Financial news

• Jeff Bezos: where the $106bn man belongs on the all-time rich list

  10-01-2018 23:01 via theguardian.com
  Amazon founder’s wealth soars by $6bn thanks to stock market surge – but he is still not the richest person ever
  Just 10 days into 2018 and Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and a thorn in the side of Donald Trump, has seen his personal wealth soar by $6bn (£4.4bn).The man at the helm of the sprawling online empire – which accounted for an extraordinary 89% of online Christmas trading at big US retailers – Bezos is now worth $106bn, enough to cover Britain’s b
  
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• Ikea invites customers to 'pee on this ad' to check for pregnancy – and a crib deal

  10-01-2018 20:32 via theguardian.com
  The Swedish store’s new ad is made of paper which contains similar technology to a pregnancy test – and if it’s positive, the ad reveals a special saleIkea, the Swedish homeware giant, has come up with a novel way to get would-be parents streaming through the doors to the company’s cavernous outlets – a magazine advert for baby cribs that doubles as a pregnancy test. Ikea is encouraging the possibly pregnant to pee on the ad in its latest catalogue, the paper of whi
  
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• Government admits plans in place for Carillion collapse

  10-01-2018 18:55 via theguardian.com
  Preparations have been made for failure of UK’s second largest construction firm as crunch talks with creditors continue The government has made contingency plans for the collapse of Carillion, the UK’s second largest construction company and a key provider of public services.The troubled contractor – which has 20,000 UK staff and is an important supplier to the government, including a contract for work on the HS2 rail link – held crunch talks with its creditors on Wednes
  
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• M&S drops cauliflower 'steak' amid ridicule from customers

  10-01-2018 18:48 via theguardian.com
  Costing double the price of a whole vegetable and shrouded in layers of plastic, ‘clean eating’ product fails to make the cut Marks & Spencer has withdrawn its “cauliflower steak” product from sale after it was ridiculed by consumers for its “excessive” plastic packaging and inflated price. The sliced cauliflower, which comes in plastic packaging with a separate sachet of lemon and herb drizzle, was being sold for twice the price of a whole, single caulifl
  
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• Bath revives plan to impose tourist tax

  10-01-2018 17:29 via theguardian.com
  Councillors believe levy of £1 or more on visitors would raise extra cash for city in times of austerity but hoteliers are waryThe city of Bath is planning to lobby the government for the power to charge its many visitors a tourist tax.A levy of about £1 or more could be added to the accommodation bills of the million or so tourists who stay in the Georgian city every year.Continue reading...
  
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• Regulator sorry for not capping UK consumers' energy bills sooner

  10-01-2018 14:13 via theguardian.com
  Ofgem chief Dermot Nolan to not receive bonus as MPs liken him to ‘a bystander, rather than active participant in the market’The head of the UK energy regulator has said he will not receive his bonus, as he came under pressure from MPs who accused him of being a passive bystander and failing to prevent millions of customers from paying over the odds.Dermot Nolan said he would not get his £15,000 bonus this year as he admitted he had not acted quickly enough to help households g
  
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• Virgin is not censoring the Daily Mail – hate just doesn’t match its brand identity | Jane Fae

  10-01-2018 14:05 via theguardian.com
  The newspaper’s hounding of minorities such as trans people simply didn’t sell to the rail company’s target passengersDo conservatives understand the workings of the marketplace they are so keen to extol?Take the latest kerfuffle over so-called “censorship”, involving Virgin Trains and the Daily Mail. The former has said it will no longer stock or sell the latter, because of conflict with Virgin’s brand values. Cue outrage over free speech under attack. Contin
  
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• Britain's manufacturers provide boost for UK economy - business live

  10-01-2018 12:37 via theguardian.com
  UK manufacturing output grew by 0.4% in November, beating expectations and boosting hopes that the economy ended 2017 in decent shapeFTSE 100 hits new record highSainsbury’s warns of challenges despite record Christmas sales 11.37am GMT Britain’s business secretary Greg Clark is in Paris for talks with Carlos Tavares, the chief executive of PSA, owner of Peugeot and Vauxhall. Related: Vauxhall axes 250 more jobs at Ellesmere Port plant Do #British consumers care where their cars are
  
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• UK Christmas retail: who were the winners and losers?

  10-01-2018 12:24 via theguardian.com
  Some stores were cheered by healthy festive takings, while others were forced to issue profit warnings The crucial Christmas trading season can be make or break for retailers. As the festive season got under way, companies faced intense competition to win sales as cash-strapped consumers constrained by falling real pay sought out the best deals. It was tough for the whole retail market, but so far, more winners have emerged than losers.Continue reading...
  
