Financial news

• British Steel receiver warns sale will take time

  05-07-2019 18:21 via theguardian.com
  Preference being given to those bidding for whole operation with several ‘viable’ offers on the tableThe government employee in charge of finding a buyer for British Steel has said he is considering several “viable” offers but warned that a sale aimed at saving 5,000 jobs may not happen quickly.The official receiver, David Chapman, who is managing the sale process and has been overseeing the funding of operations at British Steel since it went into liquidation, is giving
  
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• Inheritance tax: 'seven-year rule' on gifts could be cut to five

  05-07-2019 18:18 via theguardian.com
  Proposed changes to UK’s ‘most-hated tax’ means gifts made more than five years before would be exemptThe “seven-year rule” on gift-giving should be cut to five years as part of a radical shake-up of inheritance tax, according to an official review ordered by the chancellor.The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has proposed that executors would only need to account for gifts made within five years of death rather than seven years currently. But some tax experts sai
  
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• Venezuela’s president orders banks to open crypto desks

  05-07-2019 18:02 via feedproxy.google.com
  VENEZUELA'S controversial president – Nicolas Maduro – has ordered the country’s largest bank to open special desks for the nation’s cryptocurrency.
  
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• Let’s move to Thurso and Dunnet Bay, Caithness: life at the edge of the map

  05-07-2019 17:30
  The ferocious seas and wide skies conjure up that falling-off-the-world feelingWhat’s going for it? Nobody would think to look for me in Thurso. Well they would now. (Or is that my double bluff?) Passing through the town, once, on the way to Lybster, as you do, the thought occurred to me that this would be an excellent place to disappear to, were I on the run from Villanelle, or when the going got rough, or the end of the world beckoned (or all three). For here is the end of our particular
  
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• State pension age rises TOMORROW - how to check your UK state pension age

  05-07-2019 16:00 via feedproxy.google.com
  STATE PENSION age has been rising, and there are more changes in store in the future. July 6, 2019 is a significant date for some people nearing their retirement years, as it is on this date when they will reach state pension age.
  
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• Stamp Duty Land Tax UK threshold - you can avoid SDLT tax if house is worth certain amount

  05-07-2019 15:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  STAMP DUTY LAND TAX may be payable upon buying a property in England and Northern Ireland. The tax is not payable on the value of a property below the current threshold - what is it?
  
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• Life insurance UK: Money expert warns consumers to NEVER do this after changes in health

  05-07-2019 15:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  LIFE insurance policies are taken out for a whole host of reasons - whether it’s to provide financial security for a loved one, or as a requirement for a mortgage. Policyholders have been issued with a warning about what they should be aware of if they develop a health condition or disability.
  
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• Gold rush! Bullion price set for longest stretch of weekly gains since 2011

  05-07-2019 15:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  GOLD was set for another strong period and its longest stretch of weekly gains since 2011 as prices remained steady ahead of crucial data out of the United States.
  
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• US job growth rebounds as economy adds 224,000 jobs in June

  05-07-2019 14:51 via theguardian.com
  Economy bounces back after disappointing May figuresModerate wage gains could still encourage Fed to cut ratesUS job growth rebounded strongly in June, but moderate wage gains and mounting evidence that the economy was slowing sharply could still encourage the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates this month. Related: US beats forecasts with 224,000 new jobs created in June - business liveContinue reading...
  
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• UK's dire productivity growth costing workers £5,000 in lost earnings

  05-07-2019 14:38 via theguardian.com
  Falling productivity and Brexit uncertainty to blame for wage stagnation, says ONSBritain’s dismal track record at increasing labour productivity following the financial crisis a decade ago has cost workers as much as £5,000 in missing income, according to official estimates.The Office for National Statistics said the failure to maintain productivity growth – a key measure of economic output per hour of work – was one of the main reasons for a lost decade of pay growth fo
  
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• Hollywood film franchise fatigue drives down global ticket sales

  05-07-2019 14:38 via theguardian.com
  Cinemagoers spent almost $19bn in first six months of the year, down from $20.2bn in 2018The global box office has so far failed to sizzle this summer, with ticket sales down 6% in the first half of 2019 as misfiring Hollywood sequels give cinemagoers a case of franchise fatigue.Film fans spent almost $19bn (£15bn) on going to the cinema in the first six months of the year, compared with the $20.2bn spent in the same period last year. Continue reading...
  
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• Germany ‘misery’ as slump in factory orders sparks new economy warning for Merkel

  05-07-2019 12:56 via feedproxy.google.com
  GERMANY has been hit by fresh economy warnings after industrial orders fell far more than expected in May.
  
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• Toilet paper is getting less sustainable, researchers warn

  05-07-2019 12:40
  Major brands are using less recycled paper, meaning more trees cut down unnecessarilyToilet paper – the one product that the majority of us use just once and flush away – is becoming less sustainable, according to research. Analysis from Ethical Consumer magazine found that major brands were using less recycled paper than in 2011, while only five of the nine major supermarkets (the Co-op, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose) offered an own-brand recycled toilet paper. Th
  
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• The best travel tech for a stress-free holiday

  05-07-2019 12:17
  How to keep your mobile, tablet, Kindle and headphones charged and connected abroadIt’s July, the sun’s out and the summer break is almost upon us, which can mean only one thing: it’s holiday time.But holidays no longer mean leaving all your worldly possessions behind. Your phone, your tablet, your e-reader, headphones and even your smartwatch come along for the ride, which means you need to keep them charged, organised and connected. Continue reading...
  
