Business News Round Up (19/06/2020)
Shops, factories to reopen, but pubs remain closed
Shops and factories have been given the go-ahead to reopen but Nicola Sturgeon left pubs and restaurants disappointed after being told they will stay closed.
There had been expectations that hospitality venues with outdoor spaces would be allowed to restart as the First Minister confirmed that Scotland will enter phase two of exiting the lockdown.
Ms Sturgeon announced that all shops – except those in malls – outdoor markets, factories, laboratories, warehouses, zoos and playgrounds can reopen from 29 June. Restrictions on moving house will also be lifted.
But the reopening of beer gardens will now have to await the next review on 2 July.
https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2020/06/shops-factories-to-reopen-but-pubs-remain-closed/
RJ McLeod secures £67m Vattenfall wind farm deal
Scottish civil engineering firm RJ McLeod will lead the construction of the country’s newest onshore wind farm following the award of a £67 million contract by Vattenfall.
McLeod will deliver roads and access tracks, electrical infrastructure, turbine foundations and other infrastructure at South Kyle wind farm in East Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway.
The contract award marks a significant investment in the Scottish construction industry and may go some way to easing concerns that Scottish companies have been losing out on contracts in the renewables sector.
Located 5km to the east of Dalmellington, South Kyle will be Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK.
At the peak of construction, the project will require around 150 workers on site, and once operational the 240MW wind farm will make a significant contribution to Scotland’s net-zero ambitions – powering 170,000 homes and saving 300,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually, the equivalent of taking 65,000 cars off the road each year.
https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2020/06/rj-mcleod-secures-67m-vattenfall-wind-farm-deal/
Stockport Council bids for £14.5m Future High Street Fund package
Stockport Council has announced details of its bid to the Government’s Future High Street Fund (FHSF).
The council submitted a £14.5m bid to the FHSF earlier this month to deliver its ambitious project for the town centre known as ‘StockRoom’ which will, hopefully, also see an additional investment of £8m in re-purposing the former M&S and BHS stores.
StockRoom will bring a learning and knowledge hub to the town centre – a future-focused community and public facing services hub – which can be used by the whole community.
It will celebrates the culture and creativity of the town, providing a space that encourages people to tell their story, where residents can spend leisure time, learn and celebrate their heritage.
Pound and U.K. bond yields rise as Bank of England adds to quantitative easing program
The pound on Thursday moved off its lowest level after the Bank of England only met expectations with an extension of its quantitative easing program.
The pound GBPUSD, -0.02% rose as high as $1.2532 from $1.2475 as the Bank of England voted 8-to-1 to extend its quantitative easing program by £100 billion, which it said would run through the turn of the year.
Samuel Tombs, chief U.K. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the timing implies weekly gilt purchases likely will drop to £5.5 billion in the second half of this year, from an average of £10.7 billion to date.
The yield on the 10-year gilt TMBMKGB-10Y, 0.247% rose to 0.23%, up 4 basis points.
“The emerging evidence suggests that the fall in global and U.K. GDP in 2020 Q2 will be less severe than set out in the May Report. Although stronger than expected, it is difficult to make a clear inference from that about the recovery thereafter,” the central bank said.