Getty Images Shares of Cohen & Steers ( CNS ) have been a poor performer over the past year, losing about a quarter of their value. While the company is controlling what it can fairly well, appetite for real estate-oriented investments has been very poor, which has limited fund flows and compressed its multiple. I last covered shares in July , rating CNS a "Sell," and since then, the stock has los...
Getty Images Shares of Cohen & Steers ( CNS ) have been a poor performer over the past year, losing about a quarter of their value. While the company is controlling what it can fairly well, appetite for real estate-oriented investments has been very poor, which has limited fund flows and compressed its multiple. I last covered shares in July , rating CNS a "Sell," and since then, the stock has lost 12% while the market has gained 8%, meaningful relative underperformance that justifies the rating. With shares around my $65 price target and some hopes real estate activity could be bottoming, now is a good time to revisit shares. Seeking Alpha In the company's fourth quarter , Cohen & Steers earned $0.81 per share, which matched estimates as revenue grew nearly 3% to $144 million. For the full year, CNS earned $3.09; I was expecting $2.95-$3.20, so results were right in line with my expectations. Operating income was also up 3% to $52 million as its operating margin expanded 30 bps from last year to 36.4%. Management targets compensation expenses being about 40% of revenue, and in Q4, it came in at 39%. Compensation is over 60% of the company's expense, as is the case for most investment managers. Compensation was down $200k from last year to $56.2 million as CNS managed headcount and variable compensation given the muted growth environment for its products. Weak REIT Demand Has Limited Growth AUM ended the quarter at $90.5 billion, which fell a bit sequentially, given year-end dynamics where many funds pay a larger dividend. As you can see, average AUM was up slightly. Relative to last year, CNS ended the year with ~5% more AUM, reflecting ~2% of inflows and ~3% of appreciation. This modest AUM growth during a pronounced equity market rally speaks to the fact that investor appetite has been geared towards higher growth sectors like tech than income-oriented ones like real estate. Cohen & Steers Importantly, 95% of its funds are beating benchmarks on a 1-, 3-, 5-, and ...
如果把现在的 AI 模型比作一个学霸，它们的工作方式通常是这样的：在学校（预训练阶段）读万卷书，把知识固化在脑子里（参数冻结）。 等到考试（推理阶段）时，它们靠的是「回忆」和「逻辑推演」来答题。 即便像 OpenAI 的 o1 这种「会思考」的模型，也只是在考场上多打了打草稿（CoT思维链），它的大脑回路（权重）依然是锁死的。 但就在本周，一篇名为《Learning to Discover at ...
Ryanair Holdings Plc raised its full-year guidance for passenger growth and fares as the Irish budget carrier benefits from improved Boeing Co. aircraft deliveries and stronger travel demand. Traffic for fiscal 2026 is set to rise 4% to almost 208 million passengers, up from the 207 million predicted in November, Ryanair said on Monday. Fares will exceed 7% growth as they trend higher than the yea...
Ryanair Holdings Plc raised its full-year guidance for passenger growth and fares as the Irish budget carrier benefits from improved Boeing Co. aircraft deliveries and stronger travel demand. Traffic for fiscal 2026 is set to rise 4% to almost 208 million passengers, up from the 207 million predicted in November, Ryanair said on Monday. Fares will exceed 7% growth as they trend higher than the year prior, the airline said. Ryanair said it’s “cautiously guiding” for full-year profit after tax excluding exceptional items of €2.13 billion to €2.23 billion. In the third quarter, profit after tax fell to €115 million, excluding a provision of €85 million for a fine from Italy’s competition authority. That’s down from €149 million the previous year and compares with the €90.2 million average of 11 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. “Consumers continue to travel in numbers, capacity continues to be hugely constrained in Europe, and all of this is leading to slightly higher air fares,” Ryanair Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan said in an interview. Read More: Ryanair Says Online Sparring With Musk Is Good for Business Europe’s biggest budget carrier cited good progress with Boeing deliveries, a turnaround from its frustration a year ago as its sole aircraft supplier struggled to hand over jets on time. The airline expects the final four Max 8 models to be delivered by February, while the newer Max 10, which hasn’t been certified yet, is set to come into Ryanair’s fleet in spring 2027. The deliveries will allow Ryanair to raise its fiscal 2027 passenger goal from 215 million to 216 million, it said. The airline previously raised its passenger growth target for fiscal 2026 to 207 million, compared with a previous forecast of 206 million. Shares are down about 3% so far this year in Dublin trading, following a 55% jump last year. The results come days after Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary clashed with Elon Musk over the economics of SpaceX ’s Starlink Wi-Fi se...