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• Croatia one step closer to euro and could ditch kuna by 2023 as new currency plan launched

  05-07-2019 12:13 via feedproxy.google.com
  CROATIA could be one step closer to adopting the euro after launching a bid to join an early stage route to membership of the currency.
  
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• Corbyn wishes Amazon 'many happy tax returns' on its 25th anniversary

  05-07-2019 11:45 via theguardian.com
  Labour leader sends barbed message to the online retailer’s founder, Jeff BezosThe Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, has sent a barbed birthday card to Jeff Bezos to mark Amazon’s 25th anniversary, wishing the company “many happy tax returns” and demanding it pays more UK tax, pays its staff better and improves working conditions.Amazon UK paid only £1.7m in corporation tax in 2017, its most recent annual public filing at Companies House, as pre-tax profits tripled to &
  
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• Pound US dollar exchange rate: USD rises as US markets reopen after Independence Day

  05-07-2019 11:44 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound US dollar exchange rate has dipped -0.2 percent today, with the pairing fluctuating around $1.255 ahead of an influential US employment report.
  
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• Pound euro exchange rate: GBP flat as Germany factory orders plummet

  05-07-2019 11:38 via feedproxy.google.com
  THE pound to euro exchange rate is currently trading in the region of €1.114, unchanged from the day’s opening levels.
  
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• Jaguar Land Rover to build electric XJ car at Castle Bromwich plant

  05-07-2019 09:30 via theguardian.com
  Jobs safeguarded as carmaker aims ‘to create a powerhouse of electrification in the Midlands’Jaguar Land Rover is to build an electric version of the Jaguar XJ saloon at its Castle Bromwich factory, in a boost to the embattled automotive industry.Britain’s largest carmaker will invest billions of pounds in creating a blueprint for the new vehicle and upgrading the plant on the outskirts of Birmingham, safeguarding the jobs of 2,500 people. Continue reading...
  
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• Could this be the worst cafe in the world? | Gene Marks

  05-07-2019 08:01 via theguardian.com
  New Zealand cafe has been dubbed the ‘F… Off Shop’ by the locals and the owner is called the ‘Wicked Witch of Springfield’We all know that Basil Fawlty ran the worst hotel in the world. But who’s got the worst cafe? Karyn Cullingford might be in the running.The Springfield Store and Café, which is owned by both Cullingford and her husband, made national news in New Zealand this past weekend not because of her great food. It was because of her terrible
  
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• Living in a stone house – in pictures

  05-07-2019 08:00
  From Pembrokeshire to Yorkshire, here is a selection of rock-solid houses for sale Continue reading...
  
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• Talking Horses: everyone a loser with William Hill closures news

  05-07-2019 07:16 via theguardian.com
  Racing is facing up to heavy losses from annual media rights payments and the pressure on prize money will be brutalWednesday’s news that William Hill will close about 700 betting shops over the next few months, around a third of its retail estate, puts the jobs of 4,500 company staff at risk (and up to 12,000 in the industry) and will also mean a cut of around £21m in media rights payments to Britain’s racecourses, on top of an unexpected £17m drop in the money collected
  
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• How Britain can help you get away with stealing millions: a five-step guide

  05-07-2019 07:01
  Dirty money needs laundering if it’s to be of any use – and the UK is the best place in the world to do it. By Oliver BulloughKleptocrats, fraudsters and crooks steal hundreds of billions of pounds, dollars and euros from the rest of us every year, but that gives them a problem: how can they stop the rest of us knowing what they’ve done with the proceeds? They have to stop their haul looking suspicious, to cleanse it of any criminal taint, or face losing their hard-stolen cash.
  
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• 1MDB: Wolf of Wall Street producer charged with embezzling millions

  05-07-2019 06:12 via theguardian.com
  Riza Aziz, stepson of former Malaysian PM Najib Razak, accused of receiving $248m into Swiss bank accountsThe Wolf of Wall Street producer Riza Aziz, who is the stepson of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, has been charged with embezzling millions of dollars from the Malaysian government.Riza, who ran a Hollywood production company Red Granite Pictures, appeared in a Kuala Lumpur court on Friday morning charged with five counts of money laundering, accused of receiving $248 million in
  
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• Who owns England? – podcast

  05-07-2019 04:00 via theguardian.com
  It is a simple question with an incredibly complex answer – not even the Land Registry knows the exact ownership of all parts of the country. Guy Shrubsole set out to solve the mystery. Plus Alex Hern on the police’s use of facial recognition technologyFor nearly 1,000 years, there has been no comprehensive answer to the question of who owns England. Ever since William the Conqueror ordered the “great survey”, the issue has not been satisfactorily resolved. Even the centr
  
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