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As it happenedended1571050008

Business news - live: Pound falls against euro as EU casts doubt on Boris Johnson's Brexit deal plans

Follow live updates as sterling slides ahead of crucial EU summit

Ben Chapman
Monday 14 October 2019 08:36 BST
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Boris Johnson won't reveal what Brexit compromises he has made

Sterling has fallen against the euro and dollar this morning as EU officials poured cold water on Boris Johnson's hopes of a Brexit deal being agreed ahead of a crucial summit this week.

The pound slid 0.5 per cent before regaining some ground against the single currency following strong gains last week spurred by renewed positivity around Brexit talks.

Please allow a moment for the live blog to load...

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Welcome to The Independent's live coverage of business and economics events.

Sterling is falling this morning, erasing some of its strong gains from Thursday and Friday. A survey shows UK high streets have now seen a 10 per cent fall in shopper numbers in seven years.

Later this morning the winner of the Nobel prize for economics will be announced.

ben.chapman14 October 2019 08:59
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UK renewables generate more electricity than fossil fuels for the first time

UK renewables have generated more electricity than fossil fuels for the first time, according to an analysis of energy use for the third quarter of this year. 

Wind farms, solar panels, biomass and hydropower generated 29.5 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy for the months of July, August and September, compared to 29.1TWh from fossil fuels, according to Carbon Brief

In 2010, 10 times more energy came from burning fossil fuels than renewable energy, but the cost of renewables has tumbled, with onshore wind and solar power frequently cheaper.

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:01
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Shoppers continue to shun high street as visitor numbers drop 10% in seven years

The number of consumers visiting Britain’s shopping centres, retail parks and high streets has slumped 10 per cent over the last seven years, including a decline last month.

Overall retail footfall was down 1.7 per cent in September compared with the same month last year. 

Shopping centres suffered the largest loss of customers, with 3.2 per cent fewer visitors in September than a year earlier, according to research by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and data company Springboard. High streets fared slightly better, registering a 1.8 per cent drop.

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:02
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So what has the EU said to send the pound tumbling this morning?

Officials said intensive talks over the weekend had been “constructive” but that the pace of progress was not enough for a deal to be agreed this week.

Mr Johnson is desperate for an agreement to be signed off before Saturday to avoid him having to ask for further delay to Brexit.

But while EU sources said that a breakthrough during the prime minister’s talks with his Irish counterpart, Leo Varadkar, last week meant there was now “a deal to be done”, they urged Mr Johnson to make further concessions to secure an agreement. 

The latest developments have dampened optimism in currency markets.

Sterling is down 0.65 per cent against the dollar to $1.256 and 0.5 per cent against the euro to €1.14 this morning. 

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:18
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Payment giants back out of Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency, following PayPal

Mastercard, Visa, and eBay have all pulled out of Libra, Facebook’s increasingly embattled cryptocurrency project.

The major financial institutions follow PayPal in withdrawing from the Libra Association. The payments firms Mercado Pago and Stripe have also pulled out, leaving the project with only one of six payments-related firms who were originally involved.

The withdrawals also leave the cryptocurrency project with no major US payment processor. 

A spokesperson for eBay said: “eBay has made the decision to not move forward as a founding member. At this time, we are focused on rolling out eBay’s managed payments experience for our customers.”

A spokesperson for Visa also left open the potential for a shift, saying, “We will continue to evaluate and our ultimate decision will be determined by a number of factors, including the Association’s ability to fully satisfy all requisite regulatory expectations.”

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:20
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Budget to be held in November, chancellor announces

Sajid Javid has announced his first Budget as chancellor will be unveiled on 6 November – to take place after the government's Brexit deadline of 31 October.

“This will be the first Budget after leaving the EU," Mr Javid said.

"I will be setting out our plan to shape the economy for the future and triggering the start of our infrastructure revolution. This is the right and responsible thing to do – we must get on with governing.”

But Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish first minister, said it was clear the government was "making it up as they go along" - and there was no guarantee Mr Johnson would still be in power.

She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I have to say, I think it's another example of this government making things up as they go along."

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:36
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Brexit deal can be done, but work still to do - Coveney

(Reuters) - A Brexit deal between Britain and the European Union is possible, perhaps even this week, but there are still a lot of details to be worked out, Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Monday.

“A deal is possible and it is possible this month, maybe even this week but we are not there yet ... there’s still a lot of work to do, so I hope we can make more progress today,” he said as he arrived at a meeting with his EU counterparts.

ben.chapman14 October 2019 09:45
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Superdry founder returns as permanent CEO

Superdry fouder Julian Dunkerton has been appointed permanent chief executive, having returned to the fray having heavily criticised the companies former management.

Chairman Peter Williams said: "Julian has a clear vision and his creativity, ambition and leadership will be crucial for the turnaround of the business.

"As interim CEO, Julian has already been working closely with the team to execute this plan and, while much remains to be done, the necessary foundations are being laid."

ben.chapman14 October 2019 10:01
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WTO Brexit 'will cost each UK citizen £2,500 on average'

If Boris Johnson's Brexit plan is successful, then £50bn could be knocked off the UK economy, leaving everyone in the UK £2,000 worse off, a new analysis has found. Academics from the UK in a Changing Europe said the PM's plans would do more harm to the economy than Theresa May's.

The silver lining in the research suggests Johnson's plans would be significantly better than a no-deal exit from the EU. In this scenario – leaving on World Trade Organisation terms – would hit income per capita by 8.1 per cent, or £2,500 per person. 

ben.chapman14 October 2019 10:20
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SoftBank seeks control of WeWork

(Reuters) - SoftBank has prepared a financing package for WeWork that would give it control over the shared office space company, a person familiar with the matter said.

The package would significantly increase the stake of SoftBank, which already owns around one third of WeWork, and further dilute the influence of co-founder Adam Neumann, said the person, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Reuters had reported that SoftBank was in negotiations to make a $1bn investment to enable WeWork to go through a major restructuring.

Without a fresh infusion of cash, WeWork risks running out of money as early as the end of the December, the person said.

WeWork is working with JPMorgan to negotiate a $3bn debt deal after a planned initial public offering was tabled last month because of investor concerns about how it was valued and its business model, Reuters reported last week.

ben.chapman14 October 2019 11:00

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