When Labour dignitaries gathered at the Titanic hotel in Liverpool on Friday night, one question loomed above all others: to change captain or not? For many, that question has become even more pressing after Keir Starmer’s allies brutally stopped Andy Burnham’s return to Westminster before it had even begun. There were plausible practical reasons for blocking the Greater Manchester mayor from runn...
When Labour dignitaries gathered at the Titanic hotel in Liverpool on Friday night, one question loomed above all others: to change captain or not? For many, that question has become even more pressing after Keir Starmer’s allies brutally stopped Andy Burnham’s return to Westminster before it had even begun. There were plausible practical reasons for blocking the Greater Manchester mayor from running in the newly vacant Gorton and Denton seat: not least that the byelection to replace him would be the biggest and most expensive in modern British history. But many Labour MPs, including Burnham acolytes and agnostics alike, view the decision as a clear attempt to save the prime minister as the party heads towards a giant political iceberg. This diverse south-east Manchester seat is home to about 119,000 people, including the left-leaning young professionals of Levenshulme, the white working-class Reform voters of Denton, and a significant Muslim population – 28% of the total – around Rusholme and Gorton. Andrew Gwynne, the former minister who retired on medical grounds this week after an 11-month suspension over leaked WhatsApp messages, won with a 13,413-vote majority in 2024, with Reform UK finishing second. Although it is a new constituency introduced as a result of boundary changes, it is formed from three seats that have voted Labour for decades. In Gorton, voters have elected a Labour MP since George V was on the throne. Reform UK will run the byelection as a referendum on the government and Starmer in particular. Nigel Farage’s party has an eight-point lead in the national polls on average, while the prime minister’s popularity has tanked since the general election. Four miles west, Labour will be pulled from the left by the Greens and any Gaza-focused candidate, whether that is an independent, a recruit for Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party, or even George Galloway (yes, the 71-year-old has teased another comeback). “The voters that are pissed off with Labour are liab...
As the demolition excavator crashes its metal jaws through Warrington’s former Unilever soap factory, Carl Oates says the town is good at handling change. Once contractors have finished, his company plans to open a datacentre,reinventing a site from the first Industrial Revolution for the next. “As one industry closes, Warrington has been quite good at opening new ones – and we hope datacentres is...
As the demolition excavator crashes its metal jaws through Warrington’s former Unilever soap factory, Carl Oates says the town is good at handling change. Once contractors have finished, his company plans to open a datacentre,reinventing a site from the first Industrial Revolution for the next. “As one industry closes, Warrington has been quite good at opening new ones – and we hope datacentres is one of those new spaces.” A director of a local property firm, Dante Group, he knows the blue corrugated-metal factory looming over Bank Quay station is a well-known local landmark on the Cheshire skyline. Alongside wire, beer and gin, soap helped to power Warrington’s industrial development. But few will miss it. “There’s a mentality here around of just getting on with it. We’re trying to do big things here if we can.” In an age of stalling economic progress, Britain could do with a few more towns like Warrington. According to a report published on Monday by the Centre for Cities, the town on the Mersey, between Manchester and Liverpool, has enjoyed economic growth 2.2 times faster than the national average since 2013. If this growth had been replicated nationwide, the thinktank says the average UK urban resident would have had £3,200 more in their pocket, and the British economy would be 4% larger – enough to undo the economic damage from Brexit. “Increasing living standards at more than twice the national average is a significant achievement, and Warrington shows what sustained, place-based growth can deliver,” says Andrew Carter, the Centre for Cities chief executive. “These places offer practical lessons for how growth can be unlocked elsewhere.” That Warrington should be an economic template could raise eyebrows. At the heart of the post-industrial north-west of England, it often gets lumped in with the “red wall” towns of the M62 rugby league belt, where living standards more generally have gone sideways at best. As the first thing visitors see at Bank Quay, the rus...
