Financial news

• Adani posts weird video ad on Facebook to fend off Carmichael criticism

  20-10-2017 23:33 via theguardian.com
  The post – with misspellings and all – targets people in Melbourne and displays ‘allegations’, which it labels as ‘lies’The Adani Group has promoted a bizarre video advertisement on Facebook, in which the Indian company responds to revelations its Australian coal operations face growing financial risks.The video, targeting people in Melbourne, flashes up text on the screen, backed by fast and upbeat percussive music. It displays “allegations”, whic
  
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• Police Scotland looking into RBS treatment of small business clients

  20-10-2017 21:00 via theguardian.com
  Royal Bank of Scotland, which is 70% owned by the taxpayer, says it will cooperate fully Police Scotland is looking into reports it has received about Royal Bank of Scotland’s treatment of small business customers.The Scottish police force did not reveal how many reports it had received or the nature of the complaints but it is reported to be related to the bank’s now defunct global restructuring group (GRG). Continue reading...
  
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• Hurricanes and earthquakes will cost insurance industry £72bn

  20-10-2017 20:47 via theguardian.com
  2017 will be one of the worst years for insurance claims for natural disasters, says Hiscox, as reinsurance firm Swiss Re says its bill will be around £2.7bnHurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, along with two recent earthquakes in Mexico, will cost the insurance industry $95bn (£72bn), according to estimates released on Friday.Swiss Re, one of the world’s biggest reinsurance companies, made the estimate as it admitted its own bill for the natural disasters would be around $3.6bn.
  
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• Pensions news: OAPs need £10k to pay bills - but State Pensions only gives them THIS

  20-10-2017 20:06 via feedproxy.google.com
  PENSIONERS need £10,830 a year to pay the bills but the State Pension only pays £8,300.
  
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• The Guardian view on the EU summit: a decent 24 hours for Theresa May | Editorial

  20-10-2017 19:51 via theguardian.com
  The EU27 and the UK did well by keeping the Brexit ball in play. A finesse of the difficult issues in their next meeting in December will be much harderIt is a sign of how little has actually been achieved in the UK’s Brexit negotiations that the outcome of this week’s European council meeting in Brussels has promptly been hailed on both sides as progress. On the face of it, after all, the Brexit takeaway from the EU summit is extremely thin. The first phase of the article 50 ne
  
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• Phones 4U founder 'felt bereaved' after partner's expenses claims, high court hears

  20-10-2017 19:25 via theguardian.com
  John Caudwell gives evidence against former business partner Nathalie Dauriac who denies fiddling £33,000 worth of expensesJohn Caudwell, the founder of Phones 4U, said the breakdown of his relationship with a trusted business adviser who he regarded as a “best friend” was like suffering a “bereavement”, the high court has heard.Caudwell was giving evidence at the high court on Friday in his legal battle with French businesswoman Nathalie Dauriac, the former chief e
  
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• Bad weather and Brexit cloud big-ticket buys at John Lewis

  20-10-2017 18:41 via theguardian.com
  Chain says home furnishings face ‘real challenge’ as housing markets stalls but group finds solace in booming sales of ‘little pleasures’ The recent downturn on the high street is largely down to the weather but the uncertainty of Brexit continues to dampen demand for big household purchases, according to the boss of John Lewis.“October is going to look pretty grim for the market,” said Paula Nickolds, managing director of the department store, ahead of the op
  
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• UK budget deficit narrows to lowest level September since 2007

  20-10-2017 17:35 via theguardian.com
  Inflation-fuelled rise in VAT receipts cheers chancellor ahead of budget but analysts warn of OBR cut in forecasts and further Brexit uncertaintyBritain’s budget deficit has fallen to its lowest level in any September for the last 10 years, as higher than-expected tax recepits handed Philip Hammond a boost ahead of next month’s autumn budget.The 11% drop from September last year shows the government’s finances putting in a better than expected performance despite recent Brexit
  
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• Let’s move to Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland: it’s delightful

  20-10-2017 17:30 via theguardian.com
  This town is the most fought-over in Europe – and it has the walls to prove itWhat’s going for it? Walls and borders are so 2017, sadly, thanks to Trump, Brexit and the world’s current miseries. There has never been any escaping them in Berwick, mind you. This is the frontier town, the most fought-over in Europe, scrapped over by the English and the Scots, and it has the town walls to prove it. Elizabeth I built them (not herself, obvs), with her eye on the Scots’ Auld Al
  
