Drax shares hit by European probe into state aid for biofuel conversion January 6, 2016 Plans by Drax to convert its North Yorkshire coal power plant to instead burn biomass hit a stumbling block yesterday, when the European Commission (EC) said it will look into whether government subsidies to support the site’s conversion to the fuel amounted to state aid. Shares in the energy company were burned by the news [...]
Glassdoor: UK is third best place in Europe to look for work January 6, 2016 The UK is one of the top places in Europe for finding work, according to new research published this morning. Online jobs site Glassdoor said that while the unemployment rate in countries such as Austria, Switzerland and Germany were lower than in the UK, the UK has one of the lowest proportions of temporary workers. In [...]
Jack Dorsey confirms Twitter is exploring removing the 140 character limit January 5, 2016 One of Twitter’s standout features may soon be a thing of the past, but investors weren’t wowed by chief exec Jack Dorsey confirming the firm is toying with removing the 140 character limit. Rumours from Silicon Valley hinting at Twitter plans to expand to a 10,000 character limit sent users into headspin. But it wasn’t [...]
Opec oil output dips but market labels it a blip January 5, 2016 The global oil supply was eased slightly in December, according to a Reuters survey. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) supply of oil fell in December to 31.6m barrels per day, down from 31.8m in November. The dip in supply is not thought to be the beginning of a trend however, with analysts expecting [...]
State postpones fears of a sell-off in China markets January 5, 2016 Chinese authorities gave the country's stock and currency markets a boost yesterday when they resumed buying shares, despite vowing not to at the tail end of 2015. State controlled financial institutions, known as the “national team”, were widely credited with buying up shares by analysts and traders, many of which were critical of the government’s intervention [...]
Car industry revival turbo charged in US – GM, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, Toyota, and Nissan all pull in record sales for December and 2015 January 5, 2016 Oil prices at an 11 year low, an easy line of credit, pent up customer demand, and a rebound in the jobs market all contributed to a record breaking 2015 for the US car industry, crowned with one of the best December trading periods ever. The picture is looking similar in UK, with many of [...]
Aberdeen falls to lowest point since 2012 on Barclays downgrade January 5, 2016 Aberdeen Asset Management shares fell to a three-and-a-half-year low today, weighed heavily by a Barclays downgrade. Investors were rattled by a note from the bank downgrading the stock to “underweight” from “equalweight” amid worries it would need to work harder to slash costs. Aberdeen closed 2.4 per cent lower on the news at 275.2p, its [...]
Fine wine investor Cult Wines to make splash in Hong Kong January 5, 2016 Fine wine investor Cult Wines is poised to open a new office in Hong Kong to take advantage of increasing demand in Asia for rare and expensive bottles of tipple. The company, founded by the BBC’s Apprentice finalist Tom Gearing in 2007, said it has seen a rise of new markets such as Hong Kong and [...]
Pub sector raises glass to economic recovery as more properties change hands January 5, 2016 The pubs property sector enjoyed a resurgence in deal activity last year thanks to the economic recovery and improved consumer confidence, new research shows. The number of significant corporate deals that took place last year was similar to the number in the previous year, according to Fleurets, a commercial estate agent specialising in selling pubs. However [...]
Chief financial officers less concerned about Brexit uncertainty this year January 5, 2016 UK finance chiefs are more concerned about the domestic economy than they are about the uncertainty generated by a referendum on Britain's EU membership, new survey figures reveal today. The uncertainty surrounding a Brexit was cited as a risk by 41 per cent of chief financial officers (CFO), down from 50 per cent last year, according to the [...]
