Virgin Atlantic set to announce £1bn rescue deal July 12, 2020 Virgin Atlantic is reportedly finalising a £1bn rescue deal that would save thousands of aviation jobs in the UK. The airline, founded by Richard Branson, is finalising a deal to release tens of millions of pounds in credit-card cash that was being withheld. Sky News last night reported that Virgin was trying to resolve a [...]
Amazon-backed Tesla rival Rivian picks up $2.5bn in single round July 10, 2020 Rivian, an electric truck-making startup backed by Amazon and Ford, has raised $2.5bn in a fresh funding round led by T. Rowe Price. The new round takes the total investment in Rivian to at least $6bn, including a $1.3bn round in December also led by T. Rowe Price. Rivian’s latest funding round was supported by [...]
Ofcom fines Royal Mail £1.5m for missing delivery target July 10, 2020 Ofcom today fined Royal Mail £1.5m for failing to meet its regulatory first-class delivery target in 2018. The company is required by Ofcom to deliver at least 93 per cnet of its first-class post within one working day, but it fell to 91.5 per cent in 2018/19. The regulator said the postal service failed to [...]
Thames Clippers expands east with new pier at Barking Riverside July 10, 2020 River bus service Thames Clippers is expanding its service east with a new pier at Barking Riverside, Morning Wire can reveal. The pier, which will be delivered in 2021, is the service’s 24th and marks a four km expansion to the east. Co-founder of Thames Clippers Sean Collins told Morning Wire that he had approached [...]
UK quarantine ends for 59 countries July 10, 2020 Passengers from abroad landing in England, Wales and Northern Ireland no longer have to self-isolate for two weeks as the government relaxed quarantine rules. Travellers from 59 countries and 14 overseas British territories are now exempt from the ban, although people from the US – where cases are still spiking – and Canada must still [...]
Rolls-Royce shares fall as it burns through £3bn in first half July 9, 2020 Rolls-Royce reported cash outflows today of £3bn for the first half of its financial year, as income fell away amid the coronavirus crisis. The aerospace engineer, which makes engines for the Boeing 787 and Airbus 350 planes, forecast an improvement in the second half which would result in full-year outflows of £4bn. Shares fell more than [...]
More needs to be done to power green recovery, say industry leaders July 8, 2020 Rishi Sunak has confirmed a £3bn green plan to boost employment and upgrade the UK’s infrastructure, but industry leaders have warned more needs to be done to power the recovery. In the much-awaited summer statement, the Chancellor said he planned to tackle the economic challenges of the pandemic with a “historic investment in infrastructure”. Responding [...]
Rishi Sunak announces there will be ‘no cap’ on Kickstart scheme for under 25s July 8, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced there will be no cap on the Kickstart scheme, which will see the government subsidise jobs for young people on Universal Credit. The Chancellor announced the “kickstart scheme” to help under 25s during the pandemic. An initial £2bn has been made available and there will be no cap on the [...]
First Group says it may not survive as passenger numbers dive July 8, 2020 British bus and train operator First Group warned on Wednesday it might not survive as a going concern after a collapse in passenger numbers led to a £153m loss in the year to March, sending its shares down 15 per cent. But the company, which owns the US Greyhound network and school bus services in [...]
Hail the micro-mobility revolution July 7, 2020 As an investor, whether you’re investing in established industries or cutting-edge tech, one of the first questions you ask yourself is: “What do we have to believe for this to be a success?” You have to believe there’ll be sufficient demand for a product; that the leadership team has the drive to go the distance; [...]