Zoopla injects £1m into four property technology start-ups February 16, 2016 Zoopla is throwing its weight behind the next generation of property technology firms after investing £1m in four start-ups. The FTSE 250 firm, which owns uSwitch, Prime Location as well its eponymous property search firm, said it has agreed exclusive partnerships with four "promising and innovative property technology start-up companies" to help ramp up their expansion and improve [...]
Thames Water: Work has started on Europe’s biggest floating solar panel project in London February 16, 2016 Thames Water announced work on a huge floating solar array, equivalent to eight Wembley football pitches, began in London this week. Just over 23,000 solar photovoltaic (PV) panels will be floated on the reservoir near Walton-on-Thames. The project, the biggest of its kind in Europe, will have a total installed peak capacity of 6.3 megawatts, and should generate enough energy [...]
Buy-to-let mortgage boom runs out of steam as lending falls in December February 16, 2016 The buy-to-let mortgage boom receded toward the end of last year, new figures show today. The amount of cash loaned to buy-to-let investors dropped by three per cent in December compared with November, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said. It was also down one per cent in the three months from the three months to September. Over [...]
Volkswagen’s car sales fall in the EU as it struggles to shake off stigma of emissions scandal February 16, 2016 EU sales of Volkswagen's eponymous brand of cars fell by 3.8 per cent in January, flouting the wider trend of a 6.2 per cent rise in total car sales in the bloc last month. Figures released today by Acea, the manufacturer's body, showed that VW is still feeling the pain from its emissions scandal, which [...]
London house prices have another year of rapid growth as they climb 9.4 per cent in 2015 February 16, 2016 London house prices climbed 9.4 per cent last year, figure released by the Office for National Statistics this morning show. While it is some way below 2014's growth of 13.3 per cent, it is still rapidly outpacing earnings. The strong growth in London and the South helped drive nation-wide house price growth of 6.7 per cent. Prices [...]
Vodafone’s share price rises after confirming Dutch merger with Liberty Global February 16, 2016 Vodafone and Liberty Global are to merge their Dutch operations, the two telecoms companies have announced. Vodafone said it will pay €1bn (£770m) to Liberty Global in order “to equalise ownership in the joint venture”. The tie-up will achieve cost, capex and revenue synergies with a value of around €3.5bn after integration costs, Vodafone said. [...]
Investment banks’ earnings set to fall this year due to tough market conditions February 16, 2016 The party is over for investment banks, with earnings forecast to fall this year due to the challenging economic environment and a low level of deals, according to JP Morgan research. JP Morgan analysts cut their average earnings estimate for investment banks worldwide this year by a whopping 20 per cent and slashed their revenues estimate by 21 per cent. “We see [...]
ONS consumer price index: Motor fuel helps send UK inflation up by 0.3 per cent in January February 16, 2016 Petrol prices helped Britain's annual inflation rate inch up to a 12-month high in January, figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) today showed. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.3 per cent in the year to January, up from 0.2 per cent in December, and in line with economists' expectations. This means prices rose 7.9 per cent [...]
Finally: UK living standards are now as high as they were before the recession February 16, 2016 Time to pop open that prosecco: We're finally living as well as we were before the financial crisis hit. After nearly a decade, the standard of living across the UK has finally returned to the levels found before the recession, however, that recovery could slow over the coming years. The average household income now stands at £24,300, surpassing its [...]
One third of oil firms at risk of bankruptcy due to plummeting prices February 16, 2016 A third of oil producers are at risk of going bankrupt this year due to low commodity prices, according to a report by Deloitte. Around 175 companies may become insolvent as they collectively have more than $150bn in debt and are struggling to obtain financing, according to the study. "These companies have kicked the can down [...]
