Rolling coverage of business, economics and markets amid investor concerns over extent of outbreak beyond ChinaFTSE 100 loses 3.3% by mid-morningItalian stocks fall by 4.3% as country suffers outbreakGold hits seven-year high and bonds gain as investors seek havensEasyjet, Tui and British Airways owner among the biggest losers 2.03pm GMT There has been a sixth death from the coronavirus in northern Italy, according to the state broadcaster RAI. 1.38pm GMT Economists at ING have looked at the impact of the virus outbreak on economies in Asia, in a note entitled: “Holidays in hell: slumping tou[...]
Shares in ABF’s clothing rivals Next and Marks & Spencer fall amid concerns over virusCoronavirus - live updatesPrimark’s owner, Associated British Foods, has warned there is a risk of shortages of some clothing lines later this year if delays in factory production in China are prolonged because of the coronavirus.The virus has killed more than 2,400 and infected more than 77,000 people in China, and slowed growth in the world’s second largest economy. Continue reading...
EU affairs minister says France will not sacrifice its economic future for swift post-Brexit dealLatest political news – live updates Boris Johnson has been warned that the French government will not be blackmailed into a trade deal that risks its long-term economic interests, as the EU prepared to further harden its negotiating position.The prime minister’s decision to rule out an extension of the transition period after 31 December 2020 has put pressure on both parties to work swiftly on a deal or face huge extra costs on trade when the UK leaves the single market and customs union. Continue[...]
Resolution Foundation says government borrowing will rise to 40% of GDP, eclipsing the Tony Blair years Boris Johnson is planning to ramp up government borrowing to spend more than £1tn a year, increasing the size of the British state to make it bigger than at any point under the 10-year premiership of Labour’s Tony Blair.Analysis from The Resolution Foundation predicts government spending will rise above the £1tn mark for the first time in history by 2023-24. The report, published on Monday, comes as the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, prepares to deliver what is widely expected to be one of the mos[...]
Tie-up between owners of Hamptons International and Your Move could result in job lossesTwo of Britain’s biggest estate agency groups are in talks over a possible £470m merger that would bring together well-known brands such as Hamptons International and Your Move.A combination of Countrywide and LSL would create a company with about 14,000 employees and 1,000 estate agent branches. News of the talks, which are in early stages but thought to be serious, sparked fears that the tie-up would lead to scores of branch closures and job losses. Continue reading...
Exclusive: firm accused of hypocrisy after talking to anti-tobacco MP about helping smokers switch productsPhilip Morris International (PMI), one of the world’s biggest tobacco companies, drew up plans for a £1bn tobacco transition fund in the UK to be spent by local authorities and Public Health England on persuading smokers to give up cigarettes in favour of alternatives such as its “heat not burn” smokeless tobacco product, IQOS, leaked documents reveal.The documents, obtained by the Guardian and Channel 4’s Dispatches programme, show PMI had discussions with a leading anti-tobacco MP about[...]
Supermarket’s own-brand product available in light, medium and dark shadesThe UK’s largest retailer Tesco is introducing a range of plasters to match different skin colours and better reflect racial and ethnic diversity.In a supermarket first, its new own-brand fabric plasters, available in light, medium and dark shades, go on sale in all 741 Tesco stores nationwide and online from Monday. Continue reading...
Campaigners seek to embarrass Bank over role of Tullow Oil executive Dorothy Thompson Environmental groups have called into question the Bank of England’s commitment to tackling the climate emergency while it retains one of Britain’s most senior oil company executives on its governing board.Greenpeace joined with Friends of the Earth and the campaign group Oil Change International (OCI) to condemn the role played on the Bank’s board of directors by Dorothy Thompson, the executive chair of Britain’s largest independent oil company, Tullow Oil. Continue reading...
Chancellor Rishi Sunak needs to satisfy competing audiences, but there is a way he can do itEvery budget is billed in advance as the most crucial in recent times, but then most are instantly forgotten. The one Rishi Sunak will deliver in just over two weeks’ time may be one of the few that justifies the hype.The reason so much is resting on the shoulders of the tyro chancellor is that the budget needs to satisfy a number of different audiences: the voters in the Midlands and the north of England who gave Boris Johnson his 80-seat majority; traditional Conservative voters; the financial markets[...]
The OECD is alarmed at how much states and firms owe. UK chancellor Rishi Sunak would be wise not to be reckless in the budgetIn 2010, in the wake of the global banking crisis, 34 of the world’s richest nations – those that belong to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) – ramped up their borrowing to $10.9 trillion. In 2019, the OECD revealed last week, those same governments took their borrowing to a fresh high of $11.4tn.The Paris-based thinktank says the new figure is a cause for worry, especially when those same governments have only managed to grow their national[...]
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SoftBank accepts weaker position after shift in fortunes since original 2018 approach
Additional costs in Mexico and Argentina underline challenges of reorganisation
Alarm bells ring after tax ruling that could lead to big debt defaults and job losses
Veteran trader urges the satellite operator to fight US regulator’s 5G spectrum plan
State is one of more than a dozen that tried to stop $59bn deal
Cathedral city has proved a learning curve for Openreach’s engineers
Google may pay for news, William Gibson on the web, Iris’s ‘live’ music app
Top Democrat’s ‘autocracy’ jibe highlights bipartisan US hawkishness over China role
Decision means telecoms company must pay billions of dollars in fees by next month
Justice department files fresh charges against Chinese telecoms equipment group
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VCs seek larger sums and aim to secure funding early in the year
Silicon Valley founders stand out with their appetite for risk
Shareholders’ resolution follows stand-off with tech giant over risk controls
Self-driving AI sends shivers through traditional supply chains
Clive Adamson was previously senior official at Financial Conduct Authority
Beijing’s opacity in handling the epidemic highlights the risks of doing business in China
How two college friends turned a start-up into the country’s biggest software company
Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s start-up Inrupt to expand operational team and launch pilot projects
Facebook to pay users for data, Pearson’s textbook failure, Microsoft’s ElectionGuard
Investors bet that higher sales from games and content will offset weaker ad sales
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