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• UK manufacturing output rises for eighth month in a row

  10-01-2018 12:03 via theguardian.com
  Britain’s factories increase production for longest period in 23 years as manufacturers benefit from stronger global economyBritain’s factories increased their output for the eighth consecutive month in November, a feat last seen in May 1994, as manufacturers benefited from a broad upswing in the global economy. Manufacturing output was 1.4% higher in the three months to the end of November than in the preceding quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).Continue
  
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• HMRC forces Apple to pay £137m extra tax

  10-01-2018 12:03 via theguardian.com
  ‘Corporate income tax adjustment’ made as settlement after multi-year audit by tax authorities into iPhone-maker’s UK operationsApple Europe has agreed to pay more than £100m of extra taxes following an “extensive audit” by HMRC, the firm revealed in accounts filed on Monday.The company said the payment of £137m, including interest on the unpaid tax, was a “corporate income tax adjustment” covering the years until September 2015 that “r
  
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• The cybercrime challenge: 'fighting 21st-century problems with 19th-century tools'

  10-01-2018 11:15 via theguardian.com
  Security expert Raj Samani is the man standing between you and a cyber-attack. He believes digital security is becoming a key differentiator for businessesAs the threat of cyber-attacks become more widespread and strikes are increasingly devastating, cybersecurity professionals have their work cut out. On the frontline of that battle is Raj Samani, vice-president, chief technical officer for McAfee EMEA, and a special adviser for the European CyberCrime Centre.“I love what I do,” say
  
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• Chris Grayling criticised for blaming rail delays on 'militant unions'

  10-01-2018 11:10 via theguardian.com
  Minister denies he is passing the buck but Labour says he is in denial about his shortcomings, after damning NAO reportChris Grayling, the transport secretary, has been accused of passing the buck over severe rail disruption on Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern trains, for which he blamed staff shortages caused by “militant unions”.A report from the National Audit Office criticises the government’s management of the UK’s largest rail franchise, held by Govia Thamesl
  
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• Sainsbury's warns of challenging market as Argos sales slide

  10-01-2018 09:00 via theguardian.com
  Supermarket reports quarterly sales in line with expectations but its Argos chain struggles over Christmas periodSainsbury’s has warned of a challenging market as it reported sales in line with expectations despite a tough time for its Argos chain.Sales at established stores rose by 1.1% in the three months to 6 January and total sales were up by 1.2%. The company said grocery sales increased by 2.3%, slightly behind the pace of food price inflation, but ahead of its 1.4% growth in the pre
  
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• Winter sales shopping in Oxford Street – in pictures

  10-01-2018 08:30 via theguardian.com
  Photographer Andy Hall braved the cold and the crowds in the West End to snap bargain hunters over the festive season Continue reading...
  
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• Car hire firms’ double whammy strikes at both the young and the old

  10-01-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Readers were left out of pocket when car hire firms failed to honour their bookings, one because he was old and another because she was youngReaders were left out of pocket when car hire firms failed to honour their bookings, one because he was old and another because she was young. FH of Sheffield’s 24-year-old daughter lives in Italy and was returning to the UK for Christmas in December 2016 when she booked a hire car with Europcar via Orbitz. The fee was £156.Continue reading...
  
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• Cabinet reshuffle could threaten gambling curbs, say campaigners

  10-01-2018 07:01 via theguardian.com
  New culture secretary may be less inclined to cap fixed-odds betting terminals after repeatedly voting against tighter regulationAnti-gambling campaigners have voiced fears that new culture secretary, Matt Hancock, will shy away from strict curbs on fixed-odds betting terminals, as it emerged the machines are taking more revenue than ever from British punters. Related: The multimillionaires making a packet out of Britain's gamblersContinue reading...
  
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• Davis and Hammond make plea to Germany in pursuit of Brexit deal

  10-01-2018 01:14 via theguardian.com
  Chancellor and Brexit secretary seek deal to avoid catastrophe for Britain’s financial services industry after UK leaves EUPhilip Hammond and David Davis have made a direct appeal to German business leaders to help them forge a Brexit deal to secure the future of Britain’s financial services.The chancellor and Brexit secretary travel to Germany on Wednesday on a charm offensive they hope will shift the EU’s implacable opposition to services being included in a final deal.Contin
  
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