Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

Input:
Insurers adopt satellite technology for data insights
 "We have anecdotal examples where you are tracing port activity to better understand that risk. But we can now have [conversations] with the insured party that without this data we couldn't have. Honestly, it would be very hard to aggregate the data in any other way, other than to watch it from space."

Sensors everywhere

Stuckey says it's taken him and the industry "a while" to grasp the centrality of data and data analytics, but he now imagines a world where there are Internet of Things sensors everywhere – in your car, home and on the street.

"A sort of utopian view, that everything is going to be tracked and that you can take that back to a risk."

But it's not just pricing risks. Technology is helping insurers reduce them too.

IAG's executive general manager for innovation, James Orchard, says it is using sensors in flood-prone parts of the country to mitigate damage.

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"It's a simple technology where a dipstick literally has a sensor on a solar panel that communicates directly with the State Emergency Service. They are placed in flood zones and tell the SES when roads are likely to incur flooding," he says.

"This is an example of how sensor technology can be used in the community to make it safer and how we can play a much more active role in that mitigation."

Australian insurers have also been testing in-car technology to try to stem the epidemic of crashes caused by distracted drivers, with IAG testing a smartphone app that rewards customers who don't use their phone while they are in the car.

Where other insurers use telematics (in-car technology that monitors a customer's driving) to reward or penalise drivers, IAG is taking a "carrot" rather than "stick" approach, incentivising drivers with non-insurance rewards – think grocery and fuel vouchers or even charitable donations – that will motivate good driving behaviour.

Discounted premiums

Life insurers such as AIA Group have been using sensor data gathered from Fitbits and smart watches to offer members discounted premiums; this may mean they are abe to tap into lower-income or younger markets who have traditionally shied away from insurance due to cost.

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Health insurer Medibank Private is in talks with Amazon and Google about how to use data to predict customer's health outcomes.

But IAG, like its competitor QBE, is also taking a deeper dive into data and moving beyond telematics.

In its Singapore insurtech lab Firemark Labs, which opened its doors in 2017, the ASX-listed insurer is researching the data points needed for underwriting autonomous vehicles."It's an emerging trend and technology that could have ramifications on the insurance industry. There is plenty of opportunity that we believe will spawn from the introduction of autonomous vehicles," says Orchard.

"Everyone has a different view of the impact they will have. We're [exploring] introducing different services that could complement the autonomous vehicle manufacturers themselves to be able to add value."

But it's one thing to collect huge amounts of data. Stuckey says it's how that data is ultimately used that will be the biggest differentiator between insurers.

"How do you exploit the most value out of it? How do you draw correlations? How do you bring in additional data to complement the data you have today to make the best decision possible?

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"Gone are the days when you have an actuary or a data scientist that is really good at Excel. You do need these artificial intelligence platforms that can help you in that journey because otherwise you can't make any sense of the data.

"Aviation, for example, this is a really rich specialty line in a wide variety of our markets' appetite. A single new jet engine on a Boeing 777 is generating around 16 terabytes of data each year. The volume of that data is something all insurers need to be able to respond to – it's crushing."

Funding remains low

But a 2016 PwC report found only 43 per cent of industry players say they have tech at the heart of their corporate strategies and funding for partnering or trialling new technology in Australia remains low. According to CB Insights, insurtech start-ups attracted around $US1.69 billion in 2016, with only 1 per cent of this coming to Australia.

Lobby group Insurtech Australia is pushing the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to open its regulatory sandbox to more insurtech start-ups wanting to test their products with customers.

Brenton Charnley, co-founder of IA, says insurance-related start-ups differ from fintechs in that they often partner up with larger incumbents, with insurers viewing insurtech as helping their businesses rather than disrupting them.

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It is start-ups that specialise in AI or analytics, such as Sydney-based Hyper Anna, which created virtual data scientists to answer questions about information in corporate systems, that insurers such as IAG will likely invest in to complement their underwriting business.

Suncorp this year introduced the IBM Watson AI technology to provide rapid liability decisions in our online motor claims system.

"The AI technology automates the claims process to create 'zero-touch' claims, meaning customers' claims can be lodged, excess payments determined and repairs booked in as little as five minutes," says Suncorp chief executive for insurance data Gary Dransfield.

Policy wording data

For it's part QBE has a $US50 million ($65.9 million) VC fund that has so far invested in two start-ups – Cytora, an artificial intelligence platform that uses open source data to help commercial insurers lower loss ratios and improve expense ratios, and US-based Risk Genius, a machine-learning platform for analysing policy wording.

"Risk Genius is an example of us trying to exploit policy wording data that we have across all the countries and markets that we operate [and] use that as a competitive advantage," says Stuckey.

He adds that before investing and using Cytora, QBE was avoiding certain risks because of "anecdotal" bad experiences."But the data will tell you today they are actually great risks for us and we can cover them at a very competitive rate and give customers the cover they need to grow their business or buy their home, and we've just ignored them," says Stuckey.

"We are really looking at differentiating our ability to underwrite, price and settle claims in the market, but in reality it's the core of an insurance company's business and that hasn't changed for hundreds of years, we're just trying to do it better."

Output: Insurers are utilising satellite and sensor technology to levy data analytics for determining risk. Information mining could be the largest disruptor in the insurance industry, changing pricing, claims and payments. Among companies making use of the technology, QBE Insurance Group is using satellite readings to track activity such as shipping movements. Elsewhere, Australia's IAG has been testing an app offering drivers rewards when they don't use their smartphone while driving. AIA Group is also using data from tech wearables to determine life-insurance pricing.


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Goldwind raises AUD700m for 530 MW Australian wind project
 Goldwind Australia said today it has secured nearly AUD 700 million (USD 536m/EUR 451m) in financing its 530-MW Stockyard Hill wind project in Victoria, touted as the largest in the southern hemisphere.

The Australian unit of Chinese wind turbine maker Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Tech Co Ltd (HKG:2208) has obtained funds from a consortium of lenders led by the National Australia Bank (NAB). The group of banks included three Australian, three Japanese, two European and one Chinese lenders. Namely, those were Dutch ABN AMRO (AMS:ABN), France-based Societe Generale (EPA:GLE), The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ ltd, Japan’s Mizuho Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, Australian Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:WBC), the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).

The wind project, to be located in Western Victoria, will be powered by Goldwind’s GW3 turbines. Balance of plant services for the project will be provided by a joint venture between Canadian engineering and construction group SNC-Lavalin Group Inc (TSE:SNC) and Australia’s WBHO Infrastructure.

Goldwind expects preliminary works to begin soon, with full construction activities to be underway in the first quarter of 2018. Once completed, the plant will sell its output to Australian utility Origin Energy Ltd (ASX:ORG) under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA).

The Chinese developer agreed to buy the Stockyard Hill wind project from Origin Energy in May for AUD 110 million. The partners then negotiated a PPA price for the output of the plant at below AUD 60 per MWh.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.766/EUR 0.645)

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Output: Goldwind Australia has secured nearly AUD700m ($548m) in financing for its 530 MW Stockyard Hill wind project in Victoria, led by the National Australia Bank and a consortium of international investment banks. Goldwind bought the Stockyard Hill project from Origin Energy for AUD110m and secured a power purchase agreement to sell the plant's output to Origin at below AUD60/MWh. Construction activities will begin in Q1 2018 and the project's plant services will be delivered via a joint venture between Canadian engineering group SNC-Lavalin and Australia’s WBHO Infrastructure.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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New Mexico solar park to sell cheapest PV energy in US
 Chicago-based SoCore Energy LLC is building a 3-MW, community-scale solar power plant in New Mexico that will be selling its output at a price below USD 45.00 (EUR 38.0) per MWh.

The Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) believes that this is the lowest reported contract for distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) energy in the country, it said in a statement. RMI has provided project analysis for the project.

SoCore Energy, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Edison International (NYSE:EIX), has started work on the Carrizozo solar project in Lincoln County. Upon completion in March 2018, the solar plant will be selling its output at the above-mentioned price to non-profit rural electric cooperative Otero County Electric Cooperative Inc (OCEC). The contract has a term of 25 years and calls for OCEC to receive the renewable energy credits (RECs) from the project.