Catterick Catterick is my favourite baffling TV show. It stars Vic and Bob and a stellar backup cast – Reece Shearsmith, Tim Healey, Mark Benton, Matt Lucas and Morwenna Banks. It starts off innocuously enough with Carl Palmer (Bob) returning to Catterick to visit his brother Chris (Vic) but quickly descends into anarchy. The extremely loose plot centres around the criminal antics of mummy’s boy T...
Catterick Catterick is my favourite baffling TV show. It stars Vic and Bob and a stellar backup cast – Reece Shearsmith, Tim Healey, Mark Benton, Matt Lucas and Morwenna Banks. It starts off innocuously enough with Carl Palmer (Bob) returning to Catterick to visit his brother Chris (Vic) but quickly descends into anarchy. The extremely loose plot centres around the criminal antics of mummy’s boy Tony (Shearsmith) but there are more tangents than a geometry conference. From ripped up posters of George Clooney and haunting dance routines to Chris Rea and Foreigner, Catterick should be top of your TV destinations. Tom Whelan, South Shields Monkey Dust I first caught a glimpse of the sharp, dreamlike animation Monkey Dust back on BBC Three in the mid-2000s. I was mesmerised by its dark slice of post-millennium British life. Every week, each episode played somewhat the same, but with a tragic, twisted or nightmarish spin befalling the sad bunch of urban dwellers. Why did Clive perform depraved acts with German businessmen, his father in-law, or a dog and some peanut butter? How did Divorced Dad survive his dire ending every week? I haven’t seen anything this dark or hypnotic since. Liam, 40, Amsterdam The OA View image in fullscreen Enter the twilight zone … The OA. Photograph: Nicola Goode/Netflix I don’t what the hell it was about. Inter-dimensional travel. Time travel. Long philosophic conversations that went nowhere. I remember being up at 2am in the morning watching it and thinking: oh my God, I have entered the twilight zone. Where am I? Gaverne, 56, London Mrs Davies View image in fullscreen Brilliant and bizarre … Betty Gilpin in Mrs Davies. Photograph: Youtube Nobody else seems to have heard of this, but Mrs Davies, starring Betty Gilpin, is brilliant, funny and bizarre. It starts off straightforwardly enough with a flashback to a medieval secret society and the holy grail, then back to modern day and a crimefighting nun in a world ruled by a benign AI. From the...
The BBC will face “profound jeopardy” over its future unless it embraces significant changes to its funding, its outgoing director general has said, as he signalled his support for an overhaul of the licence fee. Speaking to the Guardian, Tim Davie called for supporters of the corporation to “stand up and fight” for it, amid increased hostility from its commercial and political critics. He said th...
The BBC will face “profound jeopardy” over its future unless it embraces significant changes to its funding, its outgoing director general has said, as he signalled his support for an overhaul of the licence fee. Speaking to the Guardian, Tim Davie called for supporters of the corporation to “stand up and fight” for it, amid increased hostility from its commercial and political critics. He said the BBC would be “in trouble” without serious changes to its funding model and more flexibility over the services it offers. In a sign that the BBC leadership is looking at changes that would draw more households into funding the broadcaster, Davie said he did not want to simply increase the amount demanded from each licence fee payer. “We do want reform,” he said. “We do want reform of the licence fee. However, we’re not just about driving the amount we get from households higher. “My biggest fears are that we just roll on and think it’s going to be OK. We don’t reform enough. At that point, we don’t get regulatory reform and more flexibility. That’s my biggest worry. And I think, if we don’t do that, we’re in trouble.” However, Davie rejected a suggestion that the BBC should be funded by advertising or subscriptions – options raised in a government paper on the public broadcaster’s future released last month. View image in fullscreen Tim Davie rejected the idea that the BBC should be funded by advertising or subscription. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA “If you go to advertising or subscription, you’re no longer a universal service,” he said. “It’s a societal choice.” The BBC is in the process of examining how the licence fee could be made more progressive for some groups. Samir Shah, the BBC’s chair, has previously suggested switching to a household levy that could be collected through council tax. It would remove the need to enforce licence fee payment through controversial home visits. It would also allow the payment to be adjusted so that poorer groups pay less. However, the ...
