Oil and gas skills gap costs jobs
SCOTLAND’S oil and gas sector is facing a dearth of qualified engineers because youngsters see IT as a more attractive career choice.The stark warning, the head of engineering recruitment firm...
View ArticleDirector Dealings: Daniel Stewart shares in demand
SHARES in corporate advisory group Daniel Stewart rose strongly last week after chief executive Peter Shea invested heavily.Shea bought 3.46 million shares at 0.55p to push his stake up to almost 11...
View ArticleDouglas branches out into £20bn green data market
A START-UP in Edinburgh is on the verge of raising £400,000 from a syndicate of investors as it aims to grab a slice of the £20 billion global carbon-reporting market.Global Surface Intelligence (GSI),...
View ArticleSetback for lettings as occupiers extend leases
A MUCH anticipated boost to the Edinburgh city centre lettings market expected this year and next will be delayed as occupiers temporarily extend leases on short terms, according to Jones Lang LaSalle...
View ArticleShake-up pays off for Hanover
A BOARDROOM coup at one of Scotland’s biggest electronics employers is paying handsome dividends for its instigators.Since London-based Hanover Investors took a significant stake in gadget repair firm...
View Article‘Save more’ to bridge pension gap
SCOTS faced with a lower state pension under government reforms set out last week have been told to bridge the gap by boosting their own pension savings.Millions of people retiring from April 2017 will...
View ArticleHead of engineering firm calls for more funding for apprenticeships
MODERN apprenticeships should focus on much-needed engineering skills and not on “Burger King or shopkeeping”, according to a senior figure in the manufacturing sector.Peter Breslin, the managing...
View ArticleCafés to give customers a say on music
OPEN Ear, a Glasgow-based supplier of background music for cafés and hotels, is preparing to launch an app that lets customers “interact” with its songs, thanks to help from Dunfermline software firm...
View ArticleComment: Hester isn’t off the hook over Libor-rigging scandal
DON’T be surprised to see sandbags being piled up around Royal Bank of Scotland headquarters at Gogarburn. The fall-out from the rate-rigging scandal will be serious and chief executive Stephen Hester...
View ArticleAuctioneers cashing in on property sales
DISPOSALS by banks and administrators have fuelled a rise in the amount of commercial property being sold at auction, with small investors increasingly among the buyers.Figures from property...
View ArticleRBS faces £500m fine over Libor rate rigging
A FINE of up to £500 million could be slapped on Royal Bank of Scotland by transatlantic regulators as early as this week for its part in rigging the key Libor rate.Sources say Britain’s Financial...
View ArticleBill Jamieson: Shovels ready but planners are not
FOR Scotland’s battered construction industry, hope clings to those “shovel-ready” projects to stimulate activity and get the economy moving forward. But hope is wearing thin.Problems with funding,...
View ArticlePurvis paves the way for Fife Diageo warehouses
DRINKS giant Diageo has got the ball rolling on its vast new warehousing project in Fife after awarding a multi-million-pound contract to lay access roads.The deal with Realm Construction marks a key...
View ArticleCentral bank should plough cash into infrastructure projects, says BCC chief
THE Bank of England could do more to “underwrite” a British recovery by putting money behind key infrastructure projects, the director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has claimed.John...
View ArticleThe week ahead: Retailers remain in investor spotlight
The health of the high street will remain under the spotlight this week with updates expected from a string of big names including Carphone Warehouse, WH Smith and bookmaker William Hill.A strong...
View ArticleRetail gloom may be overdone as Scots shoppers hit the high street
Scotland has seen the second largest increase in shopper numbers in the UK, according to figures today which point to signs of life on the nation’s high streets.The number of people visiting stores was...
View ArticleSantander eyes £2bn Clydesdale bid to bolster its business banking arm
Santander is understood to be running the rule over a possible £2 billion bid for Clydesdale Bank to expand its presence in the UK.The Spanish lender has reportedly been eyeing the Glasgow-based bank,...
View ArticleScotland’s labour market boosted by growing demand
Demand for staff in Scotland rose strongly last month, according to a report that shows the country’s labour market is improving at the fastest pace since May 2011.Today’s Bank of Scotland report also...
View ArticleOptimism rising, but finance firms warn of staff shortages
Profits and optimism across the financial services industry increased in the final quarter of last year, despite a fall in staff numbers and business volumes, a survey out today showed.The number of...
View ArticleBusiness people: Burns Supper supplies are secured for this year
RUMOURS that Burns Night would be ruined by a shortage of haggis this year due to the closure of Halls of Broxburn have been scotched.A spokesman for Halls – which is estimated to produce as much as 70...
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