The Carrizozo scheme is expected to generate about USD 550,000 in property tax revenue over its lifetime. More than 25 contractors and other professionals will take part in construction activities at the site, RMI said.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.844)

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Output: A 3 MW solar power plant being built in New Mexico is to sell its power at less than $45/MWh, in what The Rocky Mountain Institute believes to be the lowest reported contract for distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) energy in the US. The plant, which is owned by SoCore Energy, will sell power to non-profit rural electric cooperative Otero County Electric Cooperative (OCEC) under a 25 year contract. OCEC will receive the renewable energy credits from the project.


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Subsidy-free Dutch offshore wind project tender receives bids
 The Dutch government's subsidy-free offshore wind tender for sites I and II of the Hollandse Kust Zuid zone has shown developers are ready to build the wind farm with a capacity of about 700 MW without government support.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy made the announcement on Thursday, the deadline for submitting bids in the tender. The applications will now be assessed over the next several months.

The winner must bring the wind farm online by 2022.

"If these applications do indeed result in an offshore wind farm being constructed without any subsidy, it will be a huge breakthrough," said economic affairs minister Eric Wiebes. The number of applications was not specified. Swedish state-owned utility Vattenfall AB has said it is taking part in the tender. Norwegian oil and gas group Statoil (STO:STLO) has also confirmed its participation.

According to the ministry, the main criteria for selecting a winner are timely construction, the quantity of energy generation and sound risk management.

The Dutch government announced plans for the subsidy-free offshore wind tender in June, in the wake of a German auction where three of the four winning projects would be built without subsidies. The German wind farm, however, will have more time before starting operations.

The next offshore wind tender in the Netherlands will be for a 20-MW innovation project, Borssele wind farm site V. It will open on January 2 and close on January 18, 2018.

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Output: The Dutch government has received an undisclosed number of bids for its unsubsidised offshore wind tender, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy has announced. Applicants are currently being reviewed on the merits of timely construction, the quantity of energy generation and sound risk management. The eventual winner will be required to bring the wind farm online by 2022. "If these applications do indeed result in an offshore wind farm being constructed without any subsidy, it will be a huge breakthrough," said economic affairs minister Eric Wiebes.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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China to monitor PV efficiency to help guide regional investment
 The system will look at curtailment risk and provide guidance to prospective developers based on criteria such as site conditions, regional subsidy levels and local government support.

The information will help to shape the establishment of the government’s yearly PV installation quotas, according to an online statement. The authorities may reduce quotas for areas in which large amounts of solar capacity have gone to waste.

Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) has estimated that roughly 3.28 terawatt-hours of solar capacity was curtailed from the Chinese grid in 2016.

The curtailment of other clean-energy projects, including wind farms, has also been a significant problem for years. However, the NEA unveiled plans at the beginning of this year to facilitate CNY 2.5 trillion ($378.6 billion) of new investment in solar, wind, hydroelectric and nuclear power projects through the end of this decade.

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PV developers completed roughly 24.4 GW of solar projects in the first half of this year, according to NEA data. New capacity additions rose 9% year on year in the January-June period. The country’s cumulative PV installations reached about 77.8 GW at the end of 2016, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

Last month, the NEA and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) announced plans to set up a new wholesale market for distributed-generation (DG) electricity on a pilot basis in the first quarter of 2018. The NEA said that the government will assess the trading system, under which project owners will directly sell electricity to consumers, from the end of next June.

Output: China's National Energy Administration is to set up a new photovoltaic (PV) monitoring system to help channel funding into regions that harness solar power most efficiently. Curtailment -- production of energy that can't be used -- has been a significant roadblock for the development of PV in China, with Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimating that approximately 3.28 TWh of solar capacity was wasted in 2016. The new system will advise prospective developers using data regarding site conditions, regional subsidy levels and local government support and will help shape the establishment of the government's yearly PV installation quotas.


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Israel mulls solar rooftop scheme to reach 2020 renewables target
 The government of Israel is planning to launch a new scheme for rooftop PV installations soon, which is expected bring around 1.6 GW of new solar capacity online over the next three years.

According to information provided to pv magazine by Eitan Parnass, founder and director of Israel’s Green Energy Association, the new scheme is aimed at helping the country achieve its 2020 renewable energy target, which is a 10% share in total energy consumption, based on a solar energy contribution of 3.5 GW.

Under the new scheme, which is currently under a public hearing, PV installations up to 15 kW will be eligible to access the net metering scheme, or to apply for a 25-year FIT contract at a tariff of 0.39 ILS ($0.111)/kWh. This FIT will not be indexed to inflation.

Furthermore, the scheme will support PV systems ranging in size from 15 to 50 kW, with a 25-year FIT of 0.33 ILS ($0.094)/kWh.

As for net metering, Eitan said that there are still around 285 MW of projects that can be realized before the original 400 MW cap set by the government will be reached.

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Projects up to 5 MW will be still entitled to be developed under this mechanism; ground-mounted installations will not be entitled, however, as per the prior regulation.

A new grid fee covering storage costs will also be introduced, which is expected to total 0.03 ILS ($0.008)/kWh.

Israel currently has an installed PV capacity of 1 GW. Another 1 GW is expected to come from a series of six tenders totaling 1 GW, which was launched this year and will run through 2018.

Of the current installed capacity, around 200 MW comes from PV projects exceeding 12 MW, while the remaining power is represented by residential installations up to 15 kW (50 MW), commercial installations ranging in size from 15 kW to 50 kW (240 MW), and distributed generation PV plants up to 12 MW (315 MW).

Output: A new scheme to promote rooftop solar-panel installations in Israel is hoped to bring online about 1.6 GW of new solar capacity and help the country reach its 10% renewable energy goal by 2020. The scheme would allow photovoltaic (PV) installations up to 15 KW to be eligible to access the net metering scheme or to apply for a 25-year feed-in tariff (FIT) of 0.39 ILS/KWH ($0.111/KWH). Meanwhile, PV installations ranging from 15 KW to 50 KW will be supported with a 25-year FIT of 0.33 ILS/KWH.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

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Vattenfall to deliver 1.5 TWh of power to AkzoNobel
 Swedish state-owned utility Vattenfall AB has signed a power supply deal with Akzo Nobel NV (AMS:AKZA) that will help the Dutch paints and speciality chemicals company meet its 2050 goal for carbon neutrality.

The contract calls for Vattenfall to supply 1.5 TWh of electricity for AkzoNobel’s chemical production facilities in Delfzijl, Hengelo and Rotterdam, the Netherlands, Vattenfall said on Friday. In addition, the Swedish utility will manage fluctuations in energy use that will lead to improved cost control and increased use of renewables for its Dutch client and provide the latter with access to the energy market through its trading operations.

“This agreement is testimony to the expertise of Vattenfall as a partner in the energy transition and is consistent with our own Planet Possible sustainability strategy for efficient resource and energy use across the entire value chain,” said Knut Schwalenberg, chairman of AkzoNobel Netherlands.

Vattenfall noted that the deal can be expanded to Germany, Denmark and Sweden. Since the start of 2017, the utility has been supplying power to seven of the Dutch company’s factories in Sweden and Finland. The annual power volume under the deal is 1.25 TWh.

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Output: Sweden's Vattenfall will supply 1.5 TWh of electricity to Dutch paint and speciality chemicals firm, AkzoNobel, to help it meet its 2050 carbon target. The Swedish state-owned utility will supply power for AkzoNobel's chemical production sites in Delfzijl, Hengelo and Rotterdam. It will also manage energy use fluctuations for better cost control and provide AkzoNobel with access to the power market through its trading operations. Vattenfall has provided power to the Dutch company's facilities in Sweden and Finland since the start of 2017.


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AMP Capital invests €245m in French power developer Neoen
 Australia-based global investment manager, AMP Capital has provided French independent power producer Neoen with €245 million in mezzanine financing.

AMP Capital stressed that the financing was validated as a green bond, following due diligence by Vigeo Eiris, a global provider of environmental, social and governance (ESG) research to investors and public and private corporates.

Neoen will use these funds for a 1.6 GW portfolio of onshore wind and solar photovoltaic assets, located mainly in France and Australia, AMP Capital said.

