Coronavirus
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Feb- 2021 -15 February
Government eyes third rent moratorium extension
The government is reportedly drawing up plans to extend the current rent moratorium that bans landlords from being able to pursue commercial tenants for unpaid rent or evict them. According to The Sunday Times, the business department and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have been in discussions…
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9 February
January retail sales slump to lowest level since May 2020
January saw retail sales growth decline to its lowest level since May of last year, figures by the BRC and KPMG show. According to the pair’s sales monitor, total retail sales dropped by 1.3% in January compared to 0.4% in January 2020 as national lockdown measures continue to disrupt trading. …
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8 February
Three in 10 SMEs could be forced to shut if lockdown is extended
At least three in 10 (30%) SMEs will be forced to close for good by the end of the year if the current lockdown is extended until the end of March, according to the latest research from Nucleus Commercial Finance. The firm said this equates to just under 1.8 million…
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5 February
Bank of England holds rates, predicts strong vaccine rebound
The Bank of England (BoE) has predicted an economic rebound in the spring led by a successful vaccine rollout, after revealing it will be holding interest rates at 0.1%. The news comes as the BoE predicts that GDP is expected to fall by around 4% in the first quarter of…
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1 February
New lockdowns edge consumer confidence to near-record low
The final quarter of 2020 saw consumer confidence fall by 1%, to a near-record low -17%, according to the latest Deloitte Consumer Tracker. It found with the exception of personal finances, all other measures of confidence were below year-on-year comparisons, with ‘health and wellbeing’, and ‘children’s education and welfare’ categories…
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1 February
BRC chief calls for rates extension as vacancies rise by 13%
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has urged the government to extend business rates relief beyond April as the number of retail stores lying vacant rose to 13.7% in Q4 2020. The plea follows figures published by the consortium which show that all retail locations saw…
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Jan- 2021 -26 January
Unemployment rises 5% to 1.7m
The UK unemployment rate rose by 5% in the three months to November with over 1.7 million people now out of work, according to the latest figures by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Since February 2020, the number of payroll employees has fallen by 828,000, however, the ONS said…
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26 January
Westfield turns vacant unit into vaccination hub
A vacant retail outlet in Westfield shopping centre Stratford has been turned into Covid-19 vaccination centre. The vaccination centre will be run by East London NHS Trust Foundation and will see health care workers administering the Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccine – and is one of hundreds of nationwide centres set…
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25 January
Waterstones boss warns of closures unless gov extends rates relief
James Daunt, the boss of book retailer Waterstones, has warned that he could be forced to close stores unless the government extends its business rates relief and other forms of state aid. Talking to Retail Week, he said that while he has no intention to close stores currently – it…
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22 January
Retail sales fall to lowest ever annual level
The retail sector has suffered its largest annual fall since records began, with total sales down 1.9% against the year prior, as restrictions on non-essential retail continued to impact the sector as a whole. This was the biggest decline since records began in 1997, according to the ONS. After declines…
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