Eleven towns and cities in the UK, including Warrington, Barnsley and Wakefield, have seen their disposable incomes rise twice as fast as the rest of the UK over the past decade, a study has found. A report from Centre for Cities, a thinktank, showed that between 2013 and 2023, disposable income for residents of these top performing towns and cities rose by an average of 5.2%, compared with an inc...
Eleven towns and cities in the UK, including Warrington, Barnsley and Wakefield, have seen their disposable incomes rise twice as fast as the rest of the UK over the past decade, a study has found. A report from Centre for Cities, a thinktank, showed that between 2013 and 2023, disposable income for residents of these top performing towns and cities rose by an average of 5.2%, compared with an increase of 2.4% for urban areas in the UK overall. The report said that if all 63 of the UK’s largest towns and cities had experienced the same rate of growth as the top 11 performers over this period, people would have pocketed an extra £3,200 on average in disposable income. It found that the top-performing towns and cities in its report all focused on building a strong local business base and higher-skilled jobs, with a significant number of productive firms in “tradeable” industries, such as software, marketing and finance, that can sell to markets outside the local area. Centre for Cities argued that central and local government were often too focused on piecemeal actions to improve the cost of living, such as capping bus fares or providing money for energy bills, rather than focusing on policies aimed at improving economic growth, which it said led to stronger incomes for everyone. “By focusing on tinkering with the symptoms, the government runs the risk of losing sight of the cause,” the report said. “The problem underpinning cost of living pressures, stagnant incomes, and persistent deprivation is the lack of economic growth.” Andrew Carter, the chief executive of the thinktank, said: “If you look at these top performers, what they focus on is increasing higher-skilled, cutting-edge jobs in their area and being very deliberate about trying to do that.” In Barnsley, which has used its M1 corridor location to become a logistics hub, the council has opened up industrial land around motorway junctions to help activity in this space to grow, according to the report. Since ...
Met Office data and legal documents from the National Archives could be used by artificial intelligence systems as the UK government pushes ahead with plans to employ nationally owned material in AI tools. The government is providing funds for researchers to test how Met Office content could be used by the technology, such as in helping agencies and councils know when to buy more road grit. Anothe...
Met Office data and legal documents from the National Archives could be used by artificial intelligence systems as the UK government pushes ahead with plans to employ nationally owned material in AI tools. The government is providing funds for researchers to test how Met Office content could be used by the technology, such as in helping agencies and councils know when to buy more road grit. Another project will explore whether legal data from the National Archives – the UK’s repository for official documents – could help medium- and small-sized businesses with legal support. The government has also announced plans to license content from national institutions such as the National History Museum and the National Library of Scotland for AI development. Ian Murray, the minister for digital government and data, said the National Archives plan was “what smart use of the public sector” looked like. “Whether you’re a cafe owner trying to understand employment law or a shopkeeper navigating health and safety requirements, time spent wrestling with legal jargon is time spent away from customers,” he said. “By exploring how authoritative legal data from the National Archives could be made AI-ready, we could help small businesses get quick, reliable answers to common questions – freeing up evenings and weekends and giving them more confidence to invest and grow.” Data is a key component of AI models, the underlying technology for tools such as ChatGPT, and has become a battleground between the UK’s creative industries and the government over proposals to change copyright law. Ministers have been criticised for proposing that AI companies should be allowed to use copyright-protected work without first seeking artists’ permission, unless the artists indicates that they wish to “opt out”. The technology secretary, Liz Kendall, said this month the government was seeking a “reset” on these plans via an official review due to be published in March. However, the government has made c...
When it comes to traybakes, chicken is the undisputed hero, because it’s endlessly adaptable and perfect for carrying bold, global flavours. First up, some eastern Mediterranean chicken meatballs, flecked with feta and black olives for a sharp, savoury punch. Then a Persian-style saffron chicken and rice; the rice cooks with the chicken, absorbing all the flavours of the sunshine-yellow saffron an...