The investment is being made through AMP Capital Infrastructure Debt Fund III (IDF III), which closed to new investors in August 2017, after raising around $2.5 billion.

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“Neoen’s international ambition and track record of success allows us to secure significant long-term financings, achieve economies of scale and join forces with leading investors such as AMP Capital,” said the company’s CEO Xavier Barbaro.

Neoen, which is active in several solar markets across the globe, has recently secured a PPA for 100 MW of solar in Australia and is teaming up with Tesla to install a 129 MWh lithium-ion battery in the country.

The company is also active in Argentina, where it is planning to building a 200 MW solar plant, and in El Salvador, where it recently completed a 101 MW solar facility. Furthermore, in April it announced it was the main winner of the tender organized by the French government with 10 projects (86 MW) awarded in the CRE 4 programme.

Output: Global investment manager AMP Capital has invested in the independent French power developer Neoen with mezzanine funding of €245m ($295m). Neoen, which is active in global solar markets including Australia and Argentina, will use the funding for a 1.6 GW portfolio of onshore wind and solar PV assets in France and Australia, according to AMP Capital. Neoen other projects include a Tesla partnership to install a 129 MWh lithium-ion battery in Australia and a 200 MW solar plant in Argentina.


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China opens 2 km solar highway
 The idea of solar roads has been dismissed by many as being impractical. But that didn’t stop China from opening one for testing today, joining the ranks of France, Holland, and other countries giving it a shot.

In Jinan, the capital of the northeastern Shandong province, traffic is now rolling over a stretch of expressway that’s also generating electricity from the sun, according to state-run CCTV (link in Chinese). Extending for 1 km (0.6 miles), the stretch is made of three layers: transparent concrete on the top, photovoltaic panels in the middle, and insulation on the bottom. The area covered comes out to 5,875 square meters (63,200 sq ft).

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China is billing the project as the world’s first photovoltaic highway. In late 2016, a village in France opened what it claimed was the world’s first solar-panel road, running for about the same length as China’s new stretch though covering about half the area. In 2014, the Netherlands built a bike path embedded with solar panels.

The Jinan stretch includes two lanes and an emergency lane and is designed for both electricity generation and public transport, according to Zhang Hongchao, a project designer and transportation engineering expert at China’s Tongji University interviewed by CCTV. He said the expressway could handle 10 times more pressure than the normal asphalt variety and in a year generate 1 million kWH of electricity, which will be used to power street lights and a snow-melting system on the road. It’s also designed to supply power to charging stations for electric vehicles, should those be added in the future.

But it might be a while before the project can expand, he noted, as the road cost around 3,000 yuan ($458) per sq m, significantly higher than regular streets.

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Still, the project signals China’s solar-power ambitions. Last year the country became the world’s top solar-energy producer, boosting its photovoltaic capacity to around 78 gigawatts, and it’s aiming for 105 by 2020. China’s eastern city of Huainan, meanwhile, operates the world’s biggest floating solar project, which could eventually power 94,000 homes.

Output: China has opened a 2 km solar expressway, joining France and the Netherlands in testing the technology. The road is made up of an insulating layer on the bottom, photovoltaic panels in the middle and transparent concrete on top. The solar panels cover 5,875 sq metres and can generate 1 million kWh of power a year, enough to meet the energy demands of about 800 homes, the developer said. The cost of the solar road was about $458 per sq metre, compared with about $260 per sq metre for rooftop solar and about $200 per sq metre for asphalt road.


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World's biggest solar panel maker posts $355m Q3 loss
 Yingli Chairman and CEO Liansheng Miao attributed the fall in quarterly shipments to lower demand from the end of the first half, as the company tried to strike a balance between maintaining shipment volumes and ensuring that its operating cash flows remained sufficient. It expects to ship 700 MW to 800 MW of solar panels in the fourth quarter, and it has raised its full-year guidance for PV module shipments to between 2.8 GW and 2.9 GW.

“Distributed generation (DG) projects maintained strong development momentum,” Miao said. “Therefore, the company adjusted its market strategy and developed more small and medium scale customers to penetrate the DG market.”

Revenue hit RMB 1,678.7 million in the July-September period, from RMB 3,173.6 million in the second quarter of this year. The company recorded an operating loss of RMB 2,266.7 million, while its gross profit fell by roughly half from the preceding quarter to RMB 26.5 million, with a gross margin of 1.6%. Earnings before interest, tax expenses, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) stood at negative RMB 2,116.3 million on a non-GAAP basis, according to an online statement.

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Throughout the quarter, Yingli continued to restructure its overseas sales network, which is based in Madrid. It completed this process in November, with all operations now centralized out of Europe.

Output: China's Yingli Green Energy saw its net loss widen to CNY2.3bn ($352m) in Q3 2017, up from CNY335.4m in the same period in 2016. It also reported a 48% drop in quarterly photovoltaic (PV) module shipments to 597.7 MW. CEO Liansheng Miao said the decrease in shipments on the previous quarter was due to lower demand as Yingli tried to balance shipment volumes with operating cash flows. It expects to ship 700 MW to 800 MW of PV panels in 4Q, and raised its full-year guidance for shipments to between 2.8 GW and 2.9 GW.


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US DOE approves $12m funding for solar technologies
 The US Department of Energy (DOE) will extend USD 12 million (EUR 10.1m) to finance eight projects developing technologies that forecast solar generation levels, it announced on Tuesday.

The funds will be provided by the Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) that supports early-stage research and development (R&D) in the solar sector. They will be split between eight projects seeking to advance solar forecasting technologies, improve variability management and thus enhance grid reliability and resilience.

“These projects will address a critical gap in our research, which is knowing precisely how much solar electricity to expect at any given hour on any given day,” said energy secretary Rick Perry.

More specifically, four of the selected projects will seek to make “significant advances” in solar forecasting, while another project will develop an open-source framework for evaluation of solar irradiation, plant generation and net-load forecasts. The other three schemes will explore the integration of advanced forecasting technologies with grid planning and operations systems.

The largest portion of the financing, of USD 1.8 million, will go for the Electric Power Research Institute in Tennessee for a project that will develop improved probabilistic solar and net load forecasts for three separate utility case studies. The other winners are the University of Arizona, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, University of California San Diego, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which will work on two projects, the Brookhaven National Laboratory and Johns Hopkins University.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.844)

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Output: The US Department of Energy (DOE) has authorised $12m in further funding for solar forecasting technologies. The money will be split between eight projects which aim to enhance forecasting technologies, advance variability management and improve grid reliability and resilience. Some $1.8m of the funding will go to the Electric Power Research Institute in Tennessee, towards a scheme developing better probabilistic solar and net load predictions. Other winners include the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the University of Arizona and John Hopkins University.


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Singapore achieves 21.5% efficiency from printed solar cell
 SERIS has reached 21.5% average efficiency using its monoPoly silicon solar cell technology. The institute used a pilot scale production line, and commercially available Si wafers.

The technology developed by SERIS, named MonoPoly, is bifacial and can be applied to both n-type and p-type wafers. It aims to provide similar efficiency levels to modern PERC concepts, at a lower cost.

“MonoPoly cells use the same tools and fewer process steps compares standard p-type PERC technology,” says Shubham Duttagupta, head of SERIS monocrystalline silicon solar cell group.

“[It delivers] a very attractive cost of ownership for solar cell manufacturers seeking to boost cell efficiencies in their current production lines, or planning for new production lines.”

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The team will now work on pushing efficiencies even higher, and expects to break the 23% mark through material improvements and fine tuning of production processes.

“This result is a testament to SERIS’ long-standing commitment to work closely with the solar industry to reduce the $/watt, improve the cell efficiencies and increase the margins of our industry partners through technology innovation,” added SERIS CEO Armin Aberle.

Earlier in 2017, SERIS announced the beginning of a three-year research partnership with JinkoSolar, which is focused on bifacial cell technology.

Output: The Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) has achieved a 21.5% average efficiency for its printed silicon solar cell technology. The bifacial MonoPoly technology can be used on both n-type and p-type wafers, and aims to offer similar efficiency levels to modern passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) concepts, at lower cost. SERIS will now seek to improve the cells' efficiency and expects to reach the 23% mark though improvements to materials and the production process.


