Category Archives: Business

Biden’s delay of ‘carbon bomb’ projects could be a big deal – but will it last?

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Climate activists cheer decision to pause all pending liquified natural gas export licenses, but is it just a delay till after November elections?

Joe Biden has, at least for a while, defused a ticking carbon bomb. Climate activists and the fossil fuel industry are now left wondering how long it will last.

The decision on Friday by the Biden administration to pause all pending export licenses for liquified national gas (LNG) to consider the climate impact of the projects has been hailed as a momentous shift in the status quo by those concerned by the unfolding climate crisis.

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UK ditches post-Brexit Canada trade talks; Vodafone and Three UK merger under investigation – as it happened

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Live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets as Canada says UK was unwilling to give access to agricultural products

Shares in US chipmaker Intel have slumped in pre-market trading after it revealed a weaker forecast of earnings.

Chipmakers have been flying in recent years as shortages followed by the huge hype over artificial intelligence – which is hungry for processing power – prompted investors to pile into the sector.

Although Intel beat estimates, investors’ disappointment in Intel’s datacentre GPU story’s growth can be primarily attributed to the slower-than-expected product delivery and ramp-up.

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Indonesian fruit picker landed in debt bondage challenges Home Office

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Exclusive: Test case likely against UK’s seasonal worker scheme as charity alleges breach of right to be protected from labour exploitation

When Ismael found himself sleeping rough at York station in the late October cold he struggled to understand how an opportunity to pick berries 7,000 miles from his home had so quickly ended there.

He had left Indonesia less than four months earlier, in July 2022. He was 18 and ready for six months of hard work on a British farm to save for a science degree. “I thought the UK was the best place to work because I could save up a little money and help my parents,” he said.

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Michelle Mone and the PPE Medpro investigation – podcast

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After the peer admitted to lying about her involvement in lucrative government PPE deals during the Covid crisis, the fate of her high-profile lingerie company raises further questions. David Conn reports

When Michelle Mone sat down for an interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg last month it was against the backdrop of serious allegations that she had been facing since 2020. Mone and her husband, the Isle of Man-based businessman Doug Barrowman, are the subjects of a long-running National Crime Agency investigation into allegations of bribery and fraud in their securing of £200m in government contracts for a company, PPE Medpro.

She admitted to Kuenssberg that she had lied for years when denying her involvement in the lucrative PPE deals, emphasising in the interview that she was a ‘very successful individual businesswoman’.

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Private rents in Great Britain hit record high, data shows

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Rightmove says average advertised price outside London is up 9.2% on a year ago despite fall in some regions

Average private rents in Great Britain have climbed to new record highs, though in some regions there has been a small fall in the amount new tenants are being asked to pay, data shows.

The typical advertised private rent outside London for new properties coming on to the market rose to a record £1,280 a calendar month in the final quarter of 2023, according to the property website Rightmove. That is £2 higher than the £1,278 figure recorded in the third quarter – a sign that rental growth is slowing.

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BHP and Vale ordered to pay $15bn in damages for 2015 Brazil dam collapse

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Mining companies and their joint venture Samarco ordered by Brazilian judge to pay AU$14.7bn over disaster that killed 19 people

A Brazilian judge has ruled that mining companies Vale and BHP and their joint venture Samarco must pay 47.6bn reais (AU$14.7 bn) in damages for a 2015 tailings dam burst, according to a legal decision seen by Reuters.

Vale, a Brazilian company, and BHP, an Australian listed company, said in separate statements they were not informed by the judiciary about the decision.

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Tourists heading to Europe could face 14-hour queues at Dover from October

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New EU entry-exit system could lead to gridlocked roads if scheme goes ahead as planned, MPs hear

Tourists heading to Europe could face waits of up to 14 hours at border controls under a scheme to be launched in October, MPs have been told.

The Port of Dover and the surrounding area could face significant disruption when the EU entry/exit system is introduced unless measures are taken to prevent delays, parliament’s European scrutiny committee has heard.

