UK employers focus on cost management with confidence near record low

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - British employers are prioritising cost management over growth with their confidence ‌close to a record low and their staff ‌are likely to see inflation eat into their pay in the ​year ahead, according to a survey published on Monday.

Workers in Canary Wharf financial district of London

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, a professional body for the human resources sector, said rising costs ‌and uncertainty were ⁠continuing to weigh on hiring and investment decisions.

The survey, which was conducted after the ⁠start of the Iran war but before Britain's latest bout of political instability, showed:

• Cost management was the ​top priority ​for UK employers ahead ​of improving productivity and ‌growing market share

Advertisement

• Iran war does not yet seem to have materially affected hiring intentions in the UK

• Indicators of employer confidence held close to record lows

• Planned pay awards were mostly around 3% ‌for the next 12 months - unchanged ​from levels over the past ​two years but ​below most forecasts for a rise ‌in inflation

• The CIPD survey ​of 2,049 employers ​was conducted between March 23 and April 23, before heavy losses in local and regional elections ​for Prime ‌Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party this month increased ​pressure on him to resign.

(Writing by William Schomberg; ​editing by Suban Abdulla)

byAdministrator

in

16:34

UK employers focus on cost management with confidence near record low

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - British employers are prioritising cost management over growth with their confidence ‌close to a record low ...

Read More

SVG saying on air last night that he hated me might be …

Advertisement

Manu Ginobili: [NBA]SVG saying on air last night that he hated me might be my favorite compliment of the weekLove you too, Stan. Big hug next time.

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype:SVG saying on air last night that he hated me might be …

byAdministrator

in

17:06

SVG saying on air last night that he hated me might be …

Advertisement Manu Ginobili: [NBA]SVG saying on air last night that he hated me might be my favorite compliment of the weekLove y...

Read More

Sherman Lewis, who won four Super Bowl championships as NFL assistant, dies at 83

Sherman Lewis, who won four Super Bowl championships as an assistant coach, died on Friday at 83 years old. His death was confirmed by Michigan State University, where Lewis was an All-American running back in 1963.

Lewis was the running backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers under head coach Bill Walsh for nine seasons and won Super Bowl titles during the 1984, 1988 and 1989 seasons. He went on to become the offensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers on Mike Holmgren’s staff for eight seasons, winning another championship in 1996.

Despite that success, Lewis was never hired as a head coach in the NFL. He interviewed for several openings and was endorsed for such jobs by Holmgren. At the time Lewis appeared to be a strong candidate for head-coaching positions, the NFL had not yet adopted the Rooney Rule that required teams to interview at least one minority candidate for head-coach openings. That mandate was implemented in 2002.

"We won Super Bowls in San Francisco and one in Green Bay,"Lewis told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in 2015. "And I got to work with some great coaches and players.”

"No question I wished I had the chance to be a head coach,” he continued. “But looking back, I did all I could. I was disappointed, but I'm not going to hang my hat on that. I had a great career and was fortunate to coach in the NFL."

After his tenure in Green Bay, Lewis had two offensive coordinator stints with the Minnesota Vikings (from 2000-01) and Detroit Lions (2003-04). His final NFL coaching job was as an offensive assistant with the Washington Commanders in 2009.

Advertisement

At Michigan State, Lewis rushed for 1,566 yards and 16 touchdowns in three seasons, and was named a team captain. In addition to earning All-American honors in 1963, he finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting to Navy’s Roger Staubach and Georgia Tech’s Billy Lothridge.

Lewis was also an accomplished track and field star for the Spartans, winning Big Ten championships in the long jump and 300-yard dash.

Following his collegiate career in East Lansing, Lewis played two seasons in the Canadian Football League for the Toronto Argonauts and Saskatchewan Roughriders. He also played two seasons for the New York Jets when they were in the AFL.

Before moving on to the NFL, Lewis was an assistant coach for his alma mater for 14 years. He was inducted intothe Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.

byAdministrator

in

17:06

Sherman Lewis, who won four Super Bowl championships as NFL assistant, dies at 83

Sherman Lewis, who won four Super Bowl championships as an assistant coach, died on Friday at 83 years old. His death was confirmed by ...