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EIB awards Oxford PV €15m to build perovskite solar plant
 Oxford PV has picked up financing in several rounds of investment over the past two years.

€15 million in funding has been awarded to Oxford PV Germany GmbH, a subsidiary of the U.K.-based perovskite solar cell developer. Funding is provided by EU nonprofit lender, EIB to support bringing perovskite on silicon tandem cell technology into commercial production.

This will be the first financing in Germany issued under the ‘Innovfin – EU Finance for innovators Energy Demonstrator Projects, which aims at supporting both European innovation and action on climate change.

“I am delighted to sign the contract with Oxford PV today,” said Ambroise Fayolle, Vice President of the EIB responsible for Germany and InnovFin.

“The company has demonstrated the necessary parameters in efficiency and stability on its perovskite photvoltaic technology, to engage commercially with major industry players and play a key role in enhancing solar energy supply in the future.”

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Oxford PV has picked up financing in several rounds of investment over the past two years. In late 2016, the company announced it had acquired a former thin-film production facility owned by Bosch Solar in Brandenburg, approximately 100 km from the German capital, which it will continue to invest this latest round of financing in.

“The EIB financing recognizes our considerable progress to date and the opportunity our technology has to dramatically transform silicon solar cell economics,” said Oxford PV CEO Frank Averdung.

“The funding will allow Oxford PV to continue to invest in its demonstration line infrastructure, enabling the rapid transfer of its perovskite on silicon tandem solar cell technology from the lab to an industrial scale process in collaboration with our joint development partner – a large scale manufacturer of solar cells and modules.”

Output: Oxford PV has secured €15m ($18m) from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to help take its perovskite solar cell technology into commercial production. Oxford PV Germany, a subsidiary of the UK-based developer, received the funding from InnovFin Energy Demonstration Projects, which supports European action on climate change. It will help the company build its perovskite on silicon tandem solar cell technology into an industrial-scale process in collaboration with its joint development partner, a large-scale solar cell and module manufacturer.


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California can meet power needs without solar on farmland
 Researchers from the University of California have looked at alternatives to installing solar on land that could otherwise be used for crops, and developed a model using California’s central valley as a case study.

The model evaluates four different alternative land types for PV deployments – urban rooftops, walls and building facades, land which is too salty for crops, contaminated land such as brownfield and superfund sites, and water reservoirs suitable for floating PV installations.

The researchers delineated a 58,815 km² region of California’s Central Valley to make their calculations, and using satellite radiation models developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, theorized that these four land types have the potential to host PV installations generating at least 17,348 TWh/year – around 13 times California’s projected annual electricity demand up to 2025.

In regions where space for solar is limited, particularly in Japan and Taiwan, alternatives such as floating PV installations have already begun to make a splash, although Governments here are still likely to face some difficult decisions regarding the trade off between energy and food security.

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While space is at somewhat less of a premium in California, it is still a vital agricultural region, and efficient land use is an important concern for the future.

The study, ‘Land Sparing Opportunities for Solar Energy Development in Agricultural Landscapes: A Case Study of the Great Central Valley, CA United States,’ is published in the American Chemical Society’s Environment Science and Technology Journal.

Output: California could meet all its energy needs without building photovoltaic (PV) panels on productive farmland, according to University of California researchers. The scientists examined four alternatives for deploying solar: built environments such as urban rooftops, building facades and walls; land too salty for crops; contaminated land, and water reservoirs for floating solar facilities. Looking at the state's Central Valley for calculations, the researchers forecast that the four land types could contain PV installations producing 17,348 TWh/year or more, which is approximately 13 times the state's expected yearly power demand up to 2025.


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Hanergy partners with Chinese EV group for solar-run cars, homes
 Thin film solar cells in panoramic glass roofs of Audi models: Audi and Alta Devices, a subsidiary of the Chinese solar-cell specialist, Hanergy, are working together on this development project. With this cooperation, the partners aim to generate solar energy to increase the range of electric vehicles.

At a conference held at Hanergy’s headquarters in Beijing, the company announced a partnership with BAIC BJEV, the electric vehicle unit of Beijing Automotive Group.

The two companies will work together on applications including building and vehicle integrated solar panels and charging stations, and other projects utilizing thin film solar technology.

The companies will partner on developing rooftop solar for vehicles, which Hanergy says could provide auxiliary power, and even function as the main power source for a vehicle, as well as charging. The partnership will also cover adding rooftop solar to BAIC BJEV’s automobile factories.

On top of this, the two will also cooperate on building model villages incorporating all of these technologies, and other unspecified projects exploring the application of thin-film solar for agriculture and poverty alleviation.

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“Hanergy’s partnership with BAIC BJEV stands as a model for cooperation between the thin film solar and the new energy vehicle industries,” said Hanergy CEO Si Haijian. “reflecting the push within Chinese industry to transform energy production and consumption.”

Since announcing a return to profitability for full year 2016, Hanergy has announced several partnerships focused on integrating its thin film technology with vehicles, including a partnership with German car maker Audi, and with several major bikesharing companies.

Output: Hanergy is teaming up with a Chinese electric vehicle (EV) group to develop thin-film solar technology for cars and homes. Among other projects, Hanergy and BAIC BJEV -- the EV unit of Beijing Automotive Group -- will work together on home- and vehicle-integrated solar panels and charging units. Rooftop solar could provide auxiliary, and possibly even main, power for a vehicle, in addition to charging, Hanergy claims. The pair will also add rooftop solar to BAIC BJEV's car factories. In addition, the partnership will explore the use of thin-film solar for agriculture and poverty alleviation.


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EIB and Yes Bank pledge $400m for Indian renewables
 The European Investment Bank (EIB) and India-based private sector financier Yes Bank are supporting Indian solar and wind projects with a new US$400 million co-financing initiative.

EIB will provide a 15-year US$200 million loan, with the remainder of the financing coming from Yes Bank, project promoters and other financial institutions.

Details of the new initiative are expected to be finalised in the coming weeks, although the aim is to streamline project financing and an EIB release said that eligible solar projects have already been identified in the states of Rajasthan, Telangana, Maharashtra and Karnataka, with other solar and wind projects under examination.

“This new financing programme will make a significant contribution to harnessing wind power and solar energy to produce green energy, create thousands of jobs during construction and strengthen technical and financial skills for the renewable energy sector to expand,” said Andrew McDowell, EIB vice president.

“With this transaction we remain well on track to achieve our commitment to finance 5,000MW of RE made at the first Re-Invest summit in Feb 2015 and is also synchronous with our COP 21 commitment of mobilizing US$5 billion for climate finance by 2020,” said Rana Kapoor, managing director and chief executive of Yes Bank.

Back in June, three major development banks joined Yes Bank by signing a charter to mobilize green investments in India.

Output: The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Yes Bank have teamed up to provide $400m in funding for Indian renewables. The EIB will provide a 15-year $200m loan as part of the co-financing initiative, with the remainder coming from Indian private sector financier Yes Bank, project promoters and other financial institutions. Eligible solar schemes have already been identified in the states of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Telangana, and other solar and wind projects are under consideration.


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CaliBurger to use facial recognition to take food orders
 CaliBurger’s new kiosk uses facial recognition to take orders Finally, no more shaming when you ask for a diet Coke with your six burgers.

Cashier-less ordering kiosks are becoming more and more commonplace at fast food restaurants like Wendy's and McDonald's. But Golden State burger chain CaliBurger is taking that one step further: its new self-ordering kiosks use AI and facial-recognition technology to order, pay and log into the chain's loyalty/rewards program. It'll even remember your crazy custom order to boot.

"Our goal is to replace credit card swipes with face-based payments," parent company CEO John Miller said in a press release (PDF). Security and the underlying recognition tech are being handled by NEC Corporation. While this sounds incredibly convenient, it's basically just a high-tech way of pulling up a favorite order the way you would via a mobile-ordering app.

For now, the pilot program is only available at the chain's Pasadena test store, and CaliBurger says that if it proves a success there will be a global rollout next year. If you'll remember, that's the same location where CaliBurger tried out robotic burger-flipping. Unlike that test, though, this one seems expressly designed to eliminate human employees.

