Smart metering firm Bglobal rocketed 31 per cent in morning trading on Thursday after signing a joint venture agreement with South Korean electronics giant Samsung. Bglobal says the agreement will only come into effect after it receives a firm order from a UK energy supplier for its 'smart energy' solution. There are also regulatory hurdles to overcome. Nevertheless the market clearly suspects Samsung would not have entered into such a deal without a clear idea of its probable outcome. Happy days at Bglobal.
The travails of entertainment retailer HMV are well documented, it's fallen 96.5% in the last five years as it sought to do battle with the rise of online shopping. Today it announced full year like-for-like sales down 12.1%. The total sales figure came in at £923.2m against £1.149bn last year. The loss before tax was £16.2m. Under most measures this is not a success but because of the very low expectations for HMV, the stock actually gained 7.8% in morning trading.
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‘Inheritance tax insurance’ enquiries are soaring – but is it worth it?Premiums for whole of life insurance can run to £5,000 a month to cover a £300,000 inheritance tax bill, with policies costing more the older you take them out.
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MPs warn over Lifetime ISAs which could leave savers out of pocketThe Treasury Committee has highlighted confusion around the Lifetime ISA withdrawal charge, which risks consumers losing “a significant part of their savings”
