Zurich watches the clock as RSA takeover deadline nears
The Swiss insurer’s £5bn bid for RSA was announced in July. Now there are just two days left to find a deal – and RSA’s Stephen Hester isn’t minded to sell cheap Tuesday is the big day for RSA and Zurich. A leak in July forced the Swiss insurer to announce it was considering a […]
Fracking: who’s who in the race to strike it rich in the UK
Situation is similiar to early days of the US shale boom, says industry expert In The Frackers, a book about the fracking industry in the US, Gregory Zuckerman tells the story of “new billionaire wildcatters” who made fortunes and went on to use their wealth to shake up Hollywood, education, politics and sport. In the […]
China syndrome: how the slowdown could spread to the Brics and beyond
Emerging markets, once the world’s great economic hope, could see the good times end as Beijing falters. We look at which countries are most vulnerable to the 21st century’s next financial crisis Tumbling share prices. A sell-off in commodity markets. Capital flight from some of the world’s riskier countries. Hints of a looming currency war. […]
North Sea oil output is set to rise … at just the wrong moment to make a profit
Investments made while the price was at $100 are starting to bear fruit: but now more crude is just adding to the glut In the North Sea, a 15-year slump in oil production will almost certainly be halted this year. The turnaround after so many years is but one of a myriad of reasons that […]
Convenience stores turn the corner
Artisan products and a personal touch are helping small shops fight back as big supermarket chains attempt to take over UK high streets A basket of greengages, pots of local honey and stacked boxes of granola sit next to Cretan sun-dried tomatoes and something rather less delicious-looking – packets of dried crickets and mealworms. It’s […]
Forget Etsy – app Tictail wants to democratize e-commerce
A small-business sales platform, Tictail is positioning itself as an open digital marketplace for entrepreneurs all over the world Modern day entrepreneurs face a unique dilemma when trying to break into the marketplace: what if their product is not artisanal enough? Thanks to Etsy, which enforces strict maker requirements about the items sold through its […]
Global market turmoil in six charts
World stock markets have suffered their worst week of the year so far buffeted by worries over China, a potential US rate rise and troubles in emerging economies. What do six big moves across markets tell us about increasingly jittery investors? World stock markets have suffered their worst week of the year so far as […]
Lidl trials its first loyalty scheme with Scottish customers
Retailer sends out 4m ‘smarter shopping’ cards to shoppers, signalling that discounters are feeling pressure from supermarkets’ fightback Lidl has begun testing a loyalty scheme in Scotland as the discounter tries to keep up the pace of growth in the face of a fightback by major supermarkets. The German-owned chain has sent out 4m “smarter […]
American Apparel: at first arty and subversive, then it got creepy
The US retailer broke new ground when it first hit the British high street, but its edginess and internet porn aesthetic ended up tarnishing its image American Apparel has become so synonymous with controversy that it is easy to forget why anyone cared about it in the first place. But when the US chain first […]
Price cuts and rise in orders quicken pace of eurozone business growth
Unexpected acceleration in economic activity suggests ECB’s bond-buying scheme and weaker euro could be having a stimulating effect Eurozone business growth unexpectedly accelerated this month as steeper price cutting drove an increase in new orders and led to firms building a bigger backlog of work, according to a new survey. The relatively upbeat survey, one […]