British recorded music exports smash £700m for first time July 6, 2023 British recorded music exports have defied increasing global competition to grow by a record amount in 2022 as UK artists dominate the year’s biggest global streaming hits. The value of UK music sales and streams overseas increased by 20 per cent last year to £709m; a jump of over £100m in a single year and [...]
Pixar’s Elemental shows how the animation studio needs to work harder July 6, 2023 Elemental arrives on these shores with the unwanted title of worst performing Pixar movie. Struggling to compete with Spider-Man: Into The Spider-verse, can the family comedy drawaudiences here? It imagines a world in which the elements – earth, fire, water, and air – are people living happily in separate communities, avoiding contact with each other. [...]
Government lags on ‘disappointing’ semiconductor strategy already as advisory panel still not announced July 5, 2023 The government’s Semiconductor Advisory Panel (SAP) announcement is almost a month late, leaving chip experts questioning the effectiveness of the national semiconductor strategy. In the national semiconductor strategy, published in May, the government said it will “formally launch the advisory panel at London Tech Week in June 2023 as part of our drive to promote [...]
Commons Committee demands answer from Asda over ‘unclear’ fire and hire evidence July 5, 2023 The Business and Trade Committee is demanding Asda provide more evidence over it’s “unclear” fire-and-rehire strategy, after some 7,000 workers were threatened with the practice back in May. Chair of the committee, Darren Jones, is hauling the ‘Big Four’ grocer back in front of MPs after it said it was “concerned about apparent discrepancies” between [...]
Supreme becomes ‘master distributor’ for top vape brands as shares spike July 5, 2023 Supreme shares are up five per cent today as the vaping giant announced it is now the “master distributor” for UK e-cigarette brands, although the company has reported weak annual profits. The firm has been chosen as the master distributor for two leading UK vaping brands, ElfBar and Lost Mary, which it will supply to [...]
Center Parcs: £4bn deal back in spotlight as frontrunners for British resorts firm bail July 5, 2023 The £4bn deal to buy British holiday resorts firm Center Parcs is back in the spotlight after two frontrunners for sale have reportedly dropped out of the race. Its Canadian owners, Brookfield, put the six strong holiday village up for sale in May, with the sale sparking interest from a flurry of private investment firms [...]
Matalan accused of ‘cowboy buying practices’ in cost-cutting drive July 5, 2023 A group of Asian suppliers has accused Matalan of “cowboy buying practices,” after the value retailer reportedly attempted to haggle for 20 per cent price cuts on some orders. The disgruntled supplier said the fashion and homewares brand displayed some of the “most aggressive, unreasonable buying practices” they had ever seen, speaking to The Times [...]
Bitcoin and Ether tick over as crypto markets await interest news with bated breath July 5, 2023 Bitcoin and Ethereum have dipped into the red this morning as investors wait for the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s June meeting.
New car market ‘growing back and growing green’ with EV surge – but rate hikes peak concern July 5, 2023 Britain’s new car market recorded its 11th consecutive month of growth in June with registrations rising 25.8 per cent – but it might not be smooth driving in the near future. Just under one million new cars were registered in the first half of 2023, up 18.4 per cent on the previous 2022, according to [...]
Quiz warns over ‘tough’ sales conditions as inflation weighs on shoppers July 5, 2023 Fashion chain Quiz has posted a jump in profits for the past year but cautioned over “tough” trading conditions in recent months as shoppers come under pressure from inflation. The womenswear business said it saw a “strong recovery” over the year to March but has seen sales slide more recently. Quiz recorded a 15 per [...]