When it comes to traybakes, chicken is the undisputed hero, because it’s endlessly adaptable and perfect for carrying bold, global flavours. First up, some eastern Mediterranean chicken meatballs, flecked with feta and black olives for a sharp, savoury punch. Then a Persian-style saffron chicken and rice; the rice cooks with the chicken, absorbing all the flavours of the sunshine-yellow saffron and crisping up at the edges. Finally, a Korean-inspired chicken and potato traybake in which gochujang and soy create a deeply savoury sauce that elevates a simple midweek meal. Feta-licious chicken meatballs (pictured top) I’m a big fan of chicken meatballs: they are juicy, light and really easy to make. These ones are flavoured with feta, olives and Turkish pepper flakes, and they’re cooked in a rich tomato sauce. Serve them with salad, pasta or a jacket potato, and they’re epic the next day for a simple lunch al desko. Prep 15 min Cook 15 min Serves 4 For the meatballs 600g chicken breasts, or minced chicken 150g feta 50g black pitted olives 4 spring onions, trimmed and roughly chopped 2 garlic cloves, peeled 2 tbsp tomato puree 2 tsp Turkish pepper flakes 1 tsp dried oregano Salt and pepper For the sauce 680g tomato passata 2 tsp Turkish pepper flakes 2 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp garlic powder 50g feta 1 small handful finely chopped parsley leaves Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. To make the meatballs, put the chicken breasts (or mince) in a food processor and add all the remaining meatball ingredients and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Blitz smooth, then roll into 16 meatballs. Swirl a few tablespoons of the passata around the base of a 24cm x 32cm roasting tin. Mix the remaining passata with the Turkish pepper flakes, dried oregano, garlic powder and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Arrange the meatballs in the roasting tin, then pour the sauce over the top to cover. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through – cut one in half to test: it ...
Mark Carney and other custodians of the order are right to contemplate its death, but are they really willing to unpick the the entire system? When precisely did the rules-based order die? Mark Carney’s speech last week at Davos was the first time a western head of state has said outright what has been hanging over political proceedings for some time. The rules-based order is “fading”, in the midd...
Mark Carney and other custodians of the order are right to contemplate its death, but are they really willing to unpick the the entire system? When precisely did the rules-based order die? Mark Carney’s speech last week at Davos was the first time a western head of state has said outright what has been hanging over political proceedings for some time. The rules-based order is “fading”, in the middle of a “rupture” and there’s no going back. But outside Davos, the G7 and Nato, that is old news – many believed the rules-based order had expired long ago, depending on what moment you take as your watershed. There were several components to the order, which of course was a layered, complex thing. The first is structural, that is, the agreement between powerful and prosperous countries that there would be certain mechanisms and protocols to maintain political stability, contain the outbreak of wars and promote their mutual economic interests. All the bodies that direct international traffic – the EU, Nato, the UN, the WTO, the IMF – make up that top layer of organisation. Continue reading...
Tradestars co-founder Roy Shaby started his career fronting an online sushi business. Do you want to know the cold and hard truths of starting a business? Just ask serial entrepreneur Roy Shaby, who was forced to sleep on top of a chest freezer in the back kitchen of a London kebab shop as he toiled to keep his fledgling sushi business alive 15 years ago. Shaby is thoroughly honest and engaging as...
Tradestars co-founder Roy Shaby started his career fronting an online sushi business. Do you want to know the cold and hard truths of starting a business? Just ask serial entrepreneur Roy Shaby, who was forced to sleep on top of a chest freezer in the back kitchen of a London kebab shop as he toiled to keep his fledgling sushi business alive 15 years ago. Shaby is thoroughly honest and engaging as he charts the story of starting his food delivery service with £3,000 savings in Camberwell, losing both parents and who has since followed a logical, purposeful career path in setting up workspace company Tradestars to cater for the modern day entrepreneur. In 2011, Shaby was looking for potential business angles and one evening ordered from delivery service Just Eat. “I was super determined to run a business but I had no capital and £3,000 wasn’t enough to live on expenses,” he says. Read More: 'Omaze wouldn't be here today if I hadn't flatlined for over four minutes' “On Just Eat, I had ordered food from a restaurant I had never heard of and the whole experience was virtual.” Shaby believed he could do the same online and without the restaurant overheads. He walked into a kebab takeaway across the road from where he was living and realised a back kitchen was hardly in use. He struck a £200 deal in weekly rent with the owner who offered little hope of success. Shaby hired a driver and sushi chef, who both agreed to be paid in arrears, and he was quickly listed on Just Eat. On the first day he turned over £500 from 25 orders. Within one year, he had generated £300,000 revenues. However, he admits that it “wasn't a straight line curve success story.” Rather than offices with desks and chairs, Tradestars gives workspace to tattoo artists, hairdressers and TikTok shops. A few months into the startup, Shaby endured a serious cash flow issue and only had enough in reserve to either pay his living rent or staff. After buying a duvet and pillow from a market, he took the option ...
