6:46 am, July 27, 2022
Travel chaos as thousands of rail workers strike
Rail passengers were suffering fresh travel chaos today as thousands of workers walked out on strike, crippling services across the country.
Disputes in the bitter row over jobs, pay, pensions and conditions are worsening, with more strikes in the coming days, and a wave of industrial action planned next month on the railways and London Underground.
Only around one in five trains was running today, on around half the network, with some areas having no trains all day.
Lloyds Banking Group to shut 66 more branches
Lloyds Banking Group will close 66 more bank branches between October and January.
It said 48 Lloyds Bank branches and 18 Halifax branches will shut as part of a broad trend that has seen big banks ditch the high street and switch to increased online banking.
The additional closures come just two months after Lloyds said it planned to shut 28 branches between August and November.
UK economy set for slowest growth in G7
The UK’s economic growth is slowing further because of rampant inflation and is set to be the weakest economy among the G7 nations next year, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
It came as the IMF warned that stalling growth across the world means we could be ‘teetering on the edge of a global recession’.
In its latest World Economic Outlook update, the body downgraded its UK growth forecast for 2022 to 3.2 per cent from 3.7 per cent in April.
YouTube brings in £6bn of advertising revenue
YouTube brought in $7.34bn (£6bn) in advertising revenue during the second financial quarter of 2022, according to a new earnings report by parent company Alphabet.
The report showed that revenue had increased by four per cent – up from just over $7bn (£5.8bn) in the same period last year.
Alphabet reported $69.68bn (£57.8bn) in revenue for the second quarter – up 13 per cent from $61.8bn (£51.3bn) in the previous year.
Carbon capture could be worth £100bn to UK economy by 2050 – report
Carbon capture and storage could be worth £100bn by 2050, an industry report has said, with analysts predicting the UK has enough capacity to hold two centuries’ worth of emissions.
But despite the country being well placed to become a world leader in the technology that reduces carbon emissions from industrial processes, with the UK having large industrial clusters, extensive gas transport infrastructure and good scientific understanding, the Offshore Energies UK report said Britain’s supply chain was fragile.
The paper warned that because of this, the UK was at risk of losing the industry to more attractive opportunities abroad, and the government needed to act fast to secure its future.
Protocol has created ‘feast or famine’ economy in Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Protocol has created a ‘feast or famine’ economy in the region with some businesses struggling while others thrive, a parliamentary report has found.
A House of Lords committee examining the post-Brexit Irish Sea trading arrangements found that companies involved in trade with the rest of the UK were being hampered by added red tape, whereas those more reliant on doing business with Ireland and the wider EU were benefiting.
The committee stressed an urgent need to resolve the issues created by the protocol and called on the EU and UK to re-engage in negotiations.
Duke of Cambridge leads praise for Lionesses as team reach Euro 2022 final
The Duke of Cambridge said the ‘entire country is so proud’ of the England women’s national football team after their 4-0 semi-final victory over Sweden booked them a place in the Euro 2022 final.
Goals from Beth Mead, Lucy Bronze, Alessia Russo and Fran Kirby yesterday mean they’ll play at a sold-out Wembley Stadium on Sunday, while 7,000 fans will also celebrate in an expanded Trafalgar Square fan zone.
The opponent will be decided tonight when France and Germany fight it out for the slot at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes.
Mini Concept Aceman hints at brand’s electric future
Mini has unveiled its ‘Concept Aceman’ – an electric crossover that points at things to come from the British brand.
The manufacturer says the Aceman concept gives an ‘initial glimpse’ at its new electric crossover that will sit between the standard Mini Hatch and Countryman SUV.
Based around a concept of ‘charismatic simplicity’, the Aceman shows off a new design direction for Mini, with the brand pinpointing strongly contoured wheel arches, large wheels and a roof rack as particular highlights.
Tuesday Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- Car thief knocked dealership owner to the ground as he made off in Kia Sportage
- Rybrook Group sees profits soar by almost 90 per cent with bosses ‘optimistic’ about the future
- JCT600 extends Bradford City sponsorship deal
- Serial car thief facing jail after he admits stealing string of high-end vehicles from dealerships
- Ancaster Group celebrates golden partnership of 50 years as a Nissan dealer
Buzz Aldrin space jacket sells for £2m
The jacket worn by astronaut Buzz Aldrin on his historic first mission to the moon has become the most valuable American space artefact ever sold at auction, after fetching more than £2m.
It was sold by Sotheby’s in New York yesterday as part of the most valuable single space exploration sale ever staged, which achieved a total of $8.2m (£6.8m).
Having sold for a total of $2,772,500 (£2,300,311), it also makes the item the most valuable jacket ever sold at auction.
Market movements
The FTSE closed just 0.02 points down yesterday, ending on 7,306.28. Meanwhile, the Cac 40 slipped by 26.10 points to 6,211.45, the Dax shed 113.39 points, finishing on 13,096.93, and the Dow Jones dropped by 228.50 points to 31,761.54.
Weather outlook
It’ll begin bright for many today, although the south-east and Northern Ireland will be cloudier, says BBC Weather. Widespread patchy cloud will develop later, becoming thicker in the afternoon and bringing some showers.
Thursday will see patchy light rain lingering across northern England and southern Scotland. Elsewhere will have variable sunshine and cloud with some showers developing in Scotland.