Output: US fast food restaurant CaliBurger is trialling a new self-serve kiosk which uses AI and facial-recognition technology to allow customers to place orders, pay and log in to a rewards account. The facial recognition software will also enable customers to store their orders so that when they next visit, they can order their food just by looking in to the camera. The technology and security is developed and overseen by NEC Corporation. The sole test kiosk currently in operation can be found in the Pasadena CaliBurger store, with global rollouts pending a successful trial.


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NYSE, ProShares seek SEC approval to list bitcoin futures ETFs
 As custodian for the funds, Brown Brothers Harriman would oversee investment assets and cash equivalents as well as prepare and make regulatory filings. Marc Chandler and Win Thin, two of the bank's foreign exchange strategists, are widely followed among currency brokers.

The funds would track either the Cboe or CME bitcoin futures and would invest their assets in benchmark futures contracts with the option of investing in contracts outside the benchmark.

The NYSE wants to list the ProShares Bitcoin ETF and the ProShares Short Bitcoin ETF, two exchange-traded funds that would allow traders to bet on how the volatile cryptocurrency futures contracts will perform. ProShares, which has more than $29 billion in assets under management, filed its own documents with the SEC for the two bitcoin ETFs in September.

A bitcoin ETF took another step closer to reality after the NYSE filed with the SEC to list two funds tracking bitcoin futures.

Recent developments have been boosting the profile of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which are unregulated and highly volatile. Futures began trading this month, believed to be a way to draw professional investors and oversight. An ETF product would add further legitimacy.

"It's very hard for us, as currency analysts, to follow this," said Thin, who is Brown Brothers' global head of emerging markets strategy. "It represents further mainstreaming. Hopefully that what comes out of this: some more regulatory oversight."

"Beyond that, we don't have any calls on where it will go from here."

Despite bitcoin's notorious volatility, the cryptocurrency has soared nearly 2,000 percent in the past year, according to Coinbase. Cboe futures were down 3.6 percent Wednesday.

Like other ETFs, investors in the ProShares Bitcoin ETF would reap benefits when the value of futures contracts climbs.

"By being long Bitcoin Futures Contracts, the Fund seeks to benefit from daily increases in the price of the Bitcoin Futures Contracts," according to the SEC filing. "The Fund will not be benchmarked to the current price of bitcoin and will not invest directly in bitcoin. When the price of Bitcoin Futures Contracts held by the Fund declines, the Fund will lose value."

On the other hand, investors in the ProShares Short Bitcoin ETF would benefit when the daily value of the futures falls and, like the first fund, would not be directly invested in bitcoin.

Bitcoin fans have long wanted an ETF for the digital currency without much success. But turning that dream into reality appeared to become much more likely after two of the world's largest options exchanges — Cboe and CME — launched bitcoin futures contracts within the past month.

"I think it is going to enable finally the approval of bitcoin ETFs, and other digital currency ETFs, which is game changing," Barry Silbert, founder and CEO of Digital Currency Group, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" earlier this month.

— CNBC's Evelyn Cheng contributed to this report.

Output: The New York Stock Exchange has sought Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval to list two bitcoin-linked exchange-traded funds managed by ProShares. The ETF provider has also filed a request with the SEC to launch the products, which give investors exposure to the cryptocurrency via futures contracts. The funds -- one of which allows investors to bet against the cryptocurrency -- would invest in benchmark futures contracts, though with the option to invest outside of the benchmark.


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Robo-adviser for women Ellevest introduces tiered pricing system
 Sallie Krawcheck is using a recent infusion of venture capital to expand the offering of Ellevest, a digital-advice platform for women, to three service levels.

Investors can access the robo-adviser by itself for 25 basis points (formerly 50 basis points), which includes algorithmic portfolio construction, tax minimization strategies, and now support from human advisers via email and text.

For 50 basis points and an account minimum of $50,000, investors can access Ellevest Premium, which includes the technology platform as well as personalized goals-based planning from an adviser with certified financial planner credentials. Ellevest Premium also advises on preparing for a big job interview, negotiating salary or asking for a raise through a partnership with Forshay, a career coaching and executive recruiting firm.

The current national conversation surrounding discrimination women face in the workforce plays into Ellevest’s mission, its chief executive said.

“This year’s seemingly endless flow of headlines on sexual harassment has underscored the obstacles women continue to face to achieving financial success,” Ms. Krawcheck said in a statement. “It’s core to the Ellevest mission to be an advocate for women’s contributions to the economy, to call foul on what impedes their success and to help women succeed regardless. Money is power, confidence, control — and can be the freedom to take this job and shove it, if needed.”

(More: Sallie Krawcheck wants Ellevest to change the way women save for retirement)

A third financial-advice offering Ms. Krawcheck is introducing is Ellevest Private Wealth Management, a service that more closely resembles a traditional RIA relationship for women with at least $1 million in investable assets. Ellevest PWM includes a dedicated adviser and an increased menu of investment options focused on “driving social impact and advancing women.”

A spokesperson for Ellevest said the demand for this high-touch service came from existing Ellevest clients who wanted greater service for assets not invested on the Ellevest robo.

Previously, Ellevest provided only one service offering: the purely digital option. The company said it’s algorithm factors in the unique financial circumstances women face related to pay, career breaks and lifespan.

Ellevest raised $34 million in funding in September, led by Rethink Impact. Some have pointed out the high client-acquisition costs robo-advisers face, and have questioned whether charging low fees on relatively small accounts will allow robos to grow enough to provide an adequate return on investment for venture capital backers.

An Ellevest spokesperson declined to comment on how the company is tackling this challenge, but the tiered model Ellevest is introducing has been used by other robos to attract larger accounts. For example, Betterment added a premium service earlier this year that includes access to human advisers with its technology product. Ellevest PWM could help even further offset costs.

(More: Betterment funding jumps $100 million, boosting valuation to $700 million)

Since Ms. Krawcheck launched Ellevest in May 2016, the company has attracted $67.6 million in assets under management among 9,700 accounts, according to its most recent Form ADV.

Output: Following a recent funding round, female-centric robo-adviser Ellevest has introduced a new pricing structure. The platform will now be split into three levels of service. The first, costing 25 bps, gives clients access to algorithmic portfolio creation and advice from human advisers via digital communications. For 50 bps and a minimum investment of $50,000, clients can gain access to personalised goal-planning advice from a certified adviser, as well as information such as career advice. Lastly, the firm is offering a private wealth management service for clients with more than $1m in investing assets.


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JPMorgan to introduce low-cost robo-adviser in 2018
 JPMorgan Chase has announced it will be releasing a lower-cost digital wealth management tool this week, with plans to offer it to some clients in March with a wide release in mid-2018.

The goal is to offer “guidance and advice for a broad range of clients, whether you have a few thousand dollars, or more,” said Kelli Keough, head of digital wealth management.

Currently named JPMorgan Digital Investing, the robo advisory service will ask customers questions regarding their age, risk appetite and behaviours, thereafter modelling an ETF portfolio according to preset rules.

This latest robo advice offering follows the release of several digital wealth services by major banks in the sector, all seeking to attract customers with lower amounts to invest in the hopes of turning them into future high wealth clients.

In the US, both Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo released its millennial-targeted robo advisors earlier this year.

The bank has yet to announce its plan for fees, however Keough has stated they will be available by the March release. The minimum investment is expected to be below $5,000.

Output: JPMorgan Chase is planning to introduce a low-cost wealth management tool in 2018. The firm will allow a sub-section of clients to access the tool in March, with a full launch planned for the middle of the year. The platform, dubbed JPMorgan Digital Investing, will ask clients questions to determine their investment goals and risk appetite. Clients will then be able to access a model portfolio constructed using exchange-traded funds.


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Aviva, Tencent partner in big-data lab for Chinese AI push
 Aviva-Cofco Life Insurance announced Thursday a strategic partnership with Tencent Holdings in developing a big data lab. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Aviva-Cofco Life Insurance announced Thursday a strategic partnership with Tencent Holdings in developing a big data lab, as the latest commitment to leverage tech power in developing business.

The big data lab co-developed by Tencent is an important step in Aviva’s insurance digitalization. “Working with Tencent can help us better understand our customers and enhance our precision marketing with data sets,” said Yu Ning，president of Aviva-Cofco Life Insurance.