Chinese lending to Africa dropped by nearly half to US$2.1 billion in 2024 compared with the previous year, according to a new report. The fall, from US$3.9 billion in 2023, was part of a decade-long trend. Lending had been on an upwards trajectory since 2006 and peaked between 2012 and 2018 – a period that saw the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative when lending passed the US$10 billion mark e...
Chinese lending to Africa dropped by nearly half to US$2.1 billion in 2024 compared with the previous year, according to a new report. The fall, from US$3.9 billion in 2023, was part of a decade-long trend. Lending had been on an upwards trajectory since 2006 and peaked between 2012 and 2018 – a period that saw the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative when lending passed the US$10 billion mark each year. At its height, in 2016, Beijing lent US$28.8 billion, but the total has not passed the US$5 billion mark since 2020. Advertisement Researchers at the Boston University Global Development Policy Centre, which released the report on Wednesday, said the shift aligned with Beijing’s strategy of moving beyond multibillion-dollar loans to governments. Instead, it now prefers to target smaller, more strategic projects and invest in commercially viable sectors, such as technology. Advertisement Beijing has also shifted from the dollar to its own currency, the yuan, to protect both sides from the risks of US currency fluctuations.
A miniseries production team in China has come under fire for allowing a baby to be exposed to heavy rain during filming. On January 17, Chinese actress Xing Yun criticised the crew she worked with last year for mistreating the infant. In a video clip, Xing’s character, a businesswoman, sees a mother and her baby caught in the rain and offers them both an umbrella and money. Advertisement Xing rec...
A miniseries production team in China has come under fire for allowing a baby to be exposed to heavy rain during filming. On January 17, Chinese actress Xing Yun criticised the crew she worked with last year for mistreating the infant. In a video clip, Xing’s character, a businesswoman, sees a mother and her baby caught in the rain and offers them both an umbrella and money. Advertisement Xing recalled that the night was particularly cold and torrential rain was created by a water truck. The baby, carried by another actress, was exposed to the rain for a long time. The offending scene, above. Actress Xing Yun, in a black dress, says the director prevented her from sheltering the baby with her umbrella. Photo: Weibo Xing wrote: “The infant was crying so pitifully, it broke my heart. I was really angry and felt helpless.”
*****CHECK WITH SAJ BEFORE PUBLISHING**** Anyone taking part in Dry January may have already saved a good chunk of cash, but as the month draws to an end, it's also a good time to consider the benefits of staying ‘dry’ for longer. On average, households spend £648 a year on alcohol and tobacco, according to the HL Savings & Resilience Barometer. If that was spread evenly over the year, it would co...
