Financial news

• Two tales from the frontline of austerity | Letters

  30-04-2019 18:37
  Universal credit’s effect on food bank use may be greater than statistics suggest, says Jane Middleton, while an anonymous reader eligible for £1.26 a month of the benefit wonders how many others are in her situationThe Trussell Trust is absolutely right to make clear that it is not, and must not be, part of the welfare state (Food bank network hands out 1.6m parcels in a year, 25 April). At the food bank where I volunteer, many of our clients are referred by our local council, which
  
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• Google share price plunges, wiping $80bn off its market value

  30-04-2019 17:48 via theguardian.com
  Biggest fall since October 2012 follows worse-than-expected quarterly results
  Google’s share price has had its biggest fall in nearly seven years, wiping more than $80bn (£61bn) off its market value, after disappointing sales figures sparked investor fears that advertisers have been shifting their business to digital rivals like Facebook and Amazon.Shares in Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube, fell by more than 8% on Tuesday, the most since October 2012, after the com
  
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• Airbnb should be regarded as digital service provider, ECJ advised

  30-04-2019 17:04 via theguardian.com
  Legal opinion welcome by company facing French calls for greater regulationAirbnb has taken a step closer to avoiding onerous national regulations after an adviser to the European court of justice said the company should be regarded as a digital service provider.Maciej Szpunar, one of the ECJ’s advocates general, found that Airbnb was what Brussels would describe as an information society service, a status that comes with the right to operate freely across the EU. Continue reading...
  
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• Energy bill RIP-OFF: Private renters stung by £41 MILLION switch lie

  30-04-2019 17:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  PRIVATE renters are being stung by a £41million energy lie after wrongly being told they cannot switch suppliers by their landlord.
  
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• Shell awaits court ruling on complicity in deaths of Ogoni Nine

  30-04-2019 16:50 via theguardian.com
  Widows of Nigerian activists accuse oil firm of instigating crackdown against protesters A Dutch court may decide on Wednesday if Shell was complicit in the Nigerian government’s execution of the Ogoni Nine, environmental activists who were trying to fight the petroleum company’s exploitation of their oil-rich homeland.The widows of four of the activists accuse Shell of instigating a brutal crackdown against peaceful protesters that led to the deaths of the Ogoni Nine in 1995. Contin
  
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• Land Rover drivers could be PAID in cryptocurrency for spotting potholes

  30-04-2019 16:47 via feedproxy.google.com
  MOTORING icon Jaguar Land Rover is testing a system that will pay drivers in cryptocurrency for reporting traffic congestion or potholes.
  
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• Independent News & Media to be sold to Belgian group

  30-04-2019 16:28 via theguardian.com
  Denis O’Brien loses hundreds of millions in sale of Ireland’s biggest newspaper publisherIreland’s largest newspaper group has agreed to a takeover offer from the Belgian media group Mediahuis in a deal in which its largest shareholder, billionaire Denis O’Brien, will lose hundreds of millions on his investment.Independent News & Media, which publishes Ireland’s biggest-selling daily and Sunday papers – the Irish Independent and Sunday Independent –
  
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• Probate fee HIKE: ‘Stealth death tax’ on House of Commons agenda DESPITE Brexit delay

  30-04-2019 16:23 via feedproxy.google.com
  A HUGE hike to probate fees is still listed in the House of Commons calendar for approval despite being delayed by Brexit.
  
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• Eurozone growth rises and Italy escapes recession, but Mexico stumbles – business live

  30-04-2019 15:55 via theguardian.com
  Eurozone economy grew by 0.4% in the last quarter, faster than expected, as Italy escaped its third recession in a decadeItaly: Recession is overEurozone unemployment lowest since Lehman Brothers failedEurozone beats forecasts with 0.4% growthEarlier:Spain grew by a punchy 0.7% in last quarterFrance: grew by 0.3%, but net trade contractedIntroduction: Eurozone GDP day 2.55pm BST Time for a quick recapEurope’s economy may be turning a corner, following a blizzard of economic data today.2.55
  
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• Number of UK companies going into administration hits five-year peak

  30-04-2019 15:46 via theguardian.com
  Insolvencies total hits more than 4,000 in first quarter as Brexit uncertainty prevailsBrexit uncertainty and struggling high street retailers have fuelled a rise in the number of company administrations to the highest level in five years, according to official figures.The Insolvency Service said there were 451 administrations in the first three months of the year, up 21.8% from the final three months of 2018 – and the most recorded by the government agency since the first quarter of 2014.
  
