The number of cars built in the first three months of the year rose by 6 per cent, but the overall volume of vehicles produced remains lower than before the pandemic. Production totalled 219,887, according to figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The trade group said that the global shortage of […]
Business confidence reached its highest level since May last year as bosses become more optimistic about the wider economy, a new survey has found. Confidence reached 33 per cent on the monthly index this month, up from 32 per cent in March, the latest monthly sentiment index by Lloyds Bank showed. The survey of businesses […]
Ministers are to dramatically scale back the number of EU laws to be scrapped by the end of the year as part of Rishi Sunak’s bonfire of Brussels rules and regulations. In a concession to opponents of the Retained EU Law Bill, Kemi Badenoch, the business secretary, is to publish a list of 800 laws […]
The bank holiday for the King’s Coronation promises to be a bumper weekend for the UK hospitality industry. New research from SevenRooms reports that the Coronation will create an additional £2.6 billion for the hospitality industry through consumer spending in restaurants, pubs and bars across the UK, with an average spend of £88.51 per head. […]
Netflix has spent $6bn (£4.8bn) making TV shows and films in the UK since 2020, $2bn more than originally planned, as the streaming giant doubled down on must-watch content amid a global slowdown in new subscribers. In a rare public announcement on content-spend levels, Netflix has said that it had spent on average almost $1.5bn […]
Plans for minimum service levels during rail strikes could worsen industrial relations and outcomes for passengers, train operators have told MPs, while unions said the proposed laws were a “recipe for disaster”. Legislation that would force some staff to work during strikes is going through parliament, sponsored by the business secretary, Grant Shapps. Questioned by […]
Ocado Group is to close its oldest warehouse, in Hatfield, putting about 2,300 jobs at risk. The online grocer, which runs the Hertfordshire site in a joint venture with Marks & Spencer, said it hoped to redeploy as many staff as possible to other customer fulfilment centres, including its new Luton site, which is expected […]
Bitcoin could reach $100,000 by the end of next year, an analyst at Standard Chartered has claimed. Geoffrey Kendrick said he expected investors to pile their money into cryptocurrency markets now that the “crypto winter” was over. This month the digital currency’s value rose above $30,000 for the first time since June, although it has […]
Prezzo has said it is to close 46 loss-making restaurants as it struggles with soaring energy and food costs. The move will put around 810 workers at risk of redundancy, the Italian restaurant chain said, although it will try to redeploy “as many staff internally as possible”. The private equity-owned business said the cuts will […]
Outstanding bank loans to SME’s in the UK fell by £14bn in the year to March with concerns that this figure could fall further due to March’s banking turmoil and mooted regulatory changes. In the year to March, outstanding bank loans fell to £195bn from £209bn according to Bank of England data sourced by debt […]