*****CHECK WITH SAJ BEFORE PUBLISHING**** Anyone taking part in Dry January may have already saved a good chunk of cash, but as the month draws to an end, it's also a good time to consider the benefits of staying ‘dry’ for longer. On average, households spend £648 a year on alcohol and tobacco, according to the HL Savings & Resilience Barometer. If that was spread evenly over the year, it would come in at £54 a month. And that’s not the end of it: drinking also means people tend to spend more when they go out, so if you were to assume that giving up has cut 10% of the cost, you could save £584 in a year – or £49 a month. Taking both sums together, by the end of the month, you’ll have an extra £103 in your pocket that you can use to make a more positive change in your life. Another thing to note is that alcohol duty is rising at the start of February, so you could save more by sticking with non-alcoholic options at home. And, because pubs and restaurants have been putting up prices ahead of inflation this autumn, you can save more when you’re out and about too. Read more: Savings challenges to boost your finances in 2026 Saving £103 a month is already significant, but you can put it to work so it ends up making an even bigger difference to your life. If you’re carrying expensive debts, you might be prioritising repayments, so putting this money into paying your debts can save a decent wedge of cash. If, for example, you had £2,000 on a credit card at 20% and are currently paying £50 a month, it might take 5 years and 3 months to clear the debt, and you’d end up paying £1,119 in interest. If you added £103 to your repayments, you’d cut the repayment time to 1 year and 3 months, and you’d pay £247 in interest – saving £872. On average, households spend £648 a year on alcohol and tobacco, according to the HL Savings & Resilience Barometer. · Henrik Sorensen via Getty Images For some families, the pressing issue is that they don’t have enough emergency savings to fall ba...
A startup that runs one of the world’s largest health-care digital platforms is seeking to leverage artificial intelligence to capitalize on its trove of medical data, potentially ushering in a new era for diagnostics and positioning the firm for a public listing. Docplanner, founded in Poland in 2012 to operate an online platform for booking doctor’s appointments, currently connects 100 million m...
A startup that runs one of the world’s largest health-care digital platforms is seeking to leverage artificial intelligence to capitalize on its trove of medical data, potentially ushering in a new era for diagnostics and positioning the firm for a public listing. Docplanner, founded in Poland in 2012 to operate an online platform for booking doctor’s appointments, currently connects 100 million monthly users with 2.8 million medical professionals. Subject to patient consent, the company plans to use the data to create medical files which AI models could analyze to enhance diagnostics, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Mariusz Gralewski said in an interview. Its advantage in data gives the now Amsterdam-headquartered Docplanner a head start against rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic , which both announced recently bespoke AI solutions for the medical sector, Gralewski said. Docplanner will soon have close to 200 million medical records, the CEO said. “They have the brain, they have the models, but they don’t have access to data, and now they’re trying to build that part of their business,” Gralewski said of rivals. “We have data and we need to find a solution to share it securely and start providing guidance to patients.” Financing, IPO In 2024, Docplanner rolled out an assistant to help doctors automate documentation and mundane administrative tasks during consultations. It’s currently on adding AI-driven prescriptions feature. The aim is to leverage technology to free up doctors from paperwork so they can focus on the patient, something Gralewski compared to the equivalent of “fully autonomous driving.” Docplanner plans to hold a secondary financing round next month, allowing employees and investors to cash out their shares. The company has already raised around €500 million ($590 million) from investors including One Peak Partners , Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Point Nine Capital . One of the first Polish tech unicorns, or a startup with a valuation of m...
Inquiry into fatal Stonehaven train derailment to begin 21 minutes ago Share Save Ken Banks North east Scotland reporter, Aberdeen Share Save BBC Christopher Stuchbury, Donald Dinnie and Brett McCullough died in 2020 A fatal accident inquiry into a train derailment which killed three men in the north east of Scotland is due to begin. The Aberdeen to Glasgow train came off the rails at Carmont in A...
Inquiry into fatal Stonehaven train derailment to begin 21 minutes ago Share Save Ken Banks North east Scotland reporter, Aberdeen Share Save BBC Christopher Stuchbury, Donald Dinnie and Brett McCullough died in 2020 A fatal accident inquiry into a train derailment which killed three men in the north east of Scotland is due to begin. The Aberdeen to Glasgow train came off the rails at Carmont in Aberdeenshire on 12 August 2020 after it hit a landslide following heavy rain. Driver Brett McCullough, 45, conductor Donald Dinnie, 58, and passenger Christopher Stuchbury, 62, died in the crash. Network Rail was later fined £6.7m in court for a series of failings. The inquiry in Aberdeen - which is expected to last between three and four weeks - is due to get under way from 11:00. PA Media Network Rail admitted maintenance and inspection failures During the court case in 2023, Network Rail admitted a number of maintenance and inspection failures before the crash. It also admitted failing to warn the driver that part of the track was unsafe, or tell him to reduce his speed. At the High Court in Aberdeen, Lord Matthews said no penalty could compensate for the loss suffered by the families of those who died and the people injured. Law firm Digby Brown later said that a total of nearly £1m in civil actions against Network Rail had been settled. Why did the train derail? The train hit a landslide near Stonehaven after heavy rain in an area where a drainage system had been incorrectly installed. The 06:38 service to Glasgow had been unable to complete its journey due to the conditions. It was returning to Aberdeen when the accident happened. A recording of the driver showed he queried with a signaller if any reduced speed was needed to return north. RAIB The train hit debris in heavy rain He was told everything was fine for normal speed, so he continued to accelerate the train towards 75mph - the maximum permitted speed at the accident site. As the signaller was not aware of any...
