Heathrow raises passenger forecast but £4bn financial hole stunts growth April 26, 2022 Heathrow announced today it was raising its passenger forecasts for 2022 despite pandemic-related losses swelling to £4bn. The London hub’s forecast increased to 65 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, going up from 45.5m to 52.8m due to a peak in passenger demand over the summer. After experiencing a bleak January and February as a result [...]
Global supply of electric car batteries could be shifting East to West, say analysts April 26, 2022 The world’s supply of advanced batteries, critical for electric cars, could be shifting West, say analysts, as production grinds to a halt in Asia. China’s most recent Covid-19 lockdowns have ‘chipped away’ at the country’s dominance in the battery market, analysts at independent energy researcher Rystad Energy, Susan Zou and Abhishek Murali, explained. Businesses have [...]
Maersk raises guidance after record profits but warns boom will die down later April 26, 2022 Maersk announced today it was raising its guidance for the year after it posted record profits for the first quarter. In the last three months, the group’s revenues went ahead of expectations to $19.3bn, while Maersk’s EBITDA amounted to $7.9bn. As a result of a 71 per cent increase in freight rates, the logistics giant [...]
UK judge rules against Qatar Airways in latest episode of $600m corporate divorce saga April 26, 2022 A UK judge ruled today against Qatar Airways, in the latest episode of a bigger divorce battle between the airline and Airbus. London’s High Court denied a request by the Doha-based carrier to force Airbus to keep building A321neo jets, after plane maker slashed Qatar Airways’ order for 50 planes in January. The Toulouse-based plane [...]
No more license for Amazon: Brazil court deals lethal blow to world’s largest gold mine April 26, 2022 What would have been the largest open-pit gold mine in the world is no more, after a Brazilian federal court upheld the suspension of an environmental license, dealing a blow to the Canada-based company behind the project. Belo Sun Mining was appealing the same court’s 2017 ruling, which found that the company’s consultation with local [...]
Heathrow will not make a single profit this year as Covid losses swell to £4bn: ‘We are still in a pandemic’ April 26, 2022 Heathrow Airport said this morning the airport will remain loss-making in 2022 as “demand remains very volatile”. Britain’s biggest aviation hub said it is not forecasting a return to profit and dividends this year despite an increase in outbound demand for travel. Its losses during the coronavirus pandemic have now exceeded £4bn. Heathrow has updated [...]
National Express revenue makes full pandemic recovery amid pent-up demand April 26, 2022 National Express’ revenue has made a full pandemic recovery, as pent-up demand and a domestic travel boom saw a greater take-up of coach travel last month. The group’s revenue has finally swung back to 2019 levels in the three months to 31 March, with last month’s earnings coming in ahead of pre-pandemic figures. While the [...]
EXCLUSIVE: Government and railway industry to be more ‘radical’ in R&D April 26, 2022 The railway sector and the UK Government need to be more “radical” when it comes to research and development (R&D) according to a paper published today. Through its Railway Innovation Strategy, the Railway Industry Association (RIA) has called on the government to roll out more investment in rail innovation and provide funding, while asking the [...]
Motorists spared £50 annual insurance hike as government scraps EU law in Brexit win April 25, 2022 Motorists will be spared a £50 annual insurance hike after the UK Government scrapped EU regulations. A bill to scrap the EU’s Vnuk motor insurance law was passed today through Parliament and, according to government, will prevent a £2bn hike for the UK’s insurance industry. Under the EU law, motorsports, agricultural machinery and light electric [...]
Portugal scraps EU’s strict Brexit rules and rolls out red immigration carpet for Brits with Spain and Italy likely to follow soon April 25, 2022 Portugal has confirmed it plans to ignore EU rules that require British nationals to be treated as third country citizens at border checks and immigration points. The southern European nation will become the first EU member state to allow UK passport holders to be fast-tracked through electronic passport gates, thereby receiving the same treatment as [...]
