Any other business
Who cares who runs the railways? We just want them to run on time
The long-awaited review of the railways by former British Airways executive Keith Williams chugged past the platform of public debate…
Is Farrow & Ball’s business model flaking?
The happiest thing that happens in May is the coming into leaf of my long beech hedge. The shift from…
The pandemic’s transatlantic divide in executive salaries
‘Consider a temporary cut in executive salaries’ was the Confederation of British Industry’s advice to members at the start of…
Can Melinda still keep Bill Gates in check?
‘We are seeing very substantial inflation,’ the great investor Warren Buffett told shareholders in his master company Berkshire Hathaway at…
Who’s really to blame for the Post Office scandal?
The alleged frauds for which the Post Office prosecuted no fewer than 736 of its sub-postmasters has turned out in…
Crypto is a virtual Vegas whose towers must fall
What should we make of the valuation of Coinbase, the cryptocurrency exchange listed on Nasdaq last week at $80 billion…
Can the ‘next Bicester Village’ take off without tourists?
Retail footfall will be the first measure of recovery this spring. Everywhere I look, from central London to small-town Yorkshire,…
Was Deliveroo the most embarrassing flop in City history?
The market emphatically endorsed my negative opinion of the Deliveroo share offer, which bombed from its offer price of 390p…
Why I won’t invest in Deliveroo
‘The reason we have the vaccine success is because of capitalism — because of greed, my friends.’ So Boris Johnson…
Are we entering a new era of fractured trade?
Just as the auto industry embraces the electric future I wrote about last month, it hits a new crisis: a…
Can John Lewis and Waitrose really remain partners?
Historians of unforeseen crises talk about ‘chaos theory’ and the ‘butterfly effect’, in which a small perturbation far away —…
Are Wall Street’s ‘Spacs’ about to make waves in the City?
This column generally takes a sceptical view of financial novelties and gimmicks. So my antennae have twitched in recent days…
The case for keeping business taxes low
Why should business pay tax at all? That’s a provocative but forlorn question to ask in Budget week. Business pays…
The car industry is accelerating towards an electric future
Back in November, when Downing Street’s pandemic responses looked daily more incompetent, the announcement of a ban on sales of…
The City is losing its battle with Brussels and Amsterdam
No sign of progress towards a workable deal with the EU for financial services, on which news is due next…
Why it’s a good time to invest in a pub
It’s obvious from the body language of Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey that negative interest rates — much talked…
The Reddit rampage is a sign of market turmoil ahead
The Reddit story — in which a ragtag army of small investors have executed a spectacular short squeeze against hedge-fund…
Business rebirth is always possible – with the right help
The online fashion retailer Boohoo is buying Debenhams without its stores and staff, confirming the demise of the high street.…
My stamp duty solution for the Chancellor
On the Wednesday in early July when Rishi Sunak announced a temporary increase from £125,000 to £500,000 in the stamp…
Sell bitcoin, buy Tesla
Which is madder, bitcoin at $41,500 — oops, make that $31,000 on Monday — or Tesla shares at $880 apiece?…
The Brexit deal has left the City to fight for its own future
‘This Article shall not apply with respect to financial services.’ That’s what it says on page 92 of the EU-UK…
My fateful appearance at the Bank of England’s Christmas drinks
Tidings of comfort as the vaccination programme advances, but shortage of joy. That’s my summary of a season in which…
Philip Green will be remembered as a nasty stain on capitalism
There really isn’t much left to be said about Sir Philip Green as his Arcadia fashion empire collapses into administration,…
The Co-op Bank isn't worthy of its name
We’ve heard a lot this week about infrastructure spending, and how much more will be needed if the UK is…
If taxes must rise, Sunak should pick on private equity instead
It’s not axiomatic that taxes must rise to pay for the pandemic, if you seriously believe the surge in growth,…
