retailer, which is owned by Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, kept 50% of the discretionary 12.5% service charge automatically added to diners’ bills. The retail
  
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• Philip Hammond blames Tony Blair for Brexit vote

  20-01-2017 13:20
  
  Chancellor tells Davos audience ex-PM’s failure to control flow of eastern European workers fuelled anti-immigration viewsTony Blair’s failure to control the flow of workers from eastern Europe fuelled the anti-immigration sentiment that led to the UK’s Brexit vote, the chancellor, Philip Hammond, said.Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the chancellor launched a strongly worded attack on the former prime minister’s open-door policy when eight former communist
  
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• George Soros: Theresa May won't last and Trump is 'would-be dictator'

  20-01-2017 13:19
  
  Billionaire investor delivers bleak Brexit forecast at World Economic Forum and says Donald Trump is ‘gearing up for trade war’ but will fail•Donald Trump inauguration live: the world holds its breath•Inauguration day schedule: our guide to the dayTheresa May will not remain in power long as Brexit cripples her government, while Donald Trump is a “would-be dictator” who is “going to fail”, the billionaire investor George Soros has told the Davos worl
  
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• UK retail sales slump in December as inflation bites

  20-01-2017 12:05
  
  Biggest drop since April 2012 as prices rise after Brexit vote, but sales still up across fourth quarter, says ONSBritain’s retailers suffered a surprise end-of-year slump in sales in a sign that rising prices since the Brexit vote are starting to hit people’s spending power.Sales volumes dropped by 1.9% in December, the retail industry’s crucial Christmas month, according to official figures. That was the biggest drop since April 2012 and far worse than forecasts for a 0.1% di
  
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• Paws for thought … can you really afford to get a dog?

  20-01-2017 11:57
  
  Your pooch could set you back £33,000. As we report, it’s a lifetime commitment from food to pet insuranceHow much is that doggie in the window? Before deciding to buy a canine companion, add up the total costs during its lifetime – Ben or Poppy (the two most popular names in 2016) could be more of a drain on your finances than you think.Research by the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) found that 98% of pet owners underestimated the lifetime costs, with 12% (2.
  
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• Banks are moving workers, inflation is up. Project Fear is coming true | Simon Jenkins

  20-01-2017 11:49
  
  This week two big banks, HSBC and UBS, honoured their threats about moving jobs from the UK. The grim reality is ‘hard’ Brexit will be tough for many of usThe tumult and the shouting dies. From hysterical prediction slowly emerges the grim reality. Now the prospect comes into view that the remainers’ Project Fear might just have been true after all. They just got the timing wrong. Related: Goldman Sachs stalls plan to move jobs to UK amid Brexit uncertaintyContinue reading...
  
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• Bank jobs leaving UK? Some in financial sector blast buzz over Brexodus - MarketWatch

  20-01-2017 09:47
  
  MarketWatch
  Bank jobs leaving UK? Some in financial sector blast buzz over Brexodus
  MarketWatch
  Here's another sign that Brexit is getting real: Big banks are revealing plans to shift workers from London to other European cities. U.K.-based HSBC HSBA, -0.13% HSBC, +0.17% expects to move about 1,000 staff out of London to Paris, and Switzerland's ...
  Brexit: May says she will keep financial services in the UKMoney Marketingalle 1.085 nieuwsartikelen »
  
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• 'Of the very greatest gravity’: key quotes from the Rolls-Royce bribery scandal

  20-01-2017 09:34
  
  How court documents reveal the scale of gifts and seven-figure sums given to anonymous intermediariesThe judgments on the corruption charges against Rolls-Royce and the statement of facts behind the case clearly implicate former executives within the company.In his judgment, Sir Brian Leveson said the term “senior employees” meant “communications by an employee with a superior, or, more significantly, to identify decision-makers who may be argued to represent the corporate mind
  
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• WorldRemit founder: 'I lost my job to uncover UN fraud'

  20-01-2017 08:00
  
  Growing up in Somaliland, Ismail Ahmed saw the power of money transfers. He later learned the sector’s potential for corruptionSome people use their savings to start a business, while others turn to family and friends to borrow cash. But Ismail Ahmed’s case was more unusual. He launched WorldRemit, a money transfer business, with compensation cash he received after uncovering alleged corruption at the UN.Ahmed, who grew up in Somaliland, a breakaway part-desert territory that declare
  
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• I was retired but need to work again – will the gap in my CV be a hindrance?

  20-01-2017 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  I had to stop working when my husband fell ill, but now that I need to earn money I fear my circumstances will go against me
  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. When working, I did a great range of roles (as we moved around with my husband’s job). I have a general science
  
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• Davos 2017: business leaders need to stop navel gazing and act responsibly

  20-01-2017 07:06
  
  Australian business leaders must look at their own practices first before we can solve economic inequality, social polarisation and environmental issues I was excited when this year’s major theme for Davos was announced as Responsive and Responsible Leadership. I expected to see many sessions focused on how the world’s business leaders could take ownership of solving the myriad of global challenges within their power.Reading (and now reviewing) many of the sessions, my smile has fade
  
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• French court fines easyJet over refusal to let disabled passenger board

  20-01-2017 04:58
  
  British low-cost airline fined €60,000 for refusing to allow man to board for ‘security’ reasonsA French court on Thursday fined British low-cost airline easyJet €60,000 (£52,000) for having refused to allow a disabled passenger to board for “security” reasons.The criminal court in Bayonne, southern France, heard that staff at the budget carrier refused to allow Joseph Etcheveste, 55, to board an Easyjet flight in Biarritz in July 2010 because he was &ldqu
  
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