Category Archives: Business

Thousands of Serbians protest in Belgrade against lithium mine

Posted on by

Controversial mining project is a political fault line in Balkan country over fears about environmental impacts

Thousands hit the streets in Serbia’s capital Belgrade Saturday to protest against the rebooting of a controversial lithium mine set to serve as a vital source to power Europe’s green energy transition.

Before the rally, two leading protest figures said they were briefly detained by security officials who warned that any moves to block roads during the protest would be viewed as illegal.

Continue reading...

Pret a Manger deploys body-worn cameras for some staff

Posted on by

Coffee and bakery chain says devices to be worn by managers will ‘only be turned on in specific circumstances’

Pret a Manger has become the latest high street staple to deploy body-worn cameras for some of its staff.

The coffee and bakery chain began trialling body-worn cameras in a select number of shops in London last month. A Pret spokesperson said this was done as a new safety measure. “These are only being worn by team leaders or managers, and are only turned on in specific circumstances,” the spokesperson said.

Continue reading...

Wall Street banker bonuses forecast to rise 35% this year

Posted on by

Surge caused by rebound in market activity very likely to influence payouts for European outposts of banks

Bonuses for Wall Street’s investment bankers are forecast to jump as much as 35% this year – although experts have warned that payouts could be knocked by stock market volatility and an economic slowdown in the US.

Fresh predictions suggest that staff across a range of financial firms – including hedge funds, asset managers and investment banks – will see payouts rise for the first time in two years. It follows a rebound in business confidence and market activity, with companies more willing to take risks amid easing inflation that has started to translate into lower borrowing costs.

Continue reading...

Furniture is getting really expensive. That doesn’t bode well for the Australian economy

Posted on by

Annual results underline fears cost-of-living pressures will limit spending – including on side tables and lamps – so much that the economy will shift into reverse

What do sales of six-seat modular sofas and matching buffet tables tell us about the financial health of households and the broader economy? Quite a lot, it turns out. And, according to market professionals, it does not look good.

Annual profit at Sydney-headquartered furniture retailer Nick Scali fell almost 20%, according to results released on Friday. Crucially, sales order growth for the past two months has turned negative, down 1.2% from the prior year.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Nicolás Maduro blocks X for 10 days in Venezuela amid spat with Elon Musk

Posted on by

President accuses social network’s owner of using it to ‘incite hatred’ after country’s disputed election

President Nicolás Maduro said he had ordered a 10-day block on access to X in Venezuela, accusing the owner, Elon Musk, of using the social network to promote hatred after the country’s disputed presidential election.

Associated Press (AP) journalists in Caracas found that by Thursday night posts had stopped loading on X on two private telephone services and the state-owned Movilnet.

Continue reading...

Sellafield apologises after guilty plea over string of cybersecurity failings

Posted on by

Nuclear site awaits sentencing over breaches that it admitted could have threatened national security

Sellafield has apologised after pleading guilty to criminal charges relating to a string of cybersecurity failings at Britain’s most hazardous nuclear site, which it admitted could have threatened national security.

Among the failings at the vast nuclear waste dump in Cumbria was the discovery that 75% of its computer servers were vulnerable to cyber-attacks, Westminster magistrates court in London heard.

Continue reading...

Heatmaps show UK homebuyers look most at artwork and furniture before making decision

Posted on by

Zoopla puts average viewing time at 49 minutes, as eye tracking study shows focus on mirrors and plants, not floors and walls

A fifth of homebuyers spend less than 20 minutes looking at a home before deciding to make an offer, with viewers more likely to focus on artwork and furniture than structural features, research suggests.

The average time for looking around a property before settling on buying it was about 49 minutes, according to a survey of people who have attended viewings in the past five years.

Continue reading...

Jobs market and pay growth are cooling off, large UK employers and recruiters warn

Posted on by

Survey reveals net fall in permanent jobs last month amid lengthening slowdown in employment market

The UK’s largest employers have warned the jobs market is cooling amid a slowdown in wage growth in July and a fall in vacancies, extending an almost two-year downturn in hiring demand for permanent staff.

Figures from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and the accountancy firm KPMG showed a fall in permanent staff placements in July as large employers made more redundancies and hired fewer new starters.

Continue reading...

Investors push Glencore to scrap spin-off of heavily polluting coal division

Posted on by

More than 95% of investors urged commodities firm to keep highly profitable fossil fuel arm to help maximise shareholder cash

Glencore has scrapped plans to spin off its coal business after shareholders urged the commodities company to hold on to the highly profitable but heavily polluting division.

The FTSE 100 company said that an overwhelming majority of its shareholders favoured retaining the coal business over its plan to list the division as a separate company on the New York stock exchange.

Continue reading...

Novo Nordisk cuts profit outlook after weaker sales of weight-loss drug Wegovy

Posted on by

Danish company, which also makes Ozempic, faces increasing competition from US rival Eli Lilly

Novo Nordisk has cut its annual profit expectations after posting weaker-than-expected sales of its weight-loss drug Wegovy, fuelling investor concerns over growing competition and sending its shares lower.

The Danish drugmaker’s market value has soared over the past year, making it the most valuable company in Europe, on the back of the success of its obesity and diabetes injections Wegovy and Ozempic, used by celebrities including Elon Musk and Oprah Winfrey. However, the company is facing increasing competition from its US rival Eli Lilly’s drugs Zepbound and Mounjaro.

Continue reading...

