Financial news

• Frank Field demands answers over 'reckless' running of Carillion

  19-01-2018 20:01 via theguardian.com
  Regulators and pension schemes under scrutiny from MPs investigating £900m deficitA committee of MPs has demanded answers from the trustees of Carillion’s pension scheme and regulators as it opened an investigation into how the company collapsed, leaving behind a retirement scheme with a deficit set to hit £900m.Frank Field MP, who chairs the work and pensions select committee, said the company’s implosion “begs questions across government” and promised to tak
  
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• UK retail sales fall sharply in December, US consumer confidence dips - as it happened

  19-01-2018 18:43 via theguardian.com
  UK retail sales fell by 1.5% in December in the latest sign that consumers were feeling the strain of falling real pay over the crucial Christmas shopping periodGreg Clark: powers exist to claw back Carillion bonuses Carpetright shares plunge after major profits warningDignity cuts price of funerals amid price warPound edges higher against the dollar to above $1.39 5.43pm GMT Despite the stronger euro as the dollar weakens, European markets have ended the week on a positive note with the Stoxx i
  
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• Carillion collapse further delays building at two major hospitals

  19-01-2018 18:23 via theguardian.com
  BMA demands answers as work stops at Royal Liverpool and Midland MetropolitanThe chair of the British Medical Association has demanded answers about the future of two major hospitals that Carillion was building when it collapsed, amid mounting concern about the impact of any delays on stretched NHS services.Patients’ groups joined the doctors’ trade body in calling for clarity after local NHS trusts admitted that work on the £335m Royal Liverpool University and Birmingham&rsquo
  
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• Facebook hires Eurosport chief for multibillion live sport push

  19-01-2018 17:48 via theguardian.com
  Appointment made weeks ahead of deadline for bids on rights to stream live Premier League matches in the UKFacebook is poised to appoint a senior broadcasting executive to to lead its multibillion dollar drive to secure streaming rights for top-flight live sport.Facebook’s appointment of Eurosport chief executive Peter Hutton follows its global search for a head of live sport after being frustrated in a $600m (£433m) bid to secure streaming rights to Indian Premier League cricket mat
  
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• Facebook hires Eurosport chief for multibillion live push

  19-01-2018 17:48 via theguardian.com
  Appointment made before deadline for bids on rights to stream Premier League matchesFacebook is poised to appoint a senior broadcasting executive to lead its multibillion-dollar drive to secure streaming rights for top-flight live sport.The appointment of Eurosport’s chief executive, Peter Hutton, follows its global search for a head of live sport after being frustrated in a $600m (£433m) bid to secure streaming rights to Indian Premier League cricket matches. Continue reading...
  
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• Let’s move to Finnieston, Glasgow: ‘You’ll struggle to find a lampshade in the modish new nitespots’

  19-01-2018 17:30 via theguardian.com
  Move there and open something useful. With no cocktails in jam jarsWhat’s going for it? Bare lightbulbs. Yes, yes, I know they’re very fashionable right now, thank you very much. I have read Living Etc. But, at the risk of sounding like my late granny, what’s wrong with a lampshade? Once upon a time, bare lightbulbs in a window might have indicated poverty or dereliction. Now they mean quite the opposite. You’ll struggle to find a lampshade in the windows of the modish ne
  
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• 'Cryptocurrency BANS are inevitable' Macron and Merkel to trigger global bitcoin crackdown

  19-01-2018 17:17 via feedproxy.google.com
  FRANCE and Germany are set to launch a joint crackdown on cryptocurrency - as a top global insurance CEO warned regulations on bitcoin are inevitable as snow in the Alps.
  
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• UK retail sales fall sharply in December, US consumer confidence dips - business live

  19-01-2018 17:10 via theguardian.com
  UK retail sales fell by 1.5% in December in the latest sign that consumers were feeling the strain of falling real pay over the crucial Christmas shopping periodGreg Clark: powers exist to claw back Carillion bonuses Carpetright shares plunge after major profits warningDignity cuts price of funerals amid price warPound edges higher against the dollar to above $1.39 4.10pm GMT Dr Harm Bandholz, chief US economist at UniCredit, agrees the impact of a US government shutdown should be modest. But gi
  
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• Cryptocurrencies crash: Is the boom over for bitcoin, Ripple and Ethereum?

  19-01-2018 16:50 via feedproxy.google.com
  BITCOIN, Ripple and Ethereum have seen plunging prices this week, sending investors into panic. But is the boom over for Bitcoin, Ripple and Ethereum? And what happens now?
  