Tencent is working on a big data analysis model that can better cover Aviva-Cofco’s preferences and needs. Going forward, Tencent will focus on pinning down Aviva-Cofco’s target customers and improving their user experience by implementing artificial intelligence.

“The implementation of big data in insurance can also help with risk management and further reduce management costs,” said Yu. “Our customers can enjoy a better product with a lower price.”

Aviva Plc, the British shareholder of Aviva-Cofco, has been reshaping the industry with its implementation of digital technologies. Starting from 2014, the company has cultivated a specialized group aimed at big data analysis and online sales.

To date, Aviva has been investing more than 100 million pounds ($133.7 million) in insurance digitalization and related research on a yearly basis.

Liu Yukun contributed to this story

Output: Aviva's Chinese affiliate is to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to focus marketing and improve customer experiences in a big-data project with technology giant Tencent. The two will open a lab to analyse the insurer's business data. It's all part of UK-based Aviva's investment programme in its global digital operations, which has seen it spend about $134m a year since 2014.


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WeChat mobile payments arrive in United Kingdom
 Consumers use WeChat Pay at an exhibition in Fuzhou, Fujian province. [Photo/for China Daily]

In the middle of London's Camden Market, a trader from China hands red-bean cakes to a group of tourists from Sweden, as tattooed locals dressed in black leather weave their way between food stalls cooking up dishes, including barbecued meat and fish and chips.

The market, which has been at the heart of London's punk scene since the 1970s, has evolved into one of the capital's busiest tourist attractions. It draws hundreds of thousands of people every week to its maze of clothing shops, tattoo and piercing parlors and food stands.

And starting this month, Chinese visitors will be able to buy goods with the mobile payment platform WeChat Pay.

Camden Market is a sharp contrast to luxury shopping hot spots such as Bicester Village and Oxford Street, where Chinese tourists spend millions of pounds each year. It might not seem to be the obvious choice for the United Kingdom launch of WeChat's hugely popular digital wallet, which accounts for 40 percent of the Chinese mobile payment market.

However, the number of Chinese visitors to Camden is climbing. In September 2016, 5 percent of its visitors were Chinese. The proportion doubled to 10 percent in March.

"In terms of demographics, the number of Chinese tourists in Camden is certainly growing, and in terms of a brand, Camden was an obvious choice. It's iconic in London," said Craig Jacoby, head of retail payments at Safe-Charge.

WeChat has worked with SafeCharge, a British payment technology company, to make WeChat Pay available at point-of-sale locations in the UK for the first time.

During the next four months, SafeCharge will provide more than 1,000 Camden Market vendors with a software update that enables in-store payment terminals to generate QR codes and perform WeChat Pay transactions.

Chinese tourists spent 513 million pounds ($681 million) in the UK last year, according to tourism authority VisitBritain. Camden Market's management wants to better accommodate those big-spending visitors.

Jacoby said WeChat Pay will soon be available at other shopping destinations in London, and the service is also launching at six large retailers in Paris as WeChat moves forward with its international expansion.

WeChat Pay rival Alipay has also made recent moves in Europe. In October, Alipay expanded its partnership with Dutch payment company Adyen to facilitate in-store mobile payments at retail partners in the UK.

In Camden, merchants and customers were upbeat about the development. Yi-yin Wei, a shopkeeper from Taiwan province, who sells red-bean cakes at a stall called Wheel Cake Island, thought the update would be useful.

"Chinese mainland people are used to paying for things with their phones, so it will be like home for them," Wei said.

Angel Chow, a tourist from Hong Kong visiting the market, said mainland shoppers will likely spend more money when they have WeChat Pay as an option.

"They will find it convenient if they can use their phones and will buy more. I think they will be excited to be able to use it in England," Chow said.

Other Camden merchants were not sure there would be enough demand. Vari McGeachy, manager of Books Iconica, said fewer than 5 percent of her customers are from Asia.

"We don't have many Chinese people coming through the doors, and when they do, they don't have a problem paying with cash or card," McGeachy said. "It wouldn't be worth having to train my staff about a new system."

SafeCharge Chief Executive David Avgi said in general, there is great motivation to accommodate Chinese consumers in Europe, where 50 percent of luxury purchases are made by Asian tourists.

And he said it is a matter of time before the mobile payment systems that are ubiquitous in China catch on in the West.

Output: Chinese visitors to the UK can now use WeChat, China's "app for everything", to buy their souvenirs. WeChat Pay was made available for point-of-sale locations in the UK through a partnership with British fintech firm SafeCharge, beginning in November 2017. According to VisitBritain, Chinese tourists spent £513 million in Britain last year.


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Toffee slices, dices insurance to crack Indian millennial market
 EXCLUSIVE— Less is more is not often a philosophy that’s applied to insurance, at least not in the United States.

When it comes to India things might be different. That’s why insurtech startup Toffee is offering consumers in the country more tailored, “bite-sized” products, rather than less flexible, more traditional insurance plans.

“Six to seven percent of people in India have formal health insurance, so there’s a huge population that’s not covered,” Nishant Jain, co-founder and chief product officer for Toffee told Bank Innovation. “The problem we were trying to solve was, how do we get Indians to buy health insurance online?”

As so much of the population remains uninsured, the insurance market in India represents a vast opportunity for companies, Jain said, especially when it comes to millennial customers—specifically, those between 20 to 29 years of age. Toffee is not focusing solely on the health insurance market, but is launching products for a variety of use cases.

That’s the segment Toffee is focusing on, offering “micro” insurance products engineered to cover particular instances where insurance might be useful to those millennial consumers: rent, backpacking, or commuting insurance, for example.

“There’s a huge market there which no one is trying to grab today,” Jain said, of the millennial insurance industry in India, partially because they don’t “need” overly complicated, jargon-heavy, or more comprehensive policies, Jain said.

The company, which officially launched three weeks ago according to Jain, is currently live with three of its micro products, including a policy for Dengue fever treatment, a daily commuting policy for travelers who might be “exposed” to accidents,” and a “Globetrotter” policy for international travel.

Other products, including policies for rent, a “Stay Fit” policy and a backpacking policy (for accidents or other events that may occur during a backpacking trip), will follow over the next few months, the company said. It is currently partnering with other firms in order to bring its products to customers, rather than going direct to consumer, Jain said.

“We are doing B2C marketing, better to go from B2B2C,” Jain said of Toffee’s approach, adding that the company has signed with several distribution partners including 1mg, which is “India’s largest online pharmacy,” Jain said.

Toffee’s main benefit to its distribution partners is the fact that it is a fully digital, mobile-enabled platform, Jain said, which enables tasks such as filing a claim to be completed with a much higher speed than they would be traditionally.

“Claiming in India is very difficult, it takes [customers] 2 to 3 weeks just to get the money in their accounts,” Jain said. “80% of claims, we can approve, money in your account, in 2 days.”

Whether “bite-sized” insurance is the way to the millennial market in India remains to be seen—it’s only been three weeks after all—but it is certainly something to keep watching.

To learn more about the latest developments in insurtech and global fintech, join us on March 5-6, 2018 at the Parc 55 in San Francisco for Bank Innovation 2018. Click here to register.

Output: India-based insurtech start-up Toffee is looking to crack the millennial market by selling micro-insurance, offering policies only when a customer requires them. For example, with only 6%-7% of Indians taking out comprehensive health insurance, Toffee offers coverage for specific diseases, such as Dengue fever, co-founder Nishant Jain said. Toffee is also aiming to speed up the claims process in India, reducing it from the typical two-to-three weeks to as little as two days, he said.


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Reinsurance M&A to pick up after catastrophe losses: Clyde & Co
 2017’s record-level losses from natural catastrophes and other growing market pressures could act as a catalyst for M&A activity in the U.S. insurance industry next year, according to Clyde & Co.

Analysts said M&As had taken something of a back seat in the insurance industry over the last 18 months, but changing factors in the market environment, such as increased rates in loss-affected lines, cuts to corporate tax rates, and development of InsurTech start-ups have made it likely that insurers place a renewed focus on acquisitions.

Clyde & Co said that after a year of heavy losses “we expect a number of insurance businesses will see their balance sheets come under increasing strain.

