The Times

A slide in revenues at the British arm of the hedge fund co-founded by the media tycoon Sir Paul Marshall knocked the profits shared by its 26 UK partners by more than two thirds to £192m. Marshall, 65, who backs GB News and last year bought The Spectator magazine, and Ian Wace, 61, set up the London-based firm Marshall Wace 27 years ago and it has grown to become one of the world’s biggest hedge fund businesses. A downturn in its performance, however, hit the fees earned by the group’s UK partnership, Marshall Wace LLP, in the 12 months to the end of last February, accounts for the business show

Laura Ashley has been bought by Marquee Brands, the American owner of Ben Sherman, in what could be a potential boost for the struggling British label. The US company, which runs 17 brands in fashion and home cooking, has bought the heritage brand from the US restructuring firm Gordon Brothers for an undisclosed sum. Gordon Brothers bought the label, known for its floral fashions and soft furnishings, out of administration in 2020, resulting in the closure of all its 147 shops

When Jeff Lange, chief executive of TFAS, a financial advisory firm, revealed plans to start using AI assistants to help with daily tasks, he found scepticism in an unexpected place: among Gen Z employees. Lange, 41, “started dabbling” with artificial intelligence in 2022 and began implementing the technology “in earnest” in early 2024. He attributes his team’s “slightly counterintuitive” response to the fact that AI seems less “magical” to a generation that grew up online, seeing their data harvested by tech giants

The Old Parsonage Hotel is a few minutes’ walk from the offices of Oxford Science Enterprises, so for Ed Bussey, the OSE chief executive, it’s his “go-to” place for a “nice quiet” working lunch. We’re dining in a corner of the restaurant, which is on a site dating back to the early 1300s between Keble and Somerville Colleges, but there’s also a secluded private dining room that Bussey uses when investors are in town. Bussey, 57, is familiar with the menu, so he opts quickly for his favoured starter of classic steak tartare. The lunch is particularly welcome because Bussey, a former member of the diplomatic service, a trail runner and an adventurer, is keen on “intermittent fasting”

In the 1953 Samuel Beckett play Waiting for Godot a pair of wanderers, Vladimir and Estragon, sit by a bare-branched tree, waiting in vain for the appearance of the mysterious character Godot. The year 2024 will be remembered as the year when patient sellers sat in their houses waiting for their very own Godot: a tantalising and elusive buyer who might finally appear to purchase their unwanted home. For some (particularly those who repeatedly refused to drop their prices) the wait never ended — and is continuing into 2025 🔗 Tap the link to read the full story: https://lnkd.in/eY_24dhH

Looming tax increases and mounting cost pressures have sent a “winter chill” through British factories, which posted the weakest growth in nearly a year last month according to a new survey. The final S&P Global purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector slipped to 47 in December, down from 48 in the previous month and lower than an earlier estimate of 47.3. The December reading was the lowest for 11 months

Donald Trump has accused the UK government of “making a very big mistake” by increasing the windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas profits. The president-elect made the comment on his Truth Social media platform after a US firm announced plans to pull the plug on its operations in the area due to the policy

Young people want an “employer for life”, with under-27s keen to stay at the same company for twice as long as previous generations, research has revealed. The study shows a significant change in attitudes, with 75 per cent of 18-27-year-olds searching for more secure, longer-term work than was common in previous generations. The average Generation Z employee wants to stay in a job for seven years, twice the average tenure reported previously in analysis of official statistics. They are most likely to want an employer that supports them outside work and offers the opportunity to move around in the company 🔗 Tap the link to read the full story: https://lnkd.in/ekV_8yqA

Business leaders’ confidence in the UK economy inched higher last month but rising costs could derail their growth ambitions, a survey showed. An index of optimism in the economy produced by the Institute of Directors (IoD), a lobby group, climbed by four points to -61 in December, from -65 in the previous month. Although the move signalled that the sharp fall in sentiment among businesses after the budget on October 30 had eased, December’s reading was still the fourth lowest since the index started in July 2016

Brompton Bicycle has reported that its annual profit has fallen to less than the cost of one of its high-end bikes and warned investors to expect another year of turmoil. The folding bicycle company reported a profit before tax of £4,602 in the 12 months to the end of March, down more than 99 per cent on the previous year’s profit of £10.7m, according to accounts filed at Companies House. Brompton’s website shows the T Line Explore 12 Speed foldable bicycle costing £4,749, with its cheapest model, the A Line Utility bike, at £950