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• Lloyds was not bullied into buying HBOS, high court hears

  20-10-2017 17:29 via theguardian.com
  Former directors reject claim by bank shareholders that Gordon Brown’s government pushed bank into buying HBOS to avoid nationalisationLloyds Bank and five of its former directors “emphatically reject” allegations they were bullied into taking over HBOS, their QC has told the high court.Helen Davies was responding to claims made by 6,000 Lloyds shareholders, who have brought a £600m compensation claim that they were not given a true picture of the financial health of HBOS
  
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• Punk IPO? BrewDog ponders ways to fund new expansion

  20-10-2017 16:41 via theguardian.com
  The craft beer trailblazer is building a hotel in Ohio and plans a push into China. Co-founder James Watt discusses how to fund the expansion driveBrewDog’s 60,000 “Equity Punk” investors enjoy lifetime discounts and free brews on their birthday as part of the craft beer company’s crowdfunded money-raising scheme. But while BrewDog’s beer may flow freely, the market for its shares is less fluid.Its latest fundraising effort, launched this week, aims to raise £
  
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• UK may consider electric vehicle subsidy to increase cycling

  20-10-2017 16:28 via theguardian.com
  Roads minister Jesse Norman says government could push councils to do more to fight pollution and inactive livingThe UK government could potentially consider providing subsidies for electric bicycles and electric cars as part of a concerted policy effort to get more people cycling, the roads minister, Jesse Norman, has said.With the UK facing health crises from pollution and inactive living, other plans could include using electric cargo bikes to deliver packages from internet retailers rather t
  
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• Ignore the naysayers. The Brexit negotiations are going better than EU leaders can let on | Henry Newman

  20-10-2017 15:24 via theguardian.com
  The EU and Britain are like a couple who’ve been on a few dates. It’s too soon to go further but they’ll get there eventuallyThe European council’s decision to tell Theresa May to, in effect, “Go back, try harder” is no surprise. It always seemed overwhelmingly likely that the 27 heads of government would rubber-stamp the recommendation of their lead negotiator for Brexit, Michel Barnier, that the UK has not yet made “sufficient progress” to talk t
  
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• Rich pickings: how Hollywood rivals will profit from Weinstein's downfall

  20-10-2017 15:20 via theguardian.com
  Competitors are moving to snap up the imploding independent studio’s back catalogue, but the assets cannot be fully valued until the scandal subsidesThe death knell may have sounded over The Weinstein Company (TWC) name but Hollywood rivals believe the business has a secure future – without its disgraced co-founder – due to a legacy of hits including The King’s Speech and Silver Linings Playbook, as well as a strong slate of upcoming releases.The independent studio, mired
  
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• REVEALED: The EU's £450TRILLION derivative market

  20-10-2017 15:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE European Union has more than £450TRILLION of exposure to derivatives - the investments that underpinned the financial crisis, it has been revealed.
  
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• Millennial railcard to launch next year offering a third off fares

  20-10-2017 15:09 via theguardian.com
  Card for people aged 26-30 is expected to offer benefits similar to the 18-25 railcard but will only be available digitallyA new railcard for people aged 26-30 is to be launched early next year offering a third off most train fares as part of a wider government initiative to offer better deals for hard-pressed millennials.It is understood that the chancellor, Phillip Hammond, is preparing to unveil a package of giveaways in his November budget aimed at shoring up support among younger voters, wh
  
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• Mecca Bingo owner Rank Group relishes hike in sales thanks to online betting boost

  20-10-2017 14:18 via feedproxy.google.com
  MECCA BINGO owner Rank Group has notched up a hike in sales thanks to a boost from online betting.
  
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• Misco UK plunges into administration – around 300 jobs lost at Northamptonshire-based firm

  20-10-2017 14:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  AROUND 300 jobs have been lost at the UK arm of computer reseller Misco after the operation plunged into administration.
  
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• Boost for Hammond as government posts smallest September deficit in decade – as it happened

  20-10-2017 14:01 via theguardian.com
  A rise in tax receipts contributed to the lowest government borrowing since 2007, handing the chancellor Philip Hammond a boost before next month’s budgetPound reverses losses on hint of Brexit progress at Brussels summitPolitics live: EU leaders agree to start internal Brexit talks on trade 1.01pm BSTInvestors across Europe remain in an upbeat mood this mood, with the FTSE 100 still in with a chance of a new closing high (7,556.24 is the number to beat). 12.09pm BSTBritain’s manufac
  
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• Sales: Retail sales FALL despite a positive trend of steady growth

  20-10-2017 13:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  UK RETAIL sales dropped sharply in September despite an underlying trend of steady growth in the face of rising prices, figures show.
  
