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Dividend held

Johnnie Walker giant Diageo sees profits fall by half

Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes
Ivan Menezes: ‘we are well-positioned to emerge dstronger’ (pic: Terry Murden) Drinks giant Diageo said operating profit plummeted almost by half as bars and restaurants closed around the world. ReportedRead More

Rise in deals

Venture capital investors defy slump to back startups

Amy Burnett: resilience Venture Capital investment in Scottish scale-ups remained robust and resilient in the second quarter of 2020, despite growing economic and political uncertainty. The latest data from KPMGRead More

Home working effect

Third of firms to talk with landlords over office space

New office
Many offices are empty as staff work from home More than a third of firms plan talks with their landlords to review their office requirements following the widespread success ofRead More

Setback to easing

Fans told ‘stay away’ as virus halts pilot events

Glorious Goodwood
Goodwood was among those venues hoping to hold a pilot event Hopes that sports venues and other leisure events would welcome back spectators and customers were dashed today when PrimeRead More

Bank hit by Covid impact

NatWest/RBS swings to loss as bad debts mount

Drummond House
RBS forecasts rising impairments (pic: Terry Murden) NatWest/RBS swung to a first half operating loss before tax of £770 million compared to a £2.7 billion profit the previous year. TheRead More

Balance sheet robust

TSB falls to loss but ‘able to weather downturn’

Debbie Crosbie TSB
Debbie Crosbie: accelerating digital offer (pic: Terry Murden) TSB chief executive Debbie Crosbie said the bank was “simpler and more efficient’ following investment in resolving its IT problems. She insistedRead More

One in eight shops vacant

More empty shops expected from virus fallout

Empty-shop-Glasgow-Buchanan-Street
One in eight shop units are vacant (pic: Terry Murden) Retail experts are forecasting a spike in vacancies as the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic is felt. One in eightRead More

Squeeze on bank

Lloyds slumps to rare loss as bad loans take toll

Bank of Scotland
Lloyds bank trades as Bank of Scotland north of the border Lloyds Banking Group, which includes Bank of Scotland, Scottish Widows and Halifax, plunged to a pretax loss in theRead More

Furlough back up demand

BGF chief calls for renewal fund to support firms

Patrick Graham and Stephen Welton at BGF dinner
Stephen Welton (right) with Scottish BGF head Patrick Graham (pic: Terry Murden) Stephen Welton, executive chairman of the investment group BGF, has repeated his call for a National Renewal FundRead More

CBILS opened up

State aid change allows more firms to access support

Uberior House, Lloyds
Banks are being urged to lend more to firms Firms denied access to the main government Covid loan scheme will find it easier to get help after changes to stateRead More