Read More

Venezuela's draft oil law lets ministry set tax rates for each project

May 16 (Reuters) - The Venezuelan government will retain power to set royalty and tax rates for private and foreign investors in ‌oil and gas projects on a project-by-project basis under draft ‌regulations of a new hydrocarbons law seen by Reuters on Saturday.

The law passed in January ​established a royalty cap of 30% and a new maximum integrated hydrocarbons tax of 15%. Industry experts had anticipated the accompanying regulations would specify the exact rates below those caps that private and foreign partners would pay.

Instead, ‌the draft document states ⁠that the Ministry of Hydrocarbons will review each operating company's business plan to determine the specific tax and royalty ⁠rates.

Venezuela is attempting to attract foreign capital and rebuild its economy following the U.S. removal of President Nicolas Maduro at the start of the year. ​Under acting ​President Delcy Rodriguez, the draft framework ​officially ends decades of state ‌monopoly by allowing private companies to obtain licenses for heavy crude oil processing, refining and international trading -- activities that previously only state-owned PDVSA could perform.

Advertisement

The 63-page regulation must still be published in the Official Gazette to take effect.

Under the new legal framework, the National Assembly no longer approves ‌the energy joint ventures.

Instead, the Ministry of ​Hydrocarbons holds almost complete authority to sign ​contracts and modify their terms, ​including taxes and royalties. Oil experts and economists have ‌criticized the ministry's wide latitude as ​a potential deterrent to ​foreign investors who worry the government could make unilateral changes to agreed terms.

The introduction of the integrated tax raised skepticism over ​whether Caracas intended to ‌reduce significantly the state's take, which has historically been one of ​the highest in Latin America.

(Reporting by Reuters Staff; Writing by ​Natalia Siniawski; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

byAdministrator

in

16:34

Venezuela's draft oil law lets ministry set tax rates for each project

May 16 (Reuters) - The Venezuelan government will retain power to set royalty and tax rates for private and foreign investors in ‌oil a...

Read More

Venezuela says it deported a close ally of Maduro to face judicial proceedings in US

MIAMI (AP) — Venezuela’s government said Saturday it deported a close ally ofNicolás Maduroto face judicial proceedings in the U.S. less than three years after the business owner was pardoned by PresidentJoe Bidenas part of a prisoner swap.

The decision marks a stark reversal for Alex Saab, who Maduro fought tooth and nail to bring home after his previous international arrest in 2020. Now, the Colombian-born business owner, long described by U.S. officials as Maduro’s “bag man,” may be asked to testify against his former protector, who is awaiting trial on drug charges in Manhattan after being captured in a shock raid by the U.S. military in January.

The Venezuelan immigration authority in a short statement Saturday did not explicitly say where it had sent Saab but said the decision was made based on several ongoing criminal investigations in the U.S. The statement's reference to Saab only as a “Colombian citizen” may have been a nod to Venezuelan law, which prohibits the extradition of its nationals. Following his last arrest, Maduro and acting President Delcy Rodríguez claimed that Saab was a Venezuelan diplomat who had been illegally detained during a refueling stop while en route to Iran for an important humanitarian mission.

The Associated Press reported in February that federal prosecutors have been digging for months into Saab’s role in an alleged bribery conspiracy involving Venezuelan government contracts to import food.

The investigation stems from a 2021 case the Justice Department brought against Saab’s longtime partner, Alvaro Pulido, a former law enforcement official said. That prosecution, out of Miami, centers around theso-called CLAP programset up by Maduro to provide staples — rice, corn flour, cooking oil — to poor Venezuelans struggling to feed themselves at a time of rampant hyperinflation and a crumbling currency.

Advertisement

Saab, 54, amassed a fortune through Venezuelan government contracts. But he fell out of favor with the country’s new leadership that took power following Maduro's ouster. Since taking over from Maduro on Jan. 3, Rodríguez demoted Saab,firing him from her Cabinetand stripping him of his role as the main conduit for foreign companies looking to invest in Venezuela. For months conflicting news accounts have circulated that he was imprisoned or under house arrest.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report from Washington

Venezuelan law prohibits the extradition of its own nationals,

byAdministrator

in

16:34

Venezuela says it deported a close ally of Maduro to face judicial proceedings in US

MIAMI (AP) — Venezuela’s government said Saturday it deported a close ally ofNicolás Maduroto face judicial proceedings in the U.S. les...

Read More