Hi °C | Lo °C HOPES of a busy Christmas are low among small and medium sized companies as consumers limit spending. A survey of 5 firms by insurer Aviva found almost half expected a "difficult" Christmas with one in 1 predicting it will "make or break" their business. Fewer than one in five expected strong sales and a third said 21 had been tougher than expected.
Make-or-break time for retailers
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We've paid Treasury billions, says angry Vodafone boss
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Profits hike won't prevent Royal Mail move to privatisation
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Lenders in conference to help with home loan shortfalls
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G8 'should clamp down on tax avoidance'
Business groups from each of the G8 countries have urged leaders to use next month's meeting in Fermanagh to clamp down on tax avoidance in member countries.
Apple 'avoided' paying $1m to US every hour
Apple "avoided" more than $1m (£650,000) in US taxes every hour last year, a senior Washington lawmaker said yesterday as the tech giant found itself the centre of the debate over loopholes in international tax laws.
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