Features

Feb- 2020 -

11 February

Yes, the trade barriers are coming

I think both Leavers and Remainers probably expected this in the long run – Michael Gove announced yesterday that businesses should “accept” that frictionless trade with the EU will be impossible whatever agreement is finally reached by the deadline of 31 December this year. This is the cost, he says, of making…

10 February

Ocado ditches Waitrose; Bill gates orders £500m beast-yacht; Boris to lower immigration wage threshold

A busy start to the week in the business pages. As the coronavirus story unfolds I am reluctant to spend every day providing updates on it, but it is worth noting quickly that there is likely to be some worldwide economic turbulence due to the latest developments. A slew of…

7 February

UK laws dog owners may not be aware of

PDSA Animal Wellbeing (PAW) estimates that 50% of adults in the UK own a pet, with around 51 million pets being residents in our homes. We are certainly a nation of pet lovers. It splits pretty evenly among dogs and cats – doing nothing to settle the debate on which…

5 February

Tesla, Macy’s and organic food: serious change is afoot

Sometimes change is sudden and surprising, but sometimes it bubbles away under the surface for decades before making a serious impact, and in today’s roundup I have a few examples of the latter to highlight. First, there is Tesla. The firm led by billionaire space-AI Elon Musk has long been…

5 February

Pet Tech: must-have apps for the modern day dog-lover

Earlier this month, a Japanese startup took pet tech to the next level when it revealed a specially crafted dog harness that senses your dog’s emotions. Langualess, the creators behind the invention, unveiled the hyped up product to the wonderment of dog lovers across the world. While the perennial human…

3 February

What’s Nissan driving at with Brexit plans?

Now that the technical aspect of leaving the EU has happened on paper, we are into the implementation period, but the negotiations will soon get going once again. The pound fell today as in a speech which actually overlapped Michel Barnier’s opening salvo with competing coverage, Boris Johnson reiterated his view that…

3 February

How to attract wild birds into your gardens

Our gardens have become a vital environment for the wellbeing and survival of many of our wild bird species. With the gradual decrease in wild birds’ natural habitats, including the decline in native woodland and changing agricultural practices, many wild bird species have adapted to living within a closer proximity…

Jan- 2020 -

31 January

The whole Amazon thing is getting scary now

The ‘growth of online retail’ is now so proverbial that the phrase itself is nearly redundant. Is anyone surprised to learn this morning that Amazon has absolutely rampaged through the Christmas retail season, while scores of well-known bricks-and-mortar retailers reported a torrid set of financial results for the same period? No, me…

29 January

British Airways gets flighty and Starbucks smells the coffee over coronavirus

The business response to the coronavirus situation, which appears to be developing into a serious crisis, continues apace today. British Airways today announced that it was suspending all flights between the UK and Wuhan, the Chinese city where the virus originally broke out. In a statement it said: “We have…

28 January

Coronavirus dampens markets but boosts mask producers

Some years ago Bill Gates was asked in an interview what future scenario it was that kept him awake at night. To the surprise of the interviewer, he did not say climate change, or financial collapse, or nuclear war. He said he most afraid of the next major pandemic, in…