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• UK's live entertainment industry hits new highs

  19-01-2018 16:49 via theguardian.com
  Sector takes record £17bn in revenues last year as analysts predict further growth for 2018The West End debut of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, mega gigs including U2 and Guns N’ Roses and the return of Star Wars helped propel the UK’s live entertainment sector to a record £17bn in revenues last year.Growth will continue this year as the UK’s live economy – which ranges from cinema visits to attending music and arts festivals, sports events, and live tours
  
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• Bitcoin price: Has the bitcoin bubble burst? Is this the end of cryptocurrencies?

  19-01-2018 16:45 via feedproxy.google.com
  BITCOIN’S price suffered staggering losses this week, plummeting by 52 percent from its December market high of $19,700 to $9,402 on Wednesday afternoon, according to CoinMarketCap.
  
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• Davos speakers: From Donald Trump to Malala Yousafzai

  19-01-2018 16:37 via theguardian.com
  The World Economic Forum gathering is fabled for its high-profile speakers. Here’s 10 of the most significantThe annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos is attended by thousands of high-powered delegates from the worlds of politics, business and even entertainment. Here are 10 of the most high-profile figures appearing at the Swiss resort next month. Davos is a Swiss ski resort now more famous for hosting the annual four-day conference for the World Economic Forum. For particip
  
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• Davos gathering prompts locals to cash-in and leave

  19-01-2018 16:37 via theguardian.com
  Rents for homes, shops and hotel rooms skyrocket as the very small Swiss resort hosts the very rich and the very powerfulLast weekend the vicar of Freie Evangelische Gemeinde, the “English church” in the centre of the Swiss town of Davos was handing out the sacrament.
  This Sunday holy communion is cancelled, because the church is one of more than a dozen Davos buildings that have been rented out to multinational companies for hundreds of thousands of Swiss francs during the World Eco
  
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• 1m more smart meters which hinder switching could be rolled out

  19-01-2018 16:29 via theguardian.com
  Government extends deadline for installation of older model despite interoperability issuesMore than 1m extra first generation smart meters will be fitted in homes because the government has extended a deadline for their installation, despite being criticised because they can “go dumb” when customers switch energy suppliers. Related: Energy firms say price cap on bills could hit UK roll-out of smart metersContinue reading...
  
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• Ripple price LIVE: Ripple price RISES as XRP leads cryptocurrency and Bitcoin comeback

  19-01-2018 15:10 via feedproxy.google.com
  RIPPLE prices have soared by almost 20 percent in 24 hours, with XRP leading the cryptocurrency comeback against Bitcoin and Ethereum. Here is the latest price news and live updates on Ripple, Bitcoin and Ethereum.
  
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• BITCOIN CRASH: How ’Tulip mania' could spark epic cryptocurrency collapse

  19-01-2018 14:57 via feedproxy.google.com
  BITCOIN’S "tulip mania" will "totally collapse" according to Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller.
  
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• Hundreds of MPs call on supermarkets to scrap plastic packaging

  19-01-2018 14:48 via theguardian.com
  Cross-party group of 200 MPs have written to the major supermarkets, as pressure grows over the huge amounts of plastic waste they generateTwo hundred cross-party MPs are calling on heads of the major supermarkets to eliminate plastic packaging from their products by 2023.The MPs, who are from seven political parties, have written to Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda, Waitrose, Aldi, Lidl, Budgens and Marks & Spencer urging them to scrap plastic packaging. Continue reading...
  
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• Bitcoin price could PLUMMET down to $1000 in NEXT year, according to finance expert

  19-01-2018 13:42 via feedproxy.google.com
  BITCOIN price could plunge down to $1000 in 2018 as fears the bitcoin bubble is bursting and will continue to decline, finance expert Peter Boockvar has warned.
  
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• Merkel warned over ‘rampant protectionism’: Germany at brink of TRADE WAR with Trump

  19-01-2018 12:37 via feedproxy.google.com
  ANGELA Merkel is putting Germany on course for a US backlash over Germany’s staggering trade surplus and “rampant protectionism”, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
  
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• Pound V euro: GBP rate drops against EUR as UK retail sales worsen

  19-01-2018 12:18 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound has declined against the euro today following news that UK retail sales were worse than expected.
  
