Category Archives: Business

Labor urged to keep ‘golden ticket’ investor visa primarily used by Chinese migrants

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Immigration expert says the policy amounts to selling a visa ‘very cheaply’ without a good return on investment

The Australia China Business Council has urged Labor to retain the “golden ticket” significant investor visa after the home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, signalled it could be axed.

The council made the call in a submission to the home affairs department’s migration review, which has also reignited debate between business and unions about the level of migration and raising the pay floor for temporary skilled migrants.

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Norwegian cargo ship refloated after running aground in Suez canal

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Egyptian authority says vessel was towed away for repairs after briefly disrupting traffic in vital waterway

A Norwegian-owned cargo ship briefly ran aground in the Suez canal before being refloated and towed away, according to the Egyptian authority running the vital waterway.

The vessel, which had experienced a sudden technical failure, was being removed by tugboats for repairs, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) chief, Osama Rabie, said on Monday. Maritime traffic was normal, he added.

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Goldman Sachs to start cutting up to 3,200 jobs this week

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Redundancies expected to be concentrated in investment banking division and consumer arm

Goldman Sachs is expected to start one of the biggest rounds of redundancies in its history this week, with as many as 3,200 jobs to go as it looks to cut costs.

The bank is expected to begin informing people that they will lose their jobs on Wednesday.

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Energy bill support for UK businesses to be cut by Jeremy Hunt

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New scheme for companies, charities and public sector organisations to offer discount on wholesale prices

The chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is poised to announce a cut to the financial support offered to businesses to help with their energy bills.

A new scheme to provide support for businesses, charities and public sector organisations at a less generous level than the current scheme is expected to be presented in the House of Commons on Monday.

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Lidl gained 1.3m British shoppers at Christmas amid living costs crisis

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Discount supermarket’s sales rise by a quarter year on year in four weeks to 25 December

Lidl gained 1.3 million British shoppers in the Christmas period compared with a year earlier as the supermarket benefited from people cutting back on spending.

The German-owned chain said the Friday before Christmas was its busiest ever day as sales rose by a quarter compared with the previous year as shoppers switched from other supermarkets in greater numbers.

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Hedge funds holding up vital debt relief for crisis-hit Sri Lanka, warn economists

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Exclusive: 182 experts say only debt cancellation offers chance of recovery but private investors are playing hardball

Some of the world’s most powerful hedge funds and other investors are holding up vital help for crisis-hit Sri Lanka by their hardline stance in debt-relief negotiations after the Asian country’s $51bn (£42bn) default last year, according to 182 economists and development experts from around the world.

In a statement released to the Guardian on Sunday, the group said extensive debt cancellation was needed to give the economy a chance of recovery and that Sri Lanka would be a test case of the willingness of the international community to tackle a looming global debt crisis.

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Animal ambulances answer growing demand for pet emergency care

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Firms such as Animals at Home offer range of care services and can step in when pets are in trouble

The day did not begin as expected for Verity Hope. She had been due to spend a wet November morning making a trip to a vet with a reactive dog, but the client phoned in sick. Then another job cropped up: taking a dead rabbit to a pet crematorium.

It may seem an eclectic set of requests, but for Verity and her animal ambulance it is the norm. Since the start of the pandemic, 4.7m households have acquired a new pet. Changes in work patterns and everyday pressures mean many need support.

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Somaliland’s frankincense brings gold to companies. Its women pay the price

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Female workers tell of exploitation and sexual assault at frankincense warehouse supplying US essential oils company

“I’m not speaking metaphorically – a bottle of doTERRA essential oil can change the world,” says David Stirling, a mild, clean-cut, middle-aged man. His largely female audience cheers and whistles, as if for a celebrity. Stirling, then CEO and co-founder of doTERRA, a Utah-based multi-level marketing company that sells essential oils, is making his opening remarks in September 2021 to the packed Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City.

In a setting reminiscent of a megachurch, Stirling’s soft-spoken voice echoes. He reminds the audience that the world needs healers more than ever – “and that’s you”, he says, to raucous applause. He quotes CS Lewis, speaks of miracles and says he’s seen people turn to doTERRA in their lowest moments. People cry.

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Western Australia’s ‘worst’ flood reveals vulnerability of supply chains as 100 residents airlifted out

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Experts call for a multidisciplinary approach, with climate-related disasters to continue disrupting freight delivery

Western Australia’s “worst ever” flood has further highlighted the vulnerability of Australia’s supply chains, experts say.

On Saturday, record levels of water were pouring down the Fitzroy River, which had created a 50km-wide inland sea. The water across the Kimberley region had shut down parts of the crucial Great Northern Highway, damaged the bridge at Fitzroy Crossing and inundated the airstrip. And 105 people had been relocated from the region, with more expected to be airlifted out in the coming days.

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Jack Ma to give up control of China’s Ant Group, firm says

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Billionaire Chinese businessman has rarely been seen in public since criticising regulators’ attitude to tech companies two years ago

Jack Ma will cede control of Chinese fintech giant Ant Group, the company has announced, following a Communist party crackdown on the nation’s tech sector that targeted the charismatic billionaire.