Royal Mint opens factory in south Wales to recover gold from e-waste

Posted on by

‘Pioneering’ facility will extract precious metal from up to 4,000 tonnes of scrap circuit boards a year

The Royal Mint has unveiled a “pioneering” factory that will recover gold from electronic waste, creating a more sustainable source of the precious metal for the coin manufacturer’s luxury jewellery line.

The factory in south Wales, which has been under construction since March 2022, is designed to extract gold from up to 4,000 tonnes a year of circuit boards sourced in the UK from electronics including phones, laptops and TVs.

Continue reading...

UK recovery ‘will accelerate and force Bank to keep interest rates higher for longer’

Posted on by

Niesr forecasts raise doubts over chance of further cuts by Bank of England before end of year

The UK’s economic recovery will accelerate over the next year, forcing the Bank of England to keep interest rates higher for longer, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (Niesr).

Signalling that bets on further interest rate cuts before the end of the year could be misplaced, the thinktank said a modest economic recovery and the threat from persistent inflationary trends should make the central bank more cautious about reducing the cost of borrowing.

Continue reading...

Global markets partly recover but analysts fear ‘we’re not out of woods’

Posted on by

Shares on Wall Street and in Asia and Europe start to recover after Monday’s rout

Shares on Wall Street rose and many Asian and European markets staged a recovery after this week’s global stock market rout, but analysts warned: “We might not be out of the woods.”

The FTSE 100 index in London rose 18 points, or 0.2%, on Tuesday to close at 8,026.69, after losing 166 points, or 2%, on Monday, its biggest one-day points drop in more than a year.

Continue reading...

Unions welcome scrapping of Tories’ ‘spiteful’ minimum service law

Posted on by

Senior figures praise repeal of law but privately some want full workers’ rights overhaul implemented without delay

Unions have welcomed the government’s move to formally scrap a “draconian” anti-strike law that would have ensured a minimum level of service during industrial action as the legislation had restricted workers’ rights.

The deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, and the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, have written to government departments with sectors that were most affected by the strikes to give a “clear message” the measures will be repealed and have urged all metro mayors to start engaging with local employers on the change.

Continue reading...

UK rivers and beaches have been heaped with pollution for years – when will we talk about restoration?

Posted on by

The penalties reflect the failings of the Environment Agency and Ofwat as much as the water companies

Behind the record fines announced by Ofwat for the routine dumping of sewage into rivers and seas by three water companies, there is a voiceless victim, one that does not sit in boardrooms, or get a chance to count dividends. It is our rivers and coastal waters, subjected to years of continuous pollution under the noses of the regulators, which are suffering.

In all likelihood the £168m penalties for the already struggling Thames Water, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water will be followed by fines for the remaining eight water and sewerage companies, all of whom Ofwat is investigating over failure to treat sewage according to the law.

Continue reading...

Japanese stocks soar after massive sell-off shook global markets

Posted on by

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closes more than 10% up with other Asia markets rebounding on Tuesday

Japanese stocks soared more than 10% on Tuesday, a day after experiencing their biggest fall in 37 years, setting markets tumbling in Europe and on Wall Street.

Other markets in Asia also appeared to settle somewhat after the rollercoaster ride that started the week.

Continue reading...

Australia news live: Wong ‘deeply concerned’ about escalation in Middle East; RBA interest rate decision due today

Posted on by

Reserve bank’s two-day August meeting likely to leave key interest rate unchanged for a sixth straight gathering. Follow the day’s news live

Australia will join the US Global Entry program in 2025, creating an easier pathway for the hundreds of thousands of Australians who visit the country each year.

Eligible Australians who sign up for the program would benefit from streamlined and expedited immigration and customs clearance channels on arrival into the US, a statement from the foreign minister, Penny Wong, says.

Joining the Global Entry program is a mark of the closeness and the strength of the relationship between our two countries.

The foundation of the friendship between Australia and United States is the friendship between our people. This program will deepen these links and make it easier to foster greater commercial ties.

Continue reading...

Wood Group suitor pulls out of takeover, blaming market turmoil

Posted on by

Shares in FTSE 250 company slump 37% in early trading after Dubai-based Sidara cites geopolitical risk

The share price of the British oil services company John Wood Group has plunged by more than a third after a Dubai-based suitor pulled out of a purchase amid global market turmoil.

In a statement to the stock market on Monday the engineering company Sidara said it had pulled out of a bid for Wood “in light of rising geopolitical risks and financial market uncertainty”.

Continue reading...

US chip factory workers say it’s a ‘struggle to survive’ on their wages as industry booms

Posted on by

Companies stand to gain billions in federal funds and tax breaks as employees suffer in poor working conditions

As chip manufacturers grapple for billions of dollars in federal funds and tax breaks designed to boost the US semiconductor industry, they face growing calls from inside their factories to improve working conditions and pay.

Workers and labour unions are urging key companies in the sector to “do the right thing” and prioritize the wellbeing of employees over the wealth of their shareholders.

Continue reading...

Shares in New York and London tumble on fears of US recession

Posted on by

FTSE 100 on track for its lowest close since April and Japan’s Nikkei suffers biggest fall since crash of 1987

Shares on Wall Street and in London have fallen heavily amid a global stock market rout triggered by fears of a recession in the US.

The tech-focused Nasdaq index dropped by 6% as trading in New York opened on Monday, while the broader S&P 500 index fell by 4.2% in a sell-off triggered by weak US jobs data. The Dow Jones industrial average lost more than 1,100 points, a 2.8% decline.

Continue reading...