Britain’s biggest banks, law firms and accountants have cancelled plans to bring thousands of workers back to the office following new advice from ministers – dragging the City back into shutdown and sparking fresh fears for the tottering London economy. Some of the Square Mile’s biggest businesses have said that staff […]
shutdown
House prices fall just 0.2pc in May despite market shutdown, says Halifax
House prices slumped for a third month in May as coronavirus lockdown put transactions on hold, according to lender Halifax. Average house prices across the UK fell 0.2pc, according to its index, less than the monthly falls of 0.6pc it recorded in April and 0.3pc in March. May’s figures were less dramatic than those recorded by […]
House buyers flood back into market after seven-week shutdown
Miles Shipside, director at Rightmove, said: “The traditionally busy spring market was curtailed by lockdown, but we’re now seeing clear signs of returning momentum, with the existing desire to move now being supplemented by some people’s unhappiness with their lockdown home and surroundings. “With no new seller asking price data […]
Japan’s retailers and manufacturers brace for longer shutdown
TOKYO — As Japan’s government looks set to extend its state of emergency for another month to combat the coronavirus outbreak, businesses including retailers and manufacturers are scrambling to adjust their plans for long-term closures. “I believe it is impossible to return to normal life from May 7,” Abe told […]
Theater shutdown adds to bleak picture for Chinese cinema
TOKYO — Weekends and holidays, like the upcoming Golden Week that starts Friday, are typically bustling times for Chinese movie theaters. No longer. Instead, the country’s movie industry has been doing a painful twist on the silent film era, with the doors of China’s theaters closed for three months. From […]
how 2020’s property market shutdown compares to the 2008 house price crash
Price momentum before the pandemic struck is another difference. In the run-up to the global financial crisis, the market was giddy, with annual house price growth in 2007 at almost 10pc. By contrast, in January 2020, annual house price growth was just 1.2pc. “In the run up to 2007, lax attitudes […]
Singapore extends shutdown until June as virus cases top 9,000
SINGAPORE — Singapore’s shutdown of non-essential workplaces and schools will continue for four weeks longer than planned, until June 1, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced on Tuesday after another big surge of coronavirus infections. The extended “circuit breaker” period, as the government calls it, is sure to mean more […]
Singapore shutdown starts with stimulus targeting food deliveries
SINGAPORE — As Asian countries roll out economic relief measures for businesses and households hit by the coronavirus pandemic, Singapore has targeted food delivery services in a bid to help restaurants survive this period in which most people are working from home. On Tuesday, Singapore began four weeks of heightened […]