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Virgin Media is most complained about UK broadband provider

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Ofcom figures show Virgin attracted about 32 complaints per 100,000 customers compared with 18 for Now Broadband

Virgin Media is the UK’s most complained about broadband provider according to the latest figures, compounding woes for the firm, which is already under investigation by the communications regulator.

Figures released by Ofcom on Thursday showed that the number of complaints made about Virgin’s internet services between July and September were nearly double that of the next-most complained about provider, with Virgin attracting about 32 complaints per 100,000 customers compared with 18 for Now Broadband.

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Emirates-backed stake in Vodafone is security risk, says UK

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UAE firm’s increased investment prompts Cabinet Office order for security panel at telecoms company

The stake in Vodafone held by a United Arab Emirates-backed telecoms group poses a national security risk to the UK, the government said.

The Cabinet Office issued a notice late on Wednesday warning that the 14.6% stake held in Vodafone by Emirates Telecoms, which is also known as e&, amounted to a security concern given Vodafone’s strategic role in the country’s telecommunications services.

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‘How to greenwash’: propane industry tries to rebrand fuel as renewable

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Lobbying group spent nearly $30m on ads touting the ‘clean energy’ potential of propane – and downplaying its full climate impacts


This story is co-published with Heated

Members of a propane industry lobbying group strategized to downplay the full climate impacts of propane and market it as renewable or “clean energy”, recordings reviewed by the climate newsletter Heated and the Guardian reveal.

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‘It’s taken a toll’: burnout drives auction of vintage Holdens at Australian museum

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Seven classic cars and naming rights of country’s longest-running museum of the iconic vehicle up for grabs as owners of 30 years say they need a break

The National Holden motor museum will put its name and its classic cars up for auction after failing to find a buyer to take it over.

The closures marks the end of longest, continously running, single-maker motor museum in Australia and the end of a local fixture in the regional Victorian town of Echuca.

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‘It’s going to be tough’: the impact of war on Israeli lives and businesses

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Despite signs of revival, the true costs of conflict are impossible to calculate because no one can say how long it will last

Cafe Merkaz is busy. A handful of patrons sit at its half dozen tables on Jerusalem’s Hanevi’im Street on a sunny lunchtime, while inside the coffee grinders grind and a pile of sandwiches on the counter shrinks hour by hour.

“A month or so ago, things looked pretty desperate. But we had twice as many people through the door this morning by 10am as we had in entire days back then. Now I think the year is just going to be tough, but we’ll hang on,” said Yaakov Saly, the 27-year-old owner.

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Australia news live: Townsville residents advised to shelter in place ahead of Cyclone Kirrily reaching Queensland coast

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The latest advice from the Bureau of Meteorology is that Tropical Cyclone Kirrily will begin crossing the coast from 10pm tonight. Follow the day’s news live

As we flagged just earlier, wind gusts associated with Tropical Cyclone Kirrily have already begun around the Whitsundays, with gusts over 100km/h.

In a Facebook group for Whitsundays locals, a new resident has asked an innocent question:

Hey there I’m kind of new to town from Melbourne. Does anyone know how to tie my tree down so that it doesn’t blow away?

“I would use fairy lights.”

“If you hop around clockwise on your left leg 3 times and then do a Kangaroo hop to the right, the drop bears will take care of it by having the tree extend it’s roots deeper.”

“If you’re really from Melbourne you would know how to tie down a tree with the windy crap weather down there. Ride a kangaroo to bunnings [and] get some ratchets.”

“From the state of the supermarket shelves I’m guessing everyone is using toilet paper to tie their trees down.”

“Take the leaves off and store inside. The rest will be fine.”

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Grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 planes can return to service after inspection, says FAA

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US regulator makes announcement hours after CEO says planemaker will only allow jets to fly when ‘100%’ certain of safety

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved an inspection and maintenance process to allow grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 planes to return to service, following a cabin panel blowout on an Alaska Airlines flight.

