Business news in brief
More than 90 per cent of UK businesses trading again
About 92 per cent of UK firms were trading in the two weeks to July 12 as more businesses opened their doors to customers following the easing of lockdown restrictions, according to new figures. The Office for National Statistics said the proportion of active firms rose from 86 per cent in the first two weeks of June, as the economy was boosted by the reopening of non-essential shops and hospitality venues. Businesses currently trading said 7 per cent of their total workforce had returned from furlough in the previous two weeks, while 4 per cent of workers had returned from remote working over the period. Trading firms also said that 6 per cent of their workforce were expected to return from furlough in the next two weeks. AP
Ritter Sport wins German court battle over chocolate
A German federal court cleared the way yesterday for Ritter Sport to maintain its status as the only widely known square chocolate in its home market. The Federal Court of Justice delivered its verdict in a backand-forth, decade-long battle between Ritter and rival Milka, whose owner sought a decade ago to have the German patent office cancel Ritter’s registrations in 1996 and 2001 of its characteristic packaging. Ritter says its square chocolate blocks date back to 1932, with co-founder Clara Ritter’s reasoning that the company should make a bar “that fits in the pocket of every sports jacket without breaking and weighs the same as the normal long bar”. The federal court ruled that the case for cancelling Ritter’s trademark registrations for the packaging was unfounded, and said that was because they “do not consist exclusively of a form that gives the goods a significant value”. AP
Amazon to open 10 new warehouses in India
Amazon’s India unit said yesterday that it will create 10 new warehouses in the country and begin offering auto insurance, in moves aimed at widening the e-commerce giant’s reach in a key growth market. With the expansion, Amazon will have over 60 warehouses, or fulfilment centres, across 15 Indian states, with an area equivalent to more than 100 football fields, the company said in a blogpost. The new warehouses will be set up in 10 cities, including Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, it said. Reuters
Rembrandt and Picasso at face-to-face Sotheby’s auction
Works by Rembrandt, Miro and Picasso will be offered next week when Sotheby’s holds its first face-to-face sale in London since the coronavirus outbreak. With art collectors locked down from Moscow to Manhattan and some fortunes in peril from the economic slump, the antiques broker aims to bring life back to the auction world. Sotheby’s will hold the auction at its Bond Street salerooms on Tuesday, with 71 works spanning half a millennium of European art history. Reuters