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• Pound V euro: GBP boosted by lowest September borrowing since 2007

  20-10-2017 13:11 via feedproxy.google.com
  BETTER-than-expected UK government borrowing figures have boosted the pound against the euro today.
  
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• Pound v US dollar: GBP exchange rate tumbles on US tax reform hopes

  20-10-2017 12:19 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound tumbled even further against the US dollar on Thursday as markets reacted to signs that progress is finally being made towards implementing tax reforms in the US.
  
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• POUND EURO LIVE: Pound RISES amid Brexit EU summit as Theresa May urges talks progress

  20-10-2017 10:33 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound edged up against the euro amid a key Brexit EU summit where member states will decide whether there has been enough progress in talks to move on to negotiations over a trade deal.
  
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• UK mobile phone firms overcharging customers after contracts expire

  20-10-2017 10:27
  Citizens Advice urges Ofcom to act after finding Vodafone, EE and Three charge for handsets after phones paid offThree of Britain’s biggest mobile phone networks keep charging customers extra for their handsets after they have been paid off, leaving them up to £38 a month worse off, a consumer group has said. Citizens Advice found that Vodafone, EE and Three were overcharging customers who failed to change their contract an average of £22 a month, rising to £38 a month fo
  
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• M&S hopes shoppers will pick up mortgages with ready meals

  20-10-2017 08:00
  The retailer’s banking arm is to take on Tesco and Sainsbury’s by offering home loans at ‘competitive rates’ from next yearYou’ll soon be able to pop a Marks & Spencer mortgage into your basket after the retailer’s banking arm revealed it is bringing its trusted brand to the world of home loans.M&S Bank on Friday announced it is taking on the main high street banks and lenders by launching its first mortgages early next year. Continue reading...
  
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• Balearic cave home – in pictures

  20-10-2017 08:00
  This two-bedroom natural cave in Menorca is full of quirky artwork that might just rock your world Continue reading...
  
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• Artificial intelligence commission needed to predict impact, says CBI

  20-10-2017 07:01 via theguardian.com
  Business group urges government to launch commission to assess consequences of AI on jobs and increasing productivity Britain’s biggest employers are calling for a commission to examine the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs.Amid predictions of a workplace revolution threatening one in five jobs across the UK, the CBI is urging Theresa May to launch the commission from early 2018. It said companies and trade unions should be involved and the commission should help to set out ways to
  
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• Introducing Halo Top: the 'healthy' ice-cream taking over America

  20-10-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  Marketed as ‘the low-calorie, high-protein and low-sugar’ alternative to ice-cream it is now outselling tubs from Ben & Jerry’s and Häagen-Dazs “Everyone you love is gone. There is only ice-cream” is the darkly humorous sign off used in a recent ad for fast-growing American ice-cream brand Halo Top. Related: Magnum maker's ice-cream sales melt under pressure from low-calorie rivalContinue reading...
  
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• Marks & Spencer to offer mortgages from next year

  20-10-2017 01:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  MARKS & SPENCER is planning to enter the mortgage market early next year, with products aimed at first-time buyers as well as home-movers.
  
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• Childcare costs in England rise up to seven times faster than wages

  20-10-2017 01:01
  Research finds costs for parents of one-year-olds up by 48% since 2008, with the disparity with salaries greatest in LondonThe cost of childcare for young children in England has risen up to seven times faster than wages since 2008, analysis shows.TUC research published on Friday shows that childcare costs for parents with a one-year-old have soared by almost half (48%) over a period when their wages have fallen after adjusting for inflation, albeit rising by 12% in cash terms. Continue reading.
  
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• British Airways apologises for bed bug infestation

  20-10-2017 00:10 via theguardian.com
  Canadian family is covered with bites after Vancouver to London flight – despite pointing out insects to attendantsBritish Airways has apologised to a Canadian family after they were bitten by bed bugs on a transatlantic flight between Vancouver and London. Heather Szilagyi, her seven-year-old daughter, Molly, and her fiance, Eric Neilson, were left covered with painful insect bites while travelling from Canada to Slovakia this month.Continue reading...
  
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