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• Pension news: The HIDDEN dangers of drawing down on your pension

  30-04-2019 15:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  PENSION savers took out a record £8billion in flexible withdrawals in the last tax year, but future retirees are being warned of the dangers of using freedoms to access their pot.
  
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• Inheritance tax: Five ways to REDUCE your bill and keep more of your estate

  30-04-2019 13:40 via feedproxy.google.com
  INHERITANCE TAX is largely unavoidable after someone has died, but there are ways to ensure more of your money goes to loved ones instead of the taxman.
  
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• Pound euro exchange rate: GBP rises on markets hope for Brexit

  30-04-2019 12:34 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound edged higher against the euro today and is trading at €1.157 at the time of writing.
  
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• Pound US dollar exchange rate: GBP jumps despite negative UK consumer confidence

  30-04-2019 12:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound remained muted against the dollar this morning and the pairing is currently trading at around $1.295.
  
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• Sainsbury's sales slide as Aldi continues rapid growth

  30-04-2019 11:53 via theguardian.com
  Supermarket chain expected to reveal fall in profits as rivals gain from warm Easter weatherSainsbury’s was the only major supermarket chain to suffer a drop in sales over Easter, bucking the trend among its rivals, which reaped the benefits of the warm weather.The grocery chain’s sales fell 1.2% in the three months to 21 April according to the latest industry data from market researcher Kantar, while the grocery sector as a whole grew 2%, its fastest rate this year. Shoppers spent a
  
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• Four Seasons care home operator on brink of administration

  30-04-2019 11:51 via theguardian.com
  About 17,000 residents and 22,000 jobs at risk as rescue talks look likely to fail Care homes operator Four Seasons, which looks after 17,000 elderly and vulnerable residents and employs 22,000 people, is on the verge of administration, with protracted financial rescue talks expected to end in failure.More than a year after complex financial talks began between its US hedge fund lender H/2 Capital and its private equity owner, Guy Hands’ Terra Firma, Four Seasons Health Care is thought to
  
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• Mobile and broadband: UK's best and worst providers revealed

  30-04-2019 11:42
  Tesco Mobile is network with poorest customer service with TalkTalk at bottom of broadband leagueTalkTalk and Tesco Mobile have been named as the UK’s worst broadband and mobile providers respectively in Ofcom’s latest customer service survey.The study by the media and broadcasting regulator, which looked at customer satisfaction, complaints and call-waiting times, found that for the third year running TalkTalk’s broadband customers received the worst treatment of any provider.
  
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• Why are taxpayers subsidising the oil and gas companies that jeopardise our future? | Clive Lewis

  30-04-2019 11:00 via theguardian.com
  Instead of hoping market forces solve the climate crisis, the government needs to stop giving tax breaks to pollutersLast October, the world’s most renowned climate scientists warned governments that humanity has just 12 years to prevent climate catastrophe. The UK government faces three choices to deal with carbon-heavy fossil fuels: force people to stop using them immediately; facilitate a rapid transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy; or hope business-as-usual market forces sol
  
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• Pound LIVE: GBP Sterling climbing against euro ‘as markets await fresh Brexit news’

  30-04-2019 09:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound is inching higher against the euro and US dollar this morning after analysts suggested lack of major Brexit movement had been keeping Sterling on muted ground.
  
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• Trump sues Deutsche Bank and Capital One to block release of financial records

  30-04-2019 09:21 via theguardian.com
  President and his children oppose Democrat-controlled committees’ investigationsDonald Trump, three of his children and seven of his companies have filed a US federal lawsuit against Deutsche Bank and Capital One in an attempt to stop them complying with subpoenas investigating his financial dealings.Filed late on Monday in a federal court in New York, the lawsuit stated that demands for records by Democrat-controlled house committees have no legitimate or lawful purpose. Continue reading.
  
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• My oven door shattered and Neff will not pay for the repair

  30-04-2019 01:00
  The product is clearly dangerous but the company refuses to budge over the cost of labourI have a Neff oven. It was new four years ago but only installed last year (and stored in the meantime) when I had a new kitchen fitted. At the weekend while using the grill, the glass shattered. I have small children who were in shock with the commotion and noise of an explosion. I ended up with a piece of glass in my foot. The product was obviously unsafe. Neff said they will replace the door but will only
  
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