Retailers in the U.K. are set to make more money this Christmas — but due to higher prices, not because shoppers are buying more items, according to researchers. A study by Global Data also found that brands, mainly fashion-related, need to go the extra mile to convince consumers to spend money. “Non-food retailers will continue […]

Swiss private bank Julius Baer said on Monday that Chief Executive Boris Collardi was resigning with immediate effect to take a post at Pictet Group in Geneva. Zurich-based Baer appointed current Chief Risk Officer Bernhard Hodler as CEO, adding it would engage in an evaluation process to address the long-term leadership of the group. Collardi, […]

Few European countries have experienced the economic rollercoaster that Ireland has in such a short period of time. Considered the poor man of Western Europe for nearly all of the 20th century, Ireland in the 1990s turbocharged itself to become a hub for transatlantic business and multinational investment, garnering the moniker “Celtic Tiger.” The country […]

European stocks were seen lower on Monday morning on the back of weakness in Asian equities, while the euro reached a two-month peak against the dollar amid positive German data and hopes that a political crisis in the country can be resolved. The FTSE 100 is seen down by 12 points at 7,401; the DAX […]

Ireland’s EU commissioner said Dublin would “continue to play tough” over its threat to veto talks about trade after Brexit unless Britain provided guarantees over the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. Phil Hogan, the EU’s agricultural commissioner, said that Britain, or Northern Ireland at least, should remain in the single market and the […]

Support for Ireland’s governing Fine Gael party fell in a poll on Saturday as a political crisis that has left the country two days away from the calling of a snap election showed no sign of being resolved. Prime Minister Leo Varadkar’s minority government was on the brink on Friday after the party propping it […]

Members of Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) will likely approve a renewed coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives if party leaders present a convincing proposal, a member of the party’s executive leadership said on Saturday. Niels Annen of the SPD, in an interview with the Passauer Neue Presse newspaper, called for quick action to form a […]

The largest insurance company in Britain has announced that all new parents are to be offered the same amount of paid leave after a child’s birth. Aviva is offering one full year of leave, with half of that term to be on full pay. The firm said the terms will apply to all employees, irrespective […]

The leader of Germany’s socialist party is under heavy pressure to fix the country’s political stalemate – despite the experienced lawmaker not being involved in recent coalition talks. Martin Schulz of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has stated repeatedly that the party wants to stay in opposition rather than joining another coalition, despite gaining 20.5 […]

Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince called the Supreme Leader of Iran “the new Hitler of the Middle East” in an interview with the New York Times published on Thursday, sharply escalating the war of words between the arch-rivals. The Sunni Muslim kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shi’ite Iran back rival sides in wars and political […]