After months of hostile talks, British confectioner Cadbury has finally agreed to an £11.7 billion takeover by US food giant Kraft. The 186-year-old British company, renowned for Dairy Milk chocolate, is set to advise shareholders to accept the latest bid of 840p a share. Kraft, which is renowned for brands such as Kenco coffee and [...]
Budget hotel group, Travelodge, continues to defy the recession as it embarks on a £115 million expansion programme which will see it open 26 new hotels. In October 2008, the group, which is owned by Dubai International Capital, the private equity group owned by the Arab Emirate’s ruling sheikh, said it would open almost two [...]
US food giant Kraft has today reinforced its belief that a tie-up with Cadbury would “represent a uniquely complementary fit”. Kraft is actively trying to convince Cadbury shareholders that a combination with its British rival could “deliver substantially more value” together and would benefit Cadbury staff as new jobs would be created in the UK. [...]
US President Barack Obama has suggested using leftover funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to create jobs and cut the US deficit. Mr Obama told reporters that “TARP has turned out to be much cheaper than we had expected although not cheap,” and he is aiming to cut the country’s unemployment rate – [...]
The price of gold has ended its run of all-time highs after positive economic US data sent the dollar higher. On Friday, the Labor Department revealed that the US economy lost fewer jobs in November with the unemployment rate falling to 10% from a rate of 10.2% in October. Figures show that US employers cut [...]
Norwich & Peterborough (N&P), which is Britain’s tenth largest society, is to close 10 of its branches, putting more than 50 jobs at risk. The branch closures represent one fifth of its 54-strong network and the news comes just a day after it emerged that Chelsea and Yorkshire Building Societies were in merger talks. N&P [...]
Bookshop chain Borders UK has been placed into administration, according to Reuters. The move is not unexpected after it was reported earlier this week that the 45-store book retailer does not have sufficient cash to see it through to Christmas as it has suffered amid increased competition from supermarkets and online retailers, such as Amazon. [...]
A new business venture aims to create 10,000 jobs in some of the UK’s most deprived communities. Call Britannia, a call centre business, will open ten new call centres in unemployment hotspots over the next seven years. A spokeswoman for the company said clients will include telecoms companies, utility firms, and public sector organisations. Call [...]
Thousands of jobs are at risk at Threshers and Wine Rack after a source close to the company revealed to The Times that administration could not be ruled out as the group struggles amid the economic downturn. The off-licence’s owner, First Quench Retailing, has confirmed it is looking at “restructuring options” after warning earlier this [...]
In a bid to speed up trips to the shops, supermarket giant Tesco has opened the first self-service store in Northampton. The Tesco Express store has five self-service tills but no manned checkouts. There is, however, one member of staff available to authorise transactions for age-restricted items such as alcohol and knives. The news will [...]
The future of Vauxhall and its 5,500 workers have been safeguarded today after the Unite union announced it has reached a deal with Magna, the Candian car parts firm and proposed new owners of Vauxhall and sister company, Germany-based Opel. However, in order to protect jobs at both Vauxhall plants (Ellesmere Port and Luton), the [...]
The recession has had a major impact on the job market with companies firing rather than hiring but today Taiwanese company Kenmark, which makes LCD televisions, has announced it is to open a factory in Corby, Northamptonshire, with new jobs up for grabs. Corby will act as the company’s Eurohub and will create 500 jobs [...]
It appears that many consumers believe the worst of the recession could be over after the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index rose from a revised 65 in August to 71 in September – the highest level since April 2008. According to the Nationwide, the index is also 24 points higher than it was this time last [...]
A major restructure at US pharmaceutical giant, Eli Lilly, is set to put UK jobs at risk. The company has announced details of a restructuring programme, which it described as the most significant in its history, will see global headcount reduced by 14% over the next two years. The Indianapolis-based drugs company, which has a [...]
According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG Report on Jobs, there is some good news for the UK jobs market . The index for firms’ hiring of permanent workers rose from 46.1 in July to 50.6 in August – tipping over the 50 mark which indicates growth. The report shows that for the [...]
Cattles, which has already axed 1,000 jobs this year, is proposing to cut a further 510 jobs at its Welcome Financial Services subsidiary. The struggling sub-prime lender, which is battling to stay afloat, is seeking ways to slash costs and as leases on its premises expire, several Welcome Financial Services branches could close. In a [...]
Creditors of struggling DIY and gardening chain, Focus DIY, are expected to back a Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA) in a bid to prevent the company from collapse and protect 4,572 jobs. Under the proposed deal, Focus will pay its creditors (the majority of which are landlords) a proportion of what it owes them, while leases [...]
It has been announced that banking giant Lloyds Banking Group is reviewing its decision to close down its Cheltenham & Gloucester (C&G) subsidiary. In June, the mega-bank said it was closing all of its 160 UK C&G branches with the loss of hundreds of jobs but the decision may now be reversed. The u-turn has [...]
The Labor Department has revealed some good news for the world’s largest economy today, showing that the 247,000 jobs were lost in July – much less than analysts had forecast. The decline meant the unemployment rate dropped from 9.5% in June to 9.4% in July – the first fall since April 2008. Analysts had expected [...]
Unemployment in the UK has now reached 2.38 million – the highest since 1995, while the unemployment rate is up to 7.6% – the highest in over a decade. These statistics have led workers in the UK to take less sick leave for fear of losing their jobs amid the recession. In its latest Absence [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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