“This could serve as a trigger for a wave of M&A in 2018 as re/insurers look for partners to help absorb these losses or consider putting their businesses up for sale.”

On the other hand, if pricing pressure decreases due to rate hikes in loss-affected lines, it could give firms the capacity to focus on strategic M&A activity.

The InsurTech revolution is expected to be another driver of acquisitions, as re/insurers hunt for start-ups with a proven track record of success to fill the need for strategic innovation.

In addition, Clyde & Co noted that abundant liquidity in the market means “there’s little room for insurers to differentiate on price. And the rise of broker facilities and an increasing number of managing general agents entering the market is putting additional pressure on insurers.”

In Europe, the uncertainty created by Brexit had placed a significant brake on M&A activity – with firms choosing to focus on Brexit contingency plans.

However, Clyde & Co expects that in 2018 a difficult trading environment where investment returns remain under pressure will mean that growth remains a priority.

Re/insurers could come under additional pressure from alternative capital gaining a larger proportion of market share through expanding beyond current lines of business and into new areas, analysts believe this could result in additional pressure on pricing in which some businesses are put up for sale.

However, Clyde & Co analysts cautioned that with growing geopolitical instability, a recession, a fall in the stock markets, global political conflicts or other negative global events could potentially override the factors above and put a chill on insurance M&A in 2018.

Output: Having all but evaporated in the past 18 months, mergers and acquisitions could make a comeback within the reinsurance space during 2018, according to Clyde & Co. After record catastrophe losses in 2017, several company balance sheets could be under pressure, potentially opening the door to more M&A. Equally, Clyde & Co argues pricing pressure could decrease due to rate hikes in loss-impacted lines of business. This could free up firms to focus on M&A. The rise of insurtech also may create buying opportunities for incumbent reinsurers, the company said.


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Leading UK retailers selling real fur as fake
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A number of major retailers have been criticised after it emerged they were selling products containing animal fur, despite advertising them as synthetic.

Amazon, TK Maxx, Boohoo and Groupon were among companies found to be selling real fur that was not advertised as such.

Tests undertaken as part of an investigation by the charity Humane Society International and Sky News revealed that customers have unwittingly been buying animal products.

Among the items wrongly described as faux fur were a £5 pair of earrings from online retailer Boohoo that actually contained real mink fur. Other Boohoo products were found to be made from rabbit fur.

Recommended Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo to stop using fur from 2018

Boohoo has an Animal Welfare Policy that it says was approved by animal rights charity PETA. The company has committed to not selling real animal fur.

Other retailers were also found to have mislabelled products. TK Maxx was selling a coat made from real fox fur, despite the product description claiming the material was manmade. The company claims it has “not sold real animal fur of any type” since 2003.

Customers had even raised concerns that some TK Maxx products appeared to be made of real fur, but were assured by the chain’s customer services department that they were not. Testing revealed that the product in question was indeed made of rabbit fur.

The revelation prompted calls for the Government to ban the importation of fur from abroad. Fur farming was outlawed in the UK in 2003 but it remains legal to purchase fur from elsewhere.

A special permit is needed to import animal skins and it is illegal to bring into the country the fur of animals caught in leg-hold traps.

However, the fact that real fur is unknowingly being bought by UK shoppers is likely to prompt concern about the origins of the skins and the treatment of the animals from which they come.

Angela Smith MP, who co-chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare, told The Independent: “In this day and age, when the cruelty of the fur trade is so well known, I would have thought that manufacturers and stockists would have more sense than to try and smuggle such vile products into the hands of well-meaning customers.

“I will be calling on the Government to tighten up the regulations to ensure this kind of flagrant deception does not happen again and to help bring an end to this barbaric trade.”

Caroline Lucas, co-leader of the Green Party, backed calls for a wholesale ban on the importation of fur.

She told The Independent: “Imagine finding out that the socks or hat you’ve been wearing for months, thinking it was fur free, had in fact been made from rabbit or another animal. It’s a deplorable practice and these shops need to end this deception.

“At the very least, we need a decent fur labelling law. But that will only fix the problem in the short term. The simplest, most effective thing to do would be not just to maintain the bans on cat, dog and seal fur post-Brexit, but to extend the ban to all species.

“Given the UK banned fur farming back in 2000, it’s completely perverse to be importing tens of millions of pounds of that same cruelty – or worse – from overseas. Debates over the last few months, inspired by the BBC’s Blue Planet and the vote on animal sentience, have proven once again that we are a nation of animal-lovers. I urge our government to protect the wellbeing of animals, and take fur out of our shops.”

