News

More than 8,000 staff at insurer Admiral have been handed a bumper payout after it secured record full-year profits. The insurance giant has reported record pre-tax profits of £377m for 2015, a rise of 6 per cent on the previous year.

Oil prices rose 0.7 per cent today after US production fell for the sixth week in row and raised optimism that the market may have finally bottomed out. Global benchmark Brent crude rose 0.7 per cent to $37.31 per barrel this morning, putting it on course to end the week with a gain of more than fiv

Dundee-based wealth manager Alliance Trust has increased its dividend for the 49th year in a row, despite enduring one of the most turbulent years in the firm’s 128-year history. The past twelve months has seen vicious wrangling with activist investors Elliot Advisors which ended in an uneasy truc

A major plan to expand and upgrade Inverness Airport has been announced as the Highland terminal gears up for what could be its busiest year ever. With British Airways launching a new daily service to London Heathrow and KLM flying daily to Amsterdam Schiphol from May, and easyJet expanding services

Two sets of latest figures released by the Halifax and Nationwide have revealed that UK house prices are continuing to rise at a "robust pace". The Halifax, part of Lloyds Banking Group, said property values were up 9.7 per cent in February compared with a year ago, but down slightly on January.

Scotland's manufacturing sector suffered a dramatic 9 per cent fall in exports last year, according to latest data from HM Revenue and Customs. About an eighth of goods manufactured in Scotland are sold abroad.

Scottish Widows is among six life insurance firms now being investigated by the Financial Conduct Authority after it raised concerns that some long-standing customers may not have been told when charges were applied. Edinburgh-based Widows is included in the group named by the City watchdog along wi

Queensferry Crossing The cost of building the new Queensferry Crossing has fallen by £1 billion and the bridge is on target to open to traffic by the end of the year, MSPs have been told.

For the first time, more women than men were appointed to the boards of regulated public bodies in Scotland last year with 54 per cent of all appointees being female. Since the launch of its Partnership for Change 50/50 by 2020 campaign launched in June 2015, the Scottish Government said a number of

The Competition and Markets Authority has issued a warning to over 100 wedding and event venues that their requirements for large deposits and cancellation charges could breach consumer law. The CMA advice reminds the businesses – which provide venues for a range of events including wedding recept

The Scottish Government has failed to deliver any meaningful change with its council tax reform proposals, according to COSLA. The local authority umbrella group said that it was astounded that the government had missed an opportunity which could have had benefits for millions of people.

David Melhuish Scotland’s property industry has warned of the underlying effects of the Scottish Government’s ‘failure’ to address a potential revaluation of the council tax base or re-structure the existing bands to introduce further higher value bands, following yesterday's announcement by

George Osborne The Scottish National Party will today use a Westminster debate to renew its calls on Chancellor George Osborne to deliver fiscal support for the North Sea oil and gas industry at the Budget in order to secure the industry's recovery.

The UK Government has today begun the process of selling off Edinburgh-based green fund the Green Investment Bank (GIB). The GIB is thought to be the UK’s largest private renewable energy fund, with current capital commitments of £2.6billion in 70 green infrastructure projects having been set up

Aberdeen Asset Management has been relegated to the FTSE 250 following continued share price erosion. The news from the London Stock Exchange’s quarterly review follows competitor BlackRock’s short position in Aberdeen taken last month amid speculation the Scotland-headquartered asset manager â€