Financial news

• Social mobility in richest countries 'has stalled since 1990s'

  15-06-2018 18:33 via theguardian.com
  OECD report says it could take 150 years for a child from a poor UK family to earn national averageIncome inequality has increased and social mobility stalled across the world’s richest countries since the 1990s, trapping families on low incomes at the bottom of the earnings ladder, according to an in-depth report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.The Paris-based body, which counts 34 countries as members, said barriers to social mobility were harming economic p
  
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• Going for a slash on the Thameslink? | Brief letters

  15-06-2018 17:48 via theguardian.com
  Breastfeeding rates | Constitutional change | Chris Packham’s dog | Oblique invitation | Jimmy GabrielThe Royal College of Midwives has focused on the wrong issue (Breastfeeding: woman’s choice must be respected, midwives told, 12 June). The real question is why the UK has “one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in the world”. The concern is that its latest pronouncement, which does not adequately address the problem, may lead to even lower rates.
  Professor Stephen Kennedy
  
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• Let’s move to Ipswich, Suffolk: 'More David Brent than Steve Jobs'

  15-06-2018 17:30 via theguardian.com
  You can – just about – find Ipswichness peeping out, in its burgeoning festival scene or the independent shops and 17th-century gablesWhat’s going for it? Imagine the scene. Early 70s. Handlebar moustaches. Santana on the radio. California comes to Suffolk. OK, it’s an insurance firm, not a Silicon Valley startup. But look at that office: straight outta San Fran. Almost mirror-glass walls. Cool. Rooftop cafe. Escalators. Acid colours. What? A built-in swimming pool?! The
  
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• Trump announces $50bn in China tariffs, escalating possibility of trade war

  15-06-2018 17:05 via theguardian.com
  President tells Fox News he is ‘very strongly clamping down’China unveils own set of levies of similar size and intensityDonald Trump has announced a 25% tariff on $50bn of Chinese goods, prompting China to retaliate with a similar-sized set of levies.The moves, after a long war of words, increase the possibility of a full trade war between the world’s two leading economies. Continue reading...
  
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• China retaliates against Trump's $50bn in tariffs, escalating possibility of trade war

  15-06-2018 17:05 via theguardian.com
  China unveils own set of levies of similar size and intensityTrump calls US’s trade relationship with China ‘no longer sustainable’China has accused the United States of igniting a trade war, firing back against Donald Trump’s move to slap tariffs on tens of billions of dollars in Chinese imports. Trump announced a 25% tariff on $50bn of Chinese goods on Friday, prompting China to retaliate with a similar-sized set of levies, and calling on other countries to take “
  
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• Merkel could hit back at Trump’s tariffs with attack on Amazon, Airbnb, and Uber

  15-06-2018 16:56 via feedproxy.google.com
  GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel has sent the clearest signal yet that Germany will protect its car industry against President Donald Trump’s punitive trade tariffs and hit back in turn with an attack on US tech giants.
  
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• TRADE WAR: Trump could throw world into chaos over China and EU tariffs, warns IMF

  15-06-2018 16:27 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund has delivered its sternest warning to date over President Donald Trump's new tariff policy and the potential economic consequences for the global trading system and the US economy.
  
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• Tech leaders say visa cap removal may not solve UK skills shortage

  15-06-2018 16:05 via theguardian.com
  Easing of immigration rules may not be enough to keep UK ahead of rivals, say expertsLeaders in the UK tech industry have warned that the government’s removal of a visa cap for skilled migrants may not go far enough to ensure Britain continues to attract the best people from across the sector.Related: How will the UK's tech sector fare outside the EU? Brexit Means … PodcastContinue reading...
  
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• US-China trade tensions escalate as Trump approves $50bn of tariffs - as it happened

  15-06-2018 15:50 via theguardian.com
  US President Donald Trump is pressing ahead with plans to impose 25% tariffs on $50bn of Chinese imports, raising the prospect of a trade war between the world’s two largest economies Markets falter as Trump escalates trade tensionsChina vows to match US tariffs but warns both parties will be hurtTesco shrugs off retail sector woes with 10th quarter of rising salesMcDonald’s plans to ditch plastic straws in UK from SeptemberOutrage as government delays curbs on fixed-odds betting ter
  
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• Equitable Life to shut down with surprise £1.8bn policyholder windfall

  15-06-2018 15:03 via theguardian.com
  Scandal-hit pension company to pay out £6,900 to each of 261,000 existing customers, but 800,000 former policyholders will receive nothing
  Equitable Life, the scandal-hit pension company that came close to collapse in 2000, is finally shutting down with a surprise £6,900-a-head windfall for the last remaining policyholders.Around 261,000 people will share in a £1.8bn payout after Equitable said it would transfer its business to a separate insurer, Reliance Life, and unlock the
  
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• Proof BITCOIN FEVER was a scam? Report claims CRYPTO price was manipulated

  15-06-2018 14:59 via feedproxy.google.com
  BITCOIN’s monumental rise at the end of 2017 was a scam manipulated using a fellow cryptocurrency called Tether, a new report claims.
  
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• TRADE WAR! Donald Trump announces new list of China products facing $50BILLION duties hike

  15-06-2018 14:02 via feedproxy.google.com
  DONALD Trump ramped-up his global trade war further today by slapping $50 BILLION tariffs in China imports. China immediately hit back warning the US against pursuing a policy of “confrontation and mutual loss”.
  
