Financial news

• Uber narrows loss as hunger for food delivery business grows during pandemic

  05-05-2021 23:11 via theguardian.com
  
  Delivery bookings rose 166% from the same period last year, leading to better-than-expected earnings despite flat ride bookingsUber’s thriving food delivery business, aided by a bump in home deliveries during lockdowns, helped the company counteract a slow quarter for ride-hailing bookings amid the pandemic.The company announced better-than-expected earnings in its first quarter of 2021, despite reporting its ride bookings were flat from the previous quarter and had decreased year over yea
  
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• UK sends navy vessels to Jersey amid post-Brexit fishing row with France

  05-05-2021 21:52 via theguardian.com
  
  Boris Johnson dispatches two gunboats to protect island from feared blockade
  Boris Johnson has dispatched two Royal Navy patrol boats to protect Jersey from a feared blockade by French fishing vessels, in an escalation of a dispute over post-Brexit access to waters around the Channel island.The move followed talks on Wednesday evening between the prime minister and the chief minister of the British crown dependency, John Le Fondré, who had warned Downing Street of imminent movements by Fr
  
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• Indivior’s UK shareholders have chance to put teeth into clawback clauses | Nils Pratley

  05-05-2021 21:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Former chief executive sent to prison for six months but will keep $1.65m in outstanding pay awards“We recognise that our remuneration structure is different in some respects from a typical UK package,” said Daniel Phelan, the chair of Indivior’s remuneration committee, in the company’s annual report. You bet.The difference isn’t only the size of the rewards that executives can be paid at the London-listed but US-focused drugs company spun out of Reckitt Benckiser i
  
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• KPMG UK staff to work in office only two days a week after pandemic

  05-05-2021 21:07 via theguardian.com
  
  Google expects 20% of staff to work from home permanently in futureAccounting and consultancy group KPMG has told its 16,000 UK staff that they will have to work only an average of two days in the office each week from next month, as the firm revealed its plans for a post-pandemic hybrid working model.Under the new initiative, which the company has called the “four-day fortnight”, staff will spend the remaining days working either from home or at client sites. Continue reading...
  
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• Dogecoin’s record-breaking rise shoots ‘joke’ cryptocurrency to wider attention

  05-05-2021 20:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Analysts say Elon Musk’s turn as host of Saturday Night Live will raise its profile yet furtherIt is perhaps the ultimate symbol of late capitalism: a digital currency that started as a joke, now worth more than the Ford motor company, BP or Tesco.Riding a wave of speculative interest despite Covid-19 triggering the worst global recession since the 1930s Great Depression, Dogecoin has been a huge hit with amateur investors. It is a cryptocurrency based on an internet meme – a humorou
  
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• Indivior faces shareholder revolt over ex-chief’s bonus

  05-05-2021 20:20 via theguardian.com
  
  Shaun Thaxter was sentenced to six months in US prison for his role over drug misinformation caseIndivior faces the threat of a shareholder revolt over the drugmaker’s decision to maintain bonus payments for its British former chief executive, who was jailed last year in a case related to the US opioid crisis. Continue reading...
  
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• Sir Frederick Barclay ordered to pay estranged wife £100m

  05-05-2021 20:18 via theguardian.com
  
  Daily Telegraph owner criticised by high court judge for ‘reprehensible’ behaviour during divorce battleA high court judge has criticised Sir Frederick Barclay, the billionaire owner of the Daily Telegraph, for “reprehensible” behaviour during a divorce battle and ordered him to pay his estranged wife £100m.Mr Justice Cohen said Barclay, 86, had breached a court order to sell a luxury yacht and produce the proceeds, and had instead sold the vessel and kept the money
  
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• Peloton recalls treadmills in US over safety concerns after child dies

  05-05-2021 19:30 via theguardian.com
  
  Recall is a major reversal for company that insisted its treadmills were safe despite dozens of reported injuriesThe fitness company Peloton is recalling its two popular treadmills in the US over safety concerns after the death of a child and dozens of other injuries. Peloton has apologized for pushing back against federal safety officials who warned the public last month of the dangers of using them.The recall is a major reversal for a company that insisted its Tread and Tread+ treadmills were
  
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• Petrol station tycoons Issa brothers on verge of £6.8bn Asda buyout

  05-05-2021 19:26 via theguardian.com
  
  Billionaires brothers offered to sell 27 petrol stations to address competition concernsThe billionaire petrol station tycoons the Issa brothers are on the verge of finalising their £6.8bn debt-fuelled buyout of the supermarket chain Asda, after offering to address concerns raised by the competition regulator.The Blackburn-based brothers, who leased their first petrol station in 1999, are in the midst of a buying spree that has seen them snap up upmarket the fast food chain Leon, with Caff
  
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• The high cost of second homes on rural communities | Letters

  05-05-2021 18:13 via theguardian.com
  
  Holidaymakers are pushing coastal properties beyond the reach of local people, writes Hilary Wakeman, while Joy Webb suggests one home should be enough for anyoneSadly, it’s not just Cornwall (‘Real thuggery’: Cornwall boats vandalised amid ‘incomer’ tensions, 3 May). My son, who has lived in Norfolk for nearly 50 years and rents on the north coast, is finding a cycle ride to the supermarket has become a nightmare. On the narrow coastal road, he must cycle between c
  
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• Facebook ruling on Donald Trump ban: five key takeaways

