COVID-19 Business News

Zara shop

Online push from Inditex as up to 1,200 stores to close

INDITEX, the Spanish owner of fashion and clothing stores Zara, Bershka, Pull & Bear and Massimo Dutti, will close up to 1,200 outlets around...
Tyne Bridge, Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Northern England in reverse: ‘14 years of growth may be lost’

REGIONS in the North of England could lose up to 14 years of growth in the wake of the pandemic, a study warns. The North...
An empty office

Covid hits workplace relationships — and productivity takes a knock

COVID-19’S impact on employer-employee relationships is hampering productivity, a report claims. MetLife UK found that 72 percent of employers and 62 percent of employees have...
Samsung phone

Samsung sees jump in Q2 profits thanks to remote working trend

SAMSUNG Electronics earnings have been boosted by the work-from-home boom. The world’s largest smartphone manufacturer announced Q2 operating profits up 23 percent compared with last...
UK Government loan

Covid-19 loan schemes ‘a debt, not a grant’ cautions UK Finance

UK BUSINESSES are pessimistic about their growth potential once the COVID-19 crisis passes. A survey of 1,200 firms has found that the pandemic has negatively...
Spanish property market, €3m plus house

Dream is alive, but the landscape has changed for UK second-home...

The pandemic pain in Spain falls mainly on the lower end of the property market — but, as HAL WILLIAMS discovers, international second-home owners...
Cybercrime costing millions as hackers ramp-up attacks

Cybercrime is costing UK companies millions as hackers ramp-up attacks

Studies reveal worrying trends as platforms go out-of-date and cyber attacks increase. HAL WILLIAMS reports. SMALL businesses in the UK are targeted by up to...
Euro bank notes

ECB launches new aid package to soothe effects of pandemic

By HAL WILLIAMS THE EUROPEAN Central Bank has launched a €750bn emergency package to buy government and company debt across the eurozone. The temporary purchasing scheme...
SBA Paycheck Protection Program

Covid relief programme ‘looted by fraudsters’

UNITED States prosecutors are investigating “the largest fraud in US history” — billions of taxpayer dollars for coronavirus aid stolen and used to buy...
Friyay, neon sign, TGIF, thank god it's friday

TGIF, right? Hybrid- and home-working add flavour to Fridays

FRIDAYS may be everyone’s favourite weekday, but the last day of the working week sees 15 percent less business activity than Mondays to Thursdays. As...