“The exhaustive, enhanced review our team completed after several weeks of information gathering gives me and the FAA confidence to proceed to the inspection and maintenance phase,” FAA administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement.

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Tesla delivers underwhelming earnings despite Cybertruck launch and high vehicle deliveries

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Electric vehicle manufacturer’s earnings in the fourth quarter of 2023 missed analyst expectations

Despite putting a new vehicle on the market, announcing another for 2025 and beating Wall Street’s expectations for vehicle deliveries, Tesla was not able to shake off its disappointing third quarter.

The electric vehicle manufacturer brought in $25.1bn in revenue and posted $.71 in earnings a share in the fourth quarter of 2023, missing analyst expectations of 25.76bn in revenue and $0.74 earnings a share. The company’s fourth quarter revenue increased 3% year over year from $24.3bn in 2022.

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Labour to unveil plans for City at forthcoming business conference

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Exclusive: more than 500 bosses from finance world will be in attendance at sold-out event in London

Labour will use its sold-out business conference next week to unveil the party’s City policy plans, the Guardian can reveal, as it tries to win over hundreds of UK executives before a general election.

More than 500 bosses from across British finance will gather in London on 1 February for the event, where opposition leaders including Sir Keir Starmer, his shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, and the shadow business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, plan to “showcase Labour’s offer to business”.

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China announces 0.5% cut in banks’ minimum reserves

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Biggest reduction since December 2021 will allow 1tn more yuan to be released in form of new loans

China’s central bank has announced a surprise cut to the amount of cash that banks must hold in reserve, hoping to boost the lending available to households and businesses as policymakers try to steer the economy through a fragile recovery.

Pan Gongsheng, the governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), said on Wednesday that the reserve requirement ratio would be cut by 0.5% from 5 February, the deepest cut to the rate since December 2021. The move will allow about 1tn yuan (£110.8bn) to be released in the form of new loans.

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Albanese promises to double tax relief for average income Australians in stage-three overhaul

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Prime minister to use National Press Club address to defend new plan as the ‘right thing to do’

Anthony Albanese has pledged to more than double tax relief for Australians on the average income in a suite of low and middle income tax cuts paid for by trimming benefits to high income earners.

At the National Press Club on Thursday the prime minister will defend Labor’s plan by arguing it will still deliver “a tax cut for every taxpayer” and that modification of the stage-three tax cuts was “the right thing to do” in changed economic circumstances.

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‘Hypocrisy’: Tata builds vast India furnace despite Port Talbot emissions claims

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Owner says shutting Welsh blast furnaces will cut emissions, but it is opening a new one in India

The owner of the Port Talbot steelworks has been accused of “gross hypocrisy” as it prepares to open a new blast furnace in India, while citing a cut in carbon emissions for its decision to close two blast furnaces in south Wales, costing thousands of jobs.

Tata announced last week that up to 2,800 jobs would be cut under plans to close Port Talbot’s two huge blast furnaces and replace them with an electric arc furnace.

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Three dead after being pulled from water off Phillip Island – as it happened

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This blog is now closed.

Morrison to take up separate position at Dyne Asset Management

As we brought you just earlier, Scott Morrison will be taking up a role with international advisory and consulting firm American Global Strategies after his resignation from politics late February.

Well, firstly, I think we should be quite thoughtful of which category we’re talking about for farmers. If you’re talking about fruits and vegetables, we are in material deflation and have been for about four months … That is because of demand and supply in Australia. It’s a domestic product, it’s subject to demand and supply. It is causing pain for many of those farmers. But hopefully that situation will change with regard to the new year.

… We buy directly [where we can] from farmers, and we try and smooth out the price that they get so that they can plan and manage their business effectively.

But when you look at the red meat index, it does look like it’s trending up based on what’s happening offshore. So these things do flow through …

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