  05-05-2021 16:03 via theguardian.com
  
  The oversight board has ruled that the former president must remain suspended for now but also asserted its independenceThe US supreme court is defined by Marbury vs Madison, an 1803 case in which the court ruled that it had the power to strike down laws. It was a pivotal moment for the court, less than 15 years old – and one the oversight board clearly had in mind as it made its own pivotal ruling, turning a simple yes/no question about the US president into a firm demand for the independ
  
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• Ministers urged to reveal details of £2bn Covid deals with private health firms

  05-05-2021 13:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Contracts to increase capacity handed to 17 companies, some of whom had donated to ConservativesCoronavirus – latest updates
  See all our coronavirus coverageThe government has been urged to publish details of up to £2bn in Covid-19 contracts awarded to private healthcare companies, including some that have helped fund the Conservative party.Contracts to provide extra capacity during the pandemic have been handed to 17 firms since March 2020. Continue reading...
  
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• France threatens to cut Jersey's electricity over post-Brexit fishing rights – video

  05-05-2021 13:09 via theguardian.com
  
  The French maritime minister, Annick Girardin, warned on Tuesday that France could cut off electricity to the British island of Jersey in a dispute over fishing rights. The warning followed claims from Paris that Jersey was  stalling in issuing licences to French boats under the terms of the UK’s post-Brexit trade deal with the EU. 'The agreement provides for retaliatory measures and these measures of retaliation we are ready to use,' Girardin told French lawmakers.France threatens to
  
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• Boohoo profits soar as Covid turns customer focus to loungewear

  05-05-2021 12:19 via theguardian.com
  
  Retailer benefits from boom in online shopping and being able to trade through lockdownsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSales and profits soared at the online fashion retailer Boohoo during the coronavirus pandemic as it benefited from the boom in online shopping and being able to trade throughout successive lockdowns, unlike its high street rivals.Demand from younger consumers for its inexpensive activewear, loungewear and tops while working from home helped Bo
  
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• ITV expects summer ad boom on back of Love Island and football

  05-05-2021 11:40 via theguardian.com
  
  TV advertising down in first quarter but broadcaster predicts revenues to be up as much as 90% year on yearCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageITV is predicting a summertime ad boom, with revenues expected to be up as much as 90% year on year, fuelled by the return of must-watch content including Love Island and football’s European Championship.ITV, which said that total TV advertising was down 6% in the first quarter because of the impact of the latest corona
  
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• UK car sales rebound after ‘one of darkest years in automotive history’

  05-05-2021 11:21 via theguardian.com
  
  Number of new vehicles rolling out is still substantially lower than pre-Covid averageCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageUK car sales rebounded in April compared with 2020 as England’s Covid lockdown ended and showrooms reopened but the number of new cars rolling out was still substantially lower than the pre-pandemic average.About 141,600 vehicles were sold during the month, according to data released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
  
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• A credit rating dispute could cost me getting a mortgage renewal

  05-05-2021 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  I am caught between Sainsbury’s Bank and Equifax over a default notice errorI have a loan with Sainsbury’s bank. I have never missed a payment, but Sainsbury’s issued a default notice 11 months ago. It has since admitted it was a mistake, but Equifax claims the entry is correct, while Sainsbury’s insists it has informed it of the error. My credit file also shows that no further payments have been made to Sainsbury’s since the erroneous “default”, which i
  
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• UK companies must commit to green pensions | Letter

  05-05-2021 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Money invested in pensions should support a clean, sustainable transition to a net zero world, write Christiana Figueres, Nigel Topping, Richard Curtis and Amanda MackenzieAcross the country, many leading companies are tackling climate change by reducing emissions and setting ambitious net zero targets by joining the #RaceToZero, but too often they ignore one of the most powerful tools at their disposal – pensions.This is a critical year for the UK as it hosts Cop26, the most important glo
  
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• Pension funds urged to help UK reach net zero climate goals

  05-05-2021 07:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Campaigners say many investments still high carbon and call on firms to sign green pensions charterLetter: UK companies must commit to green pensionsPension funds must set a target of net zero emissions for their investments if the UK is to meet its climate goals, influential figures in climate activism have urged.Many people are unaware of whether their pensions funds are invested in fossil fuels or high-carbon activities, and even companies that have publicly committed to reaching net zero emi
  
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• Dogecoin price hits new record high ahead of Elon Musk SNL appearance

  05-05-2021 03:02
  
  DOGECOIN's price has more than doubled in less than a week amid another huge surge for the meme-inspired cryptocurrency.
  
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• Pension alert as Britons adopt ‘flexi-retirement’ - what working later could mean for you

  05-05-2021 01:02
  
  PENSION attitudes are changing, with many now considering a flexible retirement. However, Britons are being urged to consider how such a move could impact them individually.
  
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• Student Loans Company holds £18.3m in overpayments made since 2015

  05-05-2021 01:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Nearly 60,000 former students are owed money including £2m in unnecessary payments made in 2019-20The Student Loans Company is sitting on more than £18m in overpayments made by graduates and other former students since 2015, two years after its mountain of unclaimed refunds was first disclosed.Figures obtained through freedom of information requests show that the SLC, which administers government-backed loans for tuition and maintenance, has £18.3m in overpayments awaiting refu
  
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• Pension warning as Britons miss out on £76million - Sunak urged to act on auto-enrolment

  05-05-2021 01:01
  
  A PENSION warning has been issued as a failure to understand auto-enrolment rules means certain Britons are missing out on millions of pounds a year.
  
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