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• Funeral price war prompts Dignity to issue profits warning

  19-01-2018 12:01 via theguardian.com
  Shares in funeral services provider lose half their value as forecast for 2018 disappointsAlmost £500m has been wiped off the market value of Dignity, the UK’s only publicly listed funeral services company, after it said 2018 profits would be hit by an intensifying price war in the sector. Customers were becoming increasingly price-conscious in an oversupplied industry, the company said, adding it would freeze prices for traditional funerals in a majority of its locations to protect
  
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• Europe must wake up to the drastic consequences of a hard Brexit | Joris Luyendijk

  19-01-2018 12:00 via theguardian.com
  The Netherlands knows what it will lose if the UK crashes out. It is less than the price of giving Britain a sweet dealBecause it is such a riveting clown show with new crazy episodes almost every day, Europeans can be forgiven for ignoring the fact that Brexit is going to hurt them too. But as the date of Britain’s departure comes closer and Theresa May’s government continues its kamikaze policy of demanding the politically unthinkable from the EU, it is time for Europeans to wake a
  
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• British shoppers reined in Christmas spending, official figures show

  19-01-2018 11:39 via theguardian.com
  Spending fell 1.5% in December as consumers brought forward purchases to Black FridayBritish consumers sharply reined in spending over the Christmas period, as Black Friday deals encouraged them to purchase presents earlier, rounding off the weakest year for retail sales since 2013. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), spending fell back 1.5% in December after a strong November when the US-inspired discounting event appeared to boost sales. The drop was worse than expected amon
  
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• UK retail sales fall sharply in December - business live

  19-01-2018 11:25 via theguardian.com
  UK retail sales fell by 1.5% in December in the latest sign that consumers were feeling the strain of falling real pay over the crucial Christmas shopping periodGreg Clark: powers exist to claw back Carillion bonuses Carpetright shares plunge after major profits warningDignity cuts price of funerals amid price warPound edges higher against the dollar to above $1.39 10.25am GMT Ruth Gregory at Capital Economics says the drop in December retail sales signals “a disappointing end to 2017&rdqu
  
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• Pound v US dollar: GBP holds onto gains despite sharp drop in UK retail sales

  19-01-2018 11:19 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound is holding onto its early gains against the US dollar this morning, as the pairing appeared to shrug off some disappoint retail sales figures from the UK.
  
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• Amazon's next top headquarters: US cities strut their stuff as firm seeks second home

  19-01-2018 11:00 via theguardian.com
  The company’s hunt for a city to host its second headquarters has prompted a bizarre beauty contest, amid the promise of jobs and an economic boost
  Two hundred and thirty-eight candidates have been whittled down to 20. Getting there was “very tough” and everyone showed “tremendous enthusiasm and creativity”, but there will be only one winner in the hunt for America’s Next Top Amazon Headquarters.The bizarre beauty contest has seen mayors around the country att
  
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• Ryanair: HMRC and employment tsar may question airline over pay

  19-01-2018 08:44 via theguardian.com
  MPs call for cabin crew pay inquiry as airline denies failing to adhere to UK employment lawRyanair has been referred to employment and tax authorities for investigation by two parliamentary committees, citing the airline’s “refusal to cooperate” with inquiries over crew pay and conditions.Frank Field, chair of the work and pensions committee, and Rachel Reeves, chair of the business select committee, have written to HMRC and the director of labour market enforcement asking the
  
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• Macron rebuffs post-Brexit City deal unless UK pays into EU budget

  19-01-2018 08:33 via theguardian.com
  French president rejects ‘differentiated financial services access’, says ‘choice is up to UK’French president Emmanuel Macron has rejected the idea of a tailored Brexit deal for the City, insisting Britain will not be allowed full access to European Union markets, including financial services, unless it pays into the EU budget and accepts all its rules.Macron delivered the tough message at the end of a joint press conference with Theresa May at Sandhurst military trainin
  
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• Wooden homes for sale – in pictures

  19-01-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Go with the grain at these timber properties, from a Victorian boathouse to a former drill hall and cinema Continue reading...
  
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• Ground rent: can landlords really demand six years’ payments in one hit?

  19-01-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  My freeholder hasn’t been sending annual invoices, and has just landed me with a massive billI read with interest about landlords being able to claim six years’ worth of ground rent providing they complete the appropriate demand form. Now my freeholder has done just that. Are they in breach of the rules as they haven’t been sending annual invoices? Or can they simply bill six years in one go if they fill in the correct form?Continue reading...
  
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• Not to be sniffed at: more Norwegians turn from cigarettes to snuff

  19-01-2018 04:18 via theguardian.com
  Snus is illegal across the EU but is used in Sweden, which has an exemption, and Norway, which is not in the EUMore Norwegians use snus – a form of snuff particular to Nordic countries – instead of cigarettes for their nicotine fix, official figures showed for the first time on Thursday.
  The preference for snus in Norway, is certain to revive debate over the health effects of the product, a moist powder tobacco that is popped under the lip. Continue reading...
  
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• GKN attacks suitor Melrose Industries over 'fake' claims

  19-01-2018 01:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  GKN has accused suitor Melrose Industries of “fake” claims as the war of words intensified over its £7.4billion takeover of the UK engineering giant.
  
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