BUSINESS

Farmborough's International Airshow is well underway today as Exhibitors and Trade Partners meet to discuss the latest in aeroplace technology and engines.

This week ahead sees a number of key economic announcements - retail sales for June, GDP figures for Q2 and a Rightmove house price survey released today.

House prices have fallen after Rightmove's survey of over 200,000 properties coming into the market this month found a reduction in average asking price to £236,332.

The Office of National Statistics has just published a batch of figures on the UK's workforce, nearly coinciding with the Friday, 16 July's submission to The Treasury by most government departments of their proposed budget cuts. The Treasury requires drafts based on 25 percent and 40 percent cuts to the 2010-2011 figures and these will form the basis of the autumn Spending Review and November's Budget Address to Parliament by George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Thousands of tourists have been left stranded abroad after holiday operator Goldtrail Travel Limited collapsed yesterday evening.

Shares in BP were up today on the FTSE 100 after the company successfully ended the flow of oil from a broken well into the Gulf of Mexico.

A swing from surplus to deficit has shocked economists as the imports to the Eurozone jumped 4.6 pct leading the trade deficit to -£3.4 billion down from +£500 million in the last month.

Shares in fashion retailer Burberry were up on the FTSE 100 in morning trading after the company said it would be buying out 50 franchise stores in China for £70 million.

BT Global Services has announced a €173 million four year deal with Unilever to improve their infrastructure - including comms, supply chain and wireless technology.

GlaxoSmithKline, has announced it is settling the “substantial majority” of claims against its ‘thiazolidinedione’ Avandia which was found to cause death in ‘heart failure’ patients after it was released to market.

Monetary Policy Committee, MPC member David Miles has reiterated his 'dovish' stance on UK's rates in a speech published Thursday.

The Bank of England has today announced an improvement in housing equity by £0.2 billion as a slow shift towards positive equity markets continued.

The Trades Union Congress has said that a double dip recession is looking more likely following "disappointing" unemployment figures yesterday.

Workers on the Docklands Light Railway are due to stage three 24 hour strikes in an attempt to improve their pay after a third carriage was added to DLR trains.

Mothercare, the owner of the stores of the same name, and also the Early Learning Centre is falling on the FTSE 250 after a sales sliding a further 4.1 pct in the UK.

Marc Bolland, charmed investors of his company at the shareholder annual general meeting held in the Royal Festival Hall today.

Follow our live coverage of Marc Bolland's first AGM as Marks & Spencer CEO, with Martha Lane Fox, Stuart Rose and the full board in attendance.

Follow our live coverage of Marc Bolland's first AGM as Marks & Spencer CEO, with Martha Lane Fox, Stuart Rose and the full board in attendance.

Intel's Q2 are showing strong revenue from netbooks for the three months to July despite the iPad arrival.

Shares in chocolatier Thorntons were down today after the company reporting worsening sales drops at its stores in the full year to 26 June.

UK unemployment has fallen by 34,000 today as a record number of people found work in part-time places.

Shares in Barratt Developments were up on the FTSE 250 in morning trading after the company said its operating profit for the full year ended 30 June would be ahead of expectations at over £85 million.

BP has begun integrity testing on its new 'three-ram' capping system for its Macondo oil well.

Food and fuel have helped to curb CPI - the main measure of inflation - after falling oil prices meant that petrol fell by 2.6 pence per litre and extra sales from the World Cup and warmer weather kept food prices low.

Northern Foods, the maker of Fox biscuits and Goodfella's pizza, has today reported a fall in like-for-like sales although added it was trading in line with hopes for the thirteen weeks to 3 July 2010.

Retail sales in June are up 1.2 pct, stronger than May's rise of 0.6 pct after the World Cup began and summer weather contributed to continued food sales growth.

CPI, Consumer Price Index, fell just 0.2 pct today as the high cost of fuel continues to remain a pressure on the average household expenditure leaving inflation invariably high.

Shares in Burberry Group were down on the FTSE 100 in morning trading, despite the company reporting a rise in revenue of 24 per cent to £282 million in the first quarter ended 30 June.

Shares in Kier Group were up over four per cent on the FTSE 250 in afternoon trading after the construction company said that it expected full year underlying pre-tax profit to be "towards the upper end of current market expectations".