One of China’s most recognisable entrepreneurs, Ma once exemplified a generation of Chinese technology moguls with his rags-to-riches personal tale and penchant for public showmanship.

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Only one in five British trains to run on final day of planned strikes

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Industrial action over pay and working conditions has caused almost four weeks of disruption

The last day in the latest stretch of railway strikes has begun, ending a run of almost four weeks of continuous disruption caused by industrial action over pay and working conditions.

Only about one in five trains across Great Britain will run on Saturday as a 48-hour walkout by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers union concludes, with no early morning or evening services and a pared-back schedule on main intercity and urban lines.

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Chameleon cars, urine scanners and other standouts from CES 2023

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AI-ovens, dual-display or 3D screen laptops and satellite SOS texting shine at Las Vegas tech show

From colour-changing cars, dual-screen laptops and satellite emergency texts to AI-ovens and a urine-scanning smart toilet upgrade, the annual CES tech show in Las Vegas had more concepts of the future on show than ever before.

The biggest consumer gadget show of the year was still quieter than pre-pandemic levels, with the global economic slowdown biting big tech along with everything else.

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Average UK house price falls for fourth month in a row, says Halifax

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Figure of £281,272 comes as property values drop by 1.5% in December, after 2.4% decline in November

The average UK house price fell for the fourth month in a row in December, according to Halifax, with experts expecting a further slowdown amid a long recession.

Property values decreased by 1.5% in December, the lender’s monthly index revealed, after a 2.4% drop in November, a 0.4% decrease in October and a 0.1% dip in September.

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Leak reveals Roman Abramovich’s billion-dollar trusts transferred before Russia sanctions

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Exclusive: Files raise questions about whether oligarch’s children were made beneficiaries to protect fortune from possible asset freezes

Trusts holding billions of dollars of assets for Roman Abramovich were amended to transfer beneficial ownership to his children shortly before sanctions were imposed on the Russian oligarch.

Leaked files seen by the Guardian suggest 10 secretive offshore trusts established to benefit Abramovich were rapidly reorganised in early February 2022, three weeks before the start of Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.

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Shell expects to pay about $2bn in UK and EU windfall taxes for last quarter

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Firm said in October it had not paid any UK windfall taxes because of heavy investment in North Sea

Shell has revealed it expects to pay about $2bn (£1.7bn) in UK and EU windfall taxes for the final quarter of 2022 – the first time it has paid UK tax for five years.

The oil company had previously sparked anger in October when it said it had not paid any UK windfall taxes because of heavy investment in the North Sea.

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Indie bookshop numbers hit 10-year high in 2022 defying brutal UK retail year

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Lockdowns were good news for book trade as people read more and sought out bookshops when they reopened

The number of independent bookshops in the UK and Ireland climbed to a 10-year high in 2022, as the book trade defied the odds in an otherwise brutal year for high street retailers.

The lifestyle changes brought about by the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns were a boon for the book trade, as Britons with more time on their hands read more and sought out bookshops when they reopened.

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Thai police accused of ‘sham’ forced labour inquiry at former Tesco supplier

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Exclusive: Officials took one day to conclude no laws were broken at VK Garment factory and workers say their words were deleted

Thai police have been accused of conducting a “sham” investigation into potential forced labour at a garment factory formerly used by Tesco, after officials took one day to conclude no laws were broken.

The Guardian revealed last month that Burmese workers who produced F&F jeans for Tesco in Thailand reported being made to work 99-hour weeks for illegally low pay in terrible conditions.

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Cold snap boosts pre-Christmas sales at Next

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Retailer reports much better than expected data in December but remains ‘cautious’ about 2023

Next has upped profit forecasts for the year by £20m after better sales than expected in the run-up to Christmas, but said it remained “cautious” about the year ahead.

The fashion and home retailer said sales had risen by 4.8% in the nine weeks to 30 December, well above predictions of a 2% fall, delivering £66m more sales than expected.

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FTSE 100 bosses paid more in three days than average UK worker for whole year

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CEOs pass milestone nine working hours earlier than last year, with pay up 39% on January 2022

The bosses of Britain’s biggest companies will have made more money in 2023 by Thursday afternoon than the average UK worker will earn in the entire year, according to analysis of vast pay gaps amid strike action and the cost of living crisis.

The High Pay Centre, a thinktank that campaigns for fairer pay for workers, said that by 2pm on the third working day of the year, a FTSE 100 chief executive will have been paid more on an hourly basis than a UK worker’s annual salary, based on median average remuneration figures for both groups.

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Energy efficiency ‘war effort’ needed to cut bills and emissions, say MPs

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Ministers missed crucial opportunities but should use energy windfall tax to speed up insulation efforts, committee says

A national “war effort” on energy efficiency is required to cut energy bills, reduce climate-heating emissions and ensure energy security, according to a cross-party committee of MPs.

Boosting efficiency in homes and businesses is the fastest way to cut energy use but the government missed a “crucial window of opportunity” last summer, the report from the environmental audit committee (EAC) said. The energy bills crisis was sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while political turmoil in the UK resulted in three prime ministers in office between July and October.

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