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• Govia Thameslink Railway boss quits over timetable fiasco

  15-06-2018 13:41 via theguardian.com
  Charles Horton departs as Network Rail executives forfeit annual bonuses
  The boss of Govia Thameslink Railway has quit over the rail timetable fiasco, after being singled out for blame by the transport secretary, Chris Grayling.Network Rail executives have also forfeited annual bonuses for their role in the timetable chaos. Continue reading...
  
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• Pound euro exchange rate: EUR at €1.142 as investors remain timid after ECB meeting

  15-06-2018 13:09 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound euro exchange rate steadied towards €1.142 on Friday. This is slightly down from yesterday’s climb but still far higher than its position at €1.345 earlier in the week.
  
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• Snacks, slouching, stagnant wages: the office is making us miserable

  15-06-2018 13:00 via theguardian.com
  Research has found we’re consuming 1,300 calories in office snacks per week. But it’s not just the treats that are bad for usA study about US workplaces, released this week, contained some unappetising news: every time you tuck in the cake Janice for HR baked at home, or you help yourself to the buffet on bagel Fridays, you are in fact consuming calories. Hang on a second? Office snacks contain calories? Who would have thought? Thanks, science!This pioneering discovery that food we e
  
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• Rise of the machines: has technology evolved beyond our control?

  15-06-2018 13:00 via theguardian.com
  Technology is starting to behave in intelligent and unpredictable ways that even its creators don’t understand. As machines increasingly shape global events, how can we regain control?The voice-activated gadget in the corner of your bedroom suddenly laughs maniacally, and sends a recording of your pillow talk to a colleague. The clip of Peppa Pig your toddler is watching on YouTube unexpectedly descends into bloodletting and death. The social network you use to keep in touch with old schoo
  
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• Union wins first round in Deliveroo high court employment challenge

  15-06-2018 12:41 via theguardian.com
  The union for independent workers wants to overturn self-employed status of driversA union has been given the go-ahead for a high court challenge over the employment rights of Deliveroo riders in another step forward for gig economy workers . The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) wants the court to overturn a ruling that confirmed the self-employed status of those working for the delivery firm. Continue reading...
  
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• Pound US dollar exchange rate: Investors flock to USD in wake of ECB meeting

  15-06-2018 12:08 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound US dollar exchange rate is currently at around $1.325, holding close to today’s opening levels. The pound briefly slipped against the US dollar this morning, extending the heavy losses suffered yesterday.
  
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• Labour blasts government for delays to fixed-odds betting terminal curbs

  15-06-2018 11:50 via theguardian.com
  Tom Watson says two-year delay to cutting maximum bet from £100 to £2 is ‘pathetic’Labour has accused the government of being “fundamentally weak” after ministers bowed to pressure from bookmakers and agreed to a two-year delay before slashing the maximum stake on controversial fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs).The maximum stake on the machines will still be cut from £100 to £2 but the change will not take effect until 2020, under the terms of a
  
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• McDonald's to switch to paper straws in UK after customer campaign

  15-06-2018 11:26 via theguardian.com
  Fast-food chain, which uses 1.8m straws a day, says plastic straws will go by 2019McDonald’s will end the use of plastic straws in its British restaurants next year, after nearly half a million people called on the company to ditch them.The decision by the US fast-food chain to switch from plastic to paper straws follows a trial at a number of outlets in the past two months. The firm uses around 1.8m straws a day in the UK. Continue reading...
  
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• EDF Energy to pay £350,000 smart-meter penalty

  15-06-2018 10:35 via theguardian.com
  Company fails to meet annual target of fitting smart meters in customers’ homes
  EDF Energy has agreed to pay out £350,000 for failing to fit enough smart meters in customers’ houses, the first time an energy supplier has been penalised for missing domestic smart meter targets.Every large energy supplier has an annual target for rolling out smart meters, which provide consumers with real-time electricity usage data and automate readings, with a government goal of all households
  
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• Tesco posts highest growth in seven years

  15-06-2018 10:20 via theguardian.com
  Supermarket chain boosted by acquisition of Booker cash and carryTesco has recorded its strongest growth in seven years, boosted by its acquisition of the Booker cash and carry group.The supermarket said UK and Irish sales rose 3.5% in the most recent three months, its 10th consecutive quarter of growth. Group sales – which include Asia eastern Europe – climbed 1.8%.Continue reading...
  
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• Merkel NIGHTMARE: German central bank SLASHES growth as eurozone economic rise UNRAVELS

  15-06-2018 10:09 via feedproxy.google.com
  GERMANY'S central bank has slashed its forecast for how fast the eurozone’s largest economy would grow this year and warned of greater “uncertainties” as trade war gloom gathers over Europe.
  
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• Cryptocurrency news: Bitcoin bounces back - will Ripple and Ethereum rise today?

  15-06-2018 09:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  CRYPTOCURRENCIES are back on the rise this morning after prices dropped amid concerns in South Korea. The market stabilised this morning, registering small gains across most of the bigger digital tokens. Will Ripple and Ethereum rise today?
  
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• Penthouses for sale around the UK – in pictures

  15-06-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  Hit heady heights with these top-floor properties, from Devon to Edinburgh Continue reading...
  
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• Fashion store closures dent May retail spurt

  15-06-2018 05:57 via feedproxy.google.com
  WARM weather and the royal wedding brought shoppers out in force last month. But more stores are set to close as the owner of Simply Be and Jacamo prepares to exit the high street.
  
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