Bombardier Challenger Cl-600 taking-off with undercarriage retracting. Aviation-images.com | Universal Images Group | Getty Images A private jet crashed in flames as it was taking off from a Maine airport with eight aboard, the U.S. aviation regulator said, but their fate and identities were not immediately known. Sunday's crash of a twin-engine turbo-fan jet Bombardier Challenger 600 at Bangor In...
Bombardier Challenger Cl-600 taking-off with undercarriage retracting. Aviation-images.com | Universal Images Group | Getty Images A private jet crashed in flames as it was taking off from a Maine airport with eight aboard, the U.S. aviation regulator said, but their fate and identities were not immediately known. Sunday's crash of a twin-engine turbo-fan jet Bombardier Challenger 600 at Bangor International Airport happened at about 7:45 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement, adding that it planned to investigate. Few details were available, but a government official briefed on the matter told Reuters there was a significant fire after the crash. Light snow had started falling at the airport before the crash, weather reports showed, but authorities gave no immediate indication that weather played a role in the accident. A winter storm warning covered most of Maine, including Bangor, the state's third-largest city. The plane had arrived in Maine from Texas, the government official said. The company listed as its registered owner shares a Houston address with Arnold & Itkin, a personal injury law firm. FAA records show the craft went into service in April 2020. The FAA said it would investigate the crash along with the National Transportation Safety Board.
Gold has jumped above US$5,000 an ounce for the first time, as Donald Trump’s chaotic policies and proclamations drive more investors to seek safe harbour in the precious metal. The price of the yellow metal jumped 1.8% to $5,078 an ounce on Monday, according to Bloomberg. The historic moment came as Trump threatened Canada with 100% tariffs if America’s northern neighbour “makes a deal with China...
Gold has jumped above US$5,000 an ounce for the first time, as Donald Trump’s chaotic policies and proclamations drive more investors to seek safe harbour in the precious metal. The price of the yellow metal jumped 1.8% to $5,078 an ounce on Monday, according to Bloomberg. The historic moment came as Trump threatened Canada with 100% tariffs if America’s northern neighbour “makes a deal with China”, and after the US president’s dramatic showdown with Europe over the future of Greenland. With global financial markets already jittery, there are also rising fears of another US shutdown after Democrats threatened funding for the Department of Homeland Security in the wake of the weekend shooting of a man in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents. Monday’s milestone is the latest in an extraordinary and historic run for gold that has seen its price jump by nearly 90% since Trump’s inauguration a little over a year ago. Steve Miller, an investment strategy adviser at GSFM, an Australia-based asset manager, said he hadn’t seen anything like it in his four decades working in financial markets. “The second oil shock and the inflation scare in the late ’70s, early ’80s would be the last time I remember when gold did this – and that was before my time in markets,” he said. Miller, a former head of fixed income at investment giant BlackRock, said the latest lift in gold came on rising concerns that Trump’s administration would take steps to weaken the world’s most important currency, the US dollar. The catalyst from Monday’s increase was also news that the US Federal Reserve was calling banks to check the rate of exchange between the US dollar and a depreciating Japanese yen. “If the Federal Reserve is doing this on behalf of the US Treasury, they’re only doing it for one reason: they think the US dollar is too high,” Miller said. Key voices within the US administration have long signalled they would like a weaker US dollar to help revitalise America’s domestic manufacturing...