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 / 50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 5 June 2023 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak onboard Border Agency cutter HMC Seeker during a visit to Dover PA UK news in pictures 4 June 2023 A hot air balloon rises into the sky above Ragley Hall, Alcester, south of Birmingham in central England AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 2 June 2023 Skaters use the mini ramp at the Wavelength Spring Classic festival in Woolacombe Bay in Devon PA UK news in pictures 1 June 2023 The And Beyond installation, during a photo call for the London Design Biennale at Somerset House in London PA UK news in pictures 31 May 2023 Emergency services attending to a blaze at a derelict listed building in Samuel Street, Belfast PA UK news in pictures 30 May 2023 A robot named Stella interacts with visitors during the International Conference on Robotics and Automation ICRA in London AP UK news in pictures 29 May 2023 Dave Hackett and his daughter Daisy, five, explore the laburnum arch in the grounds of Preston Tower, East Lothian, in the warm Spring Bank Holiday weather PA UK news in pictures 28 May 2023 Great Britain’s Nick Bandurak scores their side’s third goal of the game during the FIH Hockey Pro League men’s match at Lee Valley, London PA UK news in pictures 27 May 2023 People enjoy the sunny weather at a park in London AP UK news in pictures 26 May 2023 People drink coffee inside Daleks during MCM Comic Con at the ExCel London in east London PA UK news in pictures 25 May 2023 King Charles III and Queen Camilla during a visit to Enniskillen Castle, Co Fermanagh as part of a two day visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 24 May 2023 Horses enjoy the sunny weather on Middleham Gallops in North Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 23 May 2023 An aerial view of a yellow rapeseed field in Hemel Hempstead, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 22 May 2023 Manoj Malde and Clive Gillmor kiss after getting married, the first wedding ever at the Chelsea Flower Show AP UK news in pictures 21 May 2023 People enjoy the warm weather as they take punt tours along the River Cam in Cambridge PA UK news in pictures 20 May 2023 Protesters emerge from the sea as Surfers Against Sewage hold a UK-wide paddle-out protest at Brighton West Pier in East Sussex PA UK news in pictures 19 May 2023 Good Karma ridden by Daniel Muscutt (right) wins the Earl & The Pharaoh Novice Stakes at Newbury Racecourse, Berkshire PA UK news in pictures 18 May 2023 Choristers from the Choir of St John’s College at the University of Cambridge look out from the top of the Chapel Tower before performing the Ascension Day carol - a custom dating back to 1902. PA UK news in pictures 17 May 2023 Oxfam activists wearing 'big heads' of G7 leaders during a demonstration in Trafalgar Square, London, highlighting their lack of action to tackle the East Africa hunger crisis ahead of the start of the G7 summit in Japan PA UK news in pictures 16 May 2023 Part of a child’s jacket during a photo call for the China’s hidden century exhibition, which opens at the British Museum PA UK news in pictures 15 May 2023 Viewing assistant and History of Art student Emma Scarr Hall takes a closer look at @Pink Roses’ (1923) by Scottish Colourist artist Leslie Hunter which is estimated at £60,000-80,000 in the forthcoming Bonhams Scottish Art Sale in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 14 May 2023 Eva Birthistle, Sarah Greene, Sharon Horgan and Anne-Marie Duff, with the award for Drama Series, for Bad Sisters at the 2023 BAFTA TV Awards in London EPA UK news in pictures 13 May 2023 Singer Loreen performing on behalf of Sweden celebrates with the trophy after winning the final of the Eurovision Song contest 2023 AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 12 May 2023 Leader of the Labour Party Sir Keir Starmer views a cancer tumour under a microscope during a visit to the Francis Crick Institute in north London where he met scientists working on research into lung cancer PA UK news in pictures 11 May 2023 Judging takes during the artisan cheese awards at St Mary’s Church, Melton Mowbray PA UK news in pictures 10 May 2023 A dog joins members of the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) on the picket line outside HMRC in East Kilbride during a strike in the long-running civil service dispute over pay, jobs and conditions PA UK news in pictures 9 May 2023 Two trains carrying 170 Eurovision song contest superfans arrive into Liverpool Lime Street train station PA UK news in pictures 8 May 2023 Britain’s Prince Louis eats toasted marshmallows as they take part in the Big Help Out, during a visit to the 3rd Upton Scouts Hut in Slough, England, AP UK news in pictures 6 May 2023 King Charles III and Queen Camilla can be seen on the Buckingham Palace balcony ahead of the flypast during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla Getty UK news in pictures 5 May 2023 Britain's King Charles III leaves after speaking to well-wishers on The Mall near to Buckingham Palace in central London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 May 2023 A night time rehearsal in central London for the coronation of King Charles III PA UK news in pictures 2 May 2023 Teacher members of the National Education Union (NEU) at a rally in Westminster, London, as they stage walkouts across England in an ongoing dispute over pay PA UK news in pictures 1 May 2023 Former US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media on the tarmac after disembarking "Trump Force One" at Aberdeen airport on the north-east coast of Scotland AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 April 2023 Handout photo issued by the Big Partnership of walkers at the start of The Kiltwalk 2023 from Glasgow Green. PA UK news in pictures 29 April 2023 England’s flanker Marlie Packer celebrates with the trophy and teammates after winning the Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam at the end of the Six Nations international women’s rugby union match between England and France at Twickenham in south-west London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 28 April 2023 Lucy Williams, from Aberfan, holds her son Daniel Williams, one, as he takes the handbag of the Princess of Wales, during her visit with her husband the Prince of Wales, to the Aberfan memorial garden, to pay their respects to those who lost their lives during the Aberfan disaster on October 21st 1966 PA UK news in pictures 27 April 2023 Teachers on the picket line outside Bristol Cathedral School, College Square, Bristol, as they take strike action in a dispute over pay PA UK news in pictures 26 April 2023 Protesters wait for the arrival of King Charles III and the Queen Consort for their visit to Liverpool Central Library PA UK news in pictures 25 April 2023 Wreaths are laid at the Cenotaph in central London, in commemoration for Anzac Day PA UK news in pictures 24 April 2023 Waves crash over Tynemouth pier on the North East coast of England PA UK news in pictures 23 April 2023 People cross the finish line at the 2023 London Marathon Getty UK news in pictures 22 April 2023 A Wrexham fan in a Deadpool costume ahead of the Vanarama National League match at The Racecourse Ground, Wrexham PA UK news in pictures 21 April 2023 A demonstrator wears a costume as people protest during the Extinction Rebellion's 'The Big One' event, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 20 April 2023 The funeral cortege of Paul O’Grady travels through the village of Aldington, Kent ahead of his funeral at St Rumwold’s Church PA UK news in pictures 19 April 2023 Georgia Harrison, who was a victim of revenge porn, at a demonstration organised by Refuge outside the Houses of Parliament, calling for a violence against women and girls code of practice to be added to the ‘Online safety bill’ PA UK news in pictures 18 April 2023 People walk at the Taihaku Cherry Tree Orchard at Alnwick Gardens in Alnwick, Northumberland Reuters UK news in pictures 17 April 2023 A pelican sits in St James’s Park, London PA UK news in pictures 16 April 2023 People take part in the Nagar Kirtan procession through the city centre in Southampton, during Vaisakhi celebrations to mark the birth of the Khalsa and to celebrate the spring harvest and the solar new year PA UK news in pictures 15 April 2023 Former Chelsea players and fans show the Samaritans' 24-hour helpline number 116 123 on the back of their shirts during the launch of the TalkMoreThanFootball campaign from Three, during halftime of Chelsea v Brighton at Stamford Bridge, London PA UK news in pictures 14 April 2023 Protesters outside York Magistrates’ Court, where Patrick Thelwell is charged with threatening behaviour after eggs were thrown at King Charles III during his visit to York in November PA

Claire Bass, executive director of Humane Society International UK, said: “The amount of fake faux fur online is truly shocking, with even trusted retailers mis-selling real animal fur as synthetic.

“It is appalling that British shoppers, who are actively choosing not to buy real fur because of the terrible animal suffering, are being misled into buying the very same fur products they’re trying to avoid.”

TK Maxx said customers who had bought the real fur products would be offered a refund, while Groupon said it was reviewing its suppliers and internal processes “to ensure this doesn’t happen again”.

Boohoo said: “We are very disappointed that on this occasion our high standards have been breached by the suppliers from who these items have been sourced.

“The items in question were immediately removed from sale and the breach of the policy and its standards is being investigated as a matter of urgency.”

Amazon said marketplace sellers who don’t meet its guidelines faced the prospect of having their account deleted.

Output: Major companies, including Amazon, Boohoo, Groupon and TK Maxx, sold products in the UK containing real animal fur that they advertised as synthetic, according to tests conducted by charity Humane Society International and Sky News. The investigation led campaigners to call for a ban on fur imports. Although fur farming was prohibited in the UK in 2003, such imports remain legal. TK Maxx is offering refunds to affected customers, while Groupon and Boohoo are reviewing their procedures. Amazon said that it could delete the accounts of sellers failing to meet the company’s guidelines.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

Input:
Leading UK retailers selling real fur as fake
 London—British consumers are being misled into buying real fur from fox, rabbit, chinchilla and mink, falsely advertised as fake fur, an investigation by Humane Society International UK and Sky News has revealed.

The investigation found trusted online retailers such as Boohoo, Amazon and Not On The High Street all selling items such as bobble hats, keychains, scarves, shoes and coats advertised as faux fur when laboratory tests revealed them to be real animal fur.

Many of these items have deceptively low price points; life is cheap on fur farms, with animals enduring appalling deprivation, and this means that real fur trim often costs the same or even less than faux fur.

Claire Bass, executive director of Humane Society International UK, said: “The amount of fake faux fur online is truly shocking, with even trusted retailers mis-selling real animal fur as synthetic. It is appalling that British shoppers, who are actively choosing not to buy real fur because of the terrible animal suffering, are being misled into buying the very same fur products they’re trying to avoid. The combination of trusted brands, cheap prices, and items described as “faux” or “100% acrylic”, means many people will be justifiably horrified to discover they’ve inadvertently bought animal fur. Consumers rightly expect brands to sell what they say they’re selling, so urgent action is needed to stop this insidious creep of fur through the back door.”

Animal lover Jayne Webster got in touch with HSI to report concerns about the key chain that she bought from T.K. Maxx after being assured it was faux fur by T K Maxx staff. HSI sent the keychain off for testing and found it to be made of rabbit fur. Jayne said: “As a company who proudly boasts that they have not sold fur or angora products since 2003, I would assume that TK Maxx takes a strong ethical stance on this issue. So when I found out that the fur pom-pom I bought was actually made of rabbit fur I was extremely disappointed and concerned. I am aware of the horrific suffering that animals on fur farms go through and would never want to buy real fur, I don’t know how companies can get away with this.”

Fake faux fur items include:

T.K. Maxx, fox fur coat

Boohoo, mink fur earrings

Boohoo, rabbit fur shoes

Miss Bardo, fox fur hat

Amazon, rabbit fur children’s shoes

Not On The High Street, rabbit fur keychain

Groupon, rabbit fur keychain

Etsy, mink fur earrings

Around the world in countries such as the U.S., France, Poland and China, animals on fur farms are subjected to terrible conditions. Beautiful wild animals are kept their entire lives in small, barren cages, physically and mentally deprived, before being killed and skinned for their fur. Wild animals such as coyotes fair no better, caught in agonising traps for hours or even days before being shot.

The vast majority of the British public are against wearing fur. A 2016 YouGov poll shows 9 out of 10 Brits believe that it is unacceptable to buy and sell real fur, averaged across nine species. Although fur farming was outlawed in the UK on moral grounds in 2000, and EU regulations ban fur from domestic cats, dogs or commercial seal hunts, the UK still imports and sells fur from a range of other species such as fox, rabbit, mink, coyote, raccoon dog, and chinchilla.