Podcasts

Retailers are saying they expect strong sales over Christmas. New research has found that 60% of outlets say they're more confident about trading this year compared with 2015, with 53% expecting revenues to increase. It's believed the weaker pound will encourage people not to go abroad - and therefore stay and shop - but also encourage the tourist trade. Interestingly fewer retailers are taking part in Black Friday this year - suggesting parts of the industry may be resisting what some see as unwelcome discounting over the festive period. Simon Rose spoke to Ian Gilmartin, Head of Retail & Wholesale at Barclays, who conducted the survey.

The Chancellor Philip Hammond will deliver his first Autumn Statement on Wednesday, the 23rd of November. It will be his first opportunity to outline his priorities for taxes and spending in the wake of the Brexit vote. The Office for Budget Responsibility, the Government's fiscal watchdog, will also reveal its latest forecasts for growth, unemployment and inflation, which will help to shape the way policymakers respond to the referendum result. Commenting ahead of the Autumn Statement, Trevor Greetham, Head of Multi Asset at Royal London Asset Management, joined Simon.

Crowdfunders is our weekly look at what's hot and what's not in the crowdfunding and peer-to-peer space, examining the latest news and developments in the fast growing world of alternative finance. Your host is Ed Bowsher, and on today's show he'll be finding out why the amount of money raised on equity crowdfunding platforms like Crowdcube fell in the first half of this year. Ed also gets the background on Zopa's decision to apply for a banking licence. He's joined by Tom Hinton of Syndicate Room and Ryan Weeks, Editor of Alt Fi. Enjoyed Crowdfunders? You should try the Investment Trust Show, Share Radio’s examination of the world of investment trusts: https://audioboom.com/channel/shareradio-investmenttrustshow

Storyteller and financial journalist Chris Bishop speaks to Share Radio's Alex Clark, taking you across the continent of Africa from his desk in Johannesburg for the major stories of the week. On today's programme: Spar Group is exiting Zimbabwe as the country's currency crisis deepens. Bad news for South African mining too with a statistical agency projecting 38 years left for gold reserves. Chris will be giving his take on both. He'll also discuss what Trump means for Africa, and Forbes Africa's Person of the Year. For more of Chris's stories, check out last week’s episode: https://audioboom.com/posts/5254089-conversations-from-africa-state-capture-exposed

Working from home can be great. There are good pros like sending emails from the comfort of your couch and avoid commuting. And away from the stress of the office, you might get more done while also enjoying better work-life balance. But new study has found that working from home can harm your career. To find out why, Georgie spoke to Esther Canonico from the London School of Economics.

Do you spend long hours chained to your desk at work? This lifestyle seems to been widely accepted nowadays, but studies have has shown it poses a threat to our overall health. So how can we boost our health at work? Well, to find out, Georgie spoke to Professor Ulf Ekelund of the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences and the University of Cambridge.

Chores are worth £1trillion a year. That's according to the country's top statisticians says our unpaid work is equivalent to approximately 56% of the UK’s GDP. So how much are you worth house-working wise? To find out, our reporter, Tom Hill spoke to Dominic Webber from the Office of National Statistics.

One in four UK businesses say their employees have cut their hours owing to the high cost of childcare. The report from the British Chambers of Commerce also showed that 10% of employers had had staff quit their jobs entirely for the same reason. Its report is calling on the Government to allow policy to revolve around working parents. Measures could include additional childcare subsidies, possibly by extending existing support to the working parents of one and two year olds. Georgie was joined on the line by Marcus Mason, Head of Business, Education and Skills at the British Chambers of Commerce.

Only 32,000 new homes were built in the year to March 2016, compared with 66,600 in the previous 12 months. Critics are calling on the government to do more to encourage house-building and affordable housing. They are waiting with baited breath for the Autumn Statement where the Chancellor will announce his new housing strategy. Our reporter Dan Goldsmith spoke to Sara Mahmoud, chief economist from Shelter, to find out more.

Georgie Frost is joined in the studio by Hannah Maundrell editor in chief of money.co.uk. On the agenda today, they discuss the big political story of the week, the Chancellor Philip Hammond is to deliver his first Autumn Statement and the first since Brexit. Georgie and hannah discuss and deliberate what the Chancellor will say. Elsewhere, the high street is under attack from pensioners, with four in five saying the high street doesn't cater for their needs. Plus they look ahead to Black Friday and Cyber Monday. All these stories and more on The News Review.