Financial news

• Millions of Miniverse toys recalled over risks of skin, eye and respiratory issues

  26-06-2024 19:55
  
  US product safety agency says MGA Entertainment’s Make It Mini toy sets contain resin that is harmful when liquidA large volume of toys – 21m sets of MGA Entertainment’s Miniverse Make It Mini sets – are being recalled across the US over risks of skin, eye and respiratory irritation.In an announcement on Tuesday, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission said that the toy sets, which consist of spheres containing material required to assemble miniature imitations of appli
  
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• Deliveroo shares rise after reported takeover interest from US rival

  26-06-2024 19:32
  
  Potential tie-up with meal-delivery firm Doordash was reportedly discussed but rejected in MayBusiness live – latest updatesShares in the UK food delivery company Deliveroo have risen after reports that US rival Doordash held takeover talks with the business, with analysts suggesting other bidders could come forward in the coming weeks.Doordash flagged an interest in a takeover of Deliveroo last month, but talks ended because the two sides could not agree on the value of the deal, Reuters
  
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• Fat fees for Royal Mail’s advisers, no detail for its shareholders | Nils Pratley

  26-06-2024 19:01
  
  The offer document for proposed £3.6bn takeover of Royal Mail parent company couldn’t be more vagueSurprise, surprise: the proposed £3.6bn takeover of Royal Mail’s parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS), by a Daniel Křetínský-led bidding consortium will generate a fee bonanza for investment bankers, lawyers, debt-arrangers and assorted hangers-on. The grand total is £146m before VAT, with £89.1m falling on the acquirer and
  
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• Brexit may have felt absent from this election – but it will still define it | Larry Elliott

  26-06-2024 18:41
  
  Those who voted leave still feel ignored and marginalised. The pressure will be on for Labour to boost growth and narrow regional dividesIt is one of the oddities of this weirdest of election campaigns that the issue that helped give the Conservatives an 80-seat majority in 2019 has barely been mentioned. As far as the main parties are concerned, Brexit is a done deal. The decision has been made. Time to move on.To be sure, much has happened since 2019, most notably a global pandemic, a cost of
  
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• Human rights group urges UK financial regulator to block Shein’s LSE flotation

  26-06-2024 18:11
  
  Campaigners allege Uyghur people used as forced labour at some of fast-fashion retailer’s cotton suppliers in ChinaA human rights group has urged Britain’s financial regulator to block the Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein’s planned blockbuster flotation on the London Stock Exchange.Stop Uyghur Genocide, a UK-based human rights charity that alleges minority Uyghur people are being used as forced labour at some of Shein’s cotton suppliers in China’s north-western X
  
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• Ex-Fujitsu engineer knew in 2000 Horizon could be accessed remotely

  26-06-2024 17:43
  
  Gareth Jenkins tells Post Office inquiry he only realised in 2018 that this was happening in practice A former engineer for the company responsible for developing the Post Office’s faulty Horizon IT system has said he knew the computer system could in theory be accessed remotely by its staff for nearly two decades before realising it was happening in practice.The former Fujitsu engineer Gareth Jenkins was giving his second day of evidence to the Post Office inquiry which is looking at why
  
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• July HMRC deadline as households threatened with £3,000 fine per person

  26-06-2024 17:15 via express.co.uk
  
  Households are being threatened with fines of £3,000 per person for missing a key HMRC deadline in July
  
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• Nearly 600,000 Child Benefit claimants can get extra cash due to delayed payments

  26-06-2024 17:13 via express.co.uk
  
  HMRC says it will compensate all those affected by the issue with a £50 payment - but the amount you get could vary based on certain conditions
  
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• Union calls for Royal Mail staff to get ‘serious stake’ in service after takeover

  26-06-2024 16:48
  
  Daniel Křetínský, who is bidding £3.75bn for the business, has hinted at ‘incentive scheme’ for workers if successfulThe union representing postal workers has called for them to be handed a serious stake in Royal Mail, after the Czech billionaire bidding to snap up its owner for £3.6bn floated the possibility of implementing an “incentive scheme” if he is successful.Daniel Křetínský’s EP Group published an offer docu
  
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• From psychological torture to pooing in a suitcase: why are the workplaces on TV so toxic?

  26-06-2024 16:23
  
  Be it the thankless shifts of Blue Lights or the wage-free stressfest of The Bear, onscreen employees are having a very bad day at the office. And things are about to get worseIn the first series of Slow Horses, MI5’s Jackson Lamb gives a motivational speech: “You’re fucking useless. The lot of you. Working with you has been the lowest point in a disappointing career.” This is actually fairly uplifting from a man who is as likely a contender for a “World’s Bes
  
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• How pension pots can make you a millionaire SIPP wealth surges by 20%

  26-06-2024 15:58 via express.co.uk
  
  A "SIPP millionaire" refers to an individual who has accumulated a portfolio worth over one million pounds in their Self-Invested Personal Pension .
  
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• Planned Universal theme park in Bedfordshire to ‘bring £50bn to UK economy’

  26-06-2024 15:29
  
  Hollywood group says 200-hectare site will be based around popular film and games franchises and open 365 days a yearThe movies group Universal has said a Hollywood theme park it plans to build in Bedfordshire, England, will be open 365 days a year and will boost the UK economy by nearly £50bn.Universal Destinations & Experiences, which is owned by the US telecoms group Comcast, the parent company of Sky, plans to build on a 192-hectare site (476 acres) in Kempston Hardwick near Bedfor
  
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• Urgent DWP £138K warning to parents caring for disabled children

  26-06-2024 15:08 via express.co.uk
  
  Millions caring for a disabled child have been urged to act now to avoid a financial shock in retirement
  
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• Extra £100 in your pocket every month for homeowners

  26-06-2024 14:48 via express.co.uk
  
  Barclays, HSBC and NatWest have all made significant cuts in the rates applied to new home loans in recent days and others are expected to follow suit.
  
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• Brits splurge £250 more on dining and shopping during holidays, finds HSBC study

  26-06-2024 14:13 via express.co.uk
  
  Dining out, live events, clothes and transport are among the items people are more inclined to splash out on, according to HSBC UK.
  
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• Cost of living squeeze hits Marks Electrical: Profits down 33% as consumers trade down

  26-06-2024 14:07 via express.co.uk
  
  Marks Electrical - which listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2021 - said the trading environment weighed on margins as consumers "remain highly price-conscious"
  
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• Air freight greenhouse gas emissions up 25% since 2019, analysis finds

  26-06-2024 14:00
  
  Boom in air cargo due to shoppers’ expectations of speedy delivery and shift in post-pandemic economy,researchers sayAir freight operators have increased their greenhouse gas emissions by 25% compared with 2019, analysis has found.In 2023, air freight operators ran about 300,000 more flights than in 2019, an increase in flight volume of almost 30%. The US accounted for more than 40% of global air freight emissions, according to the report by campaign group Stand.earth. Continue reading...
  
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• Crisis-hit firm behind vital NHS services faces uncertain future

  26-06-2024 13:20
  
  Auditors say financial woes at tech firm Atos could hinder ability of its UK arm to continue as a going concernThe British arm of Atos, the French technology company that is a vital supplier of the NHS and UK government departments, is facing a “material uncertainty” over its ability to continue as a going concern, auditors have warned.In the latest accounts for its UK holding company covering 2022, the company’s auditor, Grant Thornton, said financial problems facing its paren
  
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• TV sales for Euro 2024 help triple profits at retailer AO World

  26-06-2024 12:35
  
  Annual pre-tax profits climbed 186% to £34.3m, lifted by television upgrades and tumble dryersBusiness live – latest updatesThe online electrical goods seller AO World has enjoyed a near-tripling of profits thanks in part to booming tumble dryer sales during the wet winter and televisions for Euro 2024.Revenues at the retailer, which sells 15% of all domestic appliances in the UK, were also bolstered by the continued popularity of air fryers, with the company attributing this to cust
  
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• Private sector could face scrutiny after US software company reveals it wined and dined NDIA officials

  26-06-2024 11:28
  
  Parliamentary report finds agency officials also failed to declare gifts and outings paid for by IT firm SalesforceFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe potential “inappropriate cultivation” of government officials by the private sector could soon be under the microscope after US software company Salesforce revealed it wined and dined NDIA officials on at least 118 instances before, during an
  
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• Virgin Media charges for extra channels that I can’t cancel

  26-06-2024 08:00
  
  It added Netflix even though I already have a subscription, and even after a five-hour chat, it hasn’t been removedI’ve been a Virgin Media customer for more than 20 years but I am at the end of my tether over a £17.99 a month charge for streaming subscriptions that keep on mysteriously appearing on my bill.Our contract is for TV and broadband at £55 a month. We pay each month by direct debit and never use any extras or charged-for services. We have separate subscriptions
  
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• Price well and check fees: 10 expert tips on selling clothes online

  26-06-2024 08:00
  
  Insiders from sites such as eBay, Depop and Vinted give advice on how to get the best cash for preloved itemsThe competition is stiff, so finding the right place to sell your clothes will give you the best chance of getting them in front of people who might want to buy them. Continue reading...
  
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• UK needs system for recording AI misuse and malfunctions, thinktank says

  26-06-2024 07:01
  
  Centre for Long-Term Resilience calls on next government to log incidents to mitigate risksThe UK needs a system for recording misuse and malfunctions in artificial intelligence or ministers risk being unaware of alarming incidents involving the technology, according to a report.The next government should create a system for logging incidents involving AI in public services and should consider building a central hub for collating AI-related episodes across the UK, said the Centre for Long-Term R
  
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• It doesn’t make sense: why US tariffs on Chinese cleantech risk the green transition | Jeffrey Frankel

  26-06-2024 06:00
  
  Global demand for renewable energy is surging so why make solar panels, wind turbines and EVs dearer for western consumers?With historic heatwaves sweeping across the US and other parts of the northern hemisphere, June is expected to be the 13th consecutive month of record-breaking global temperatures. The primary cause, of course, is the enormous amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Despite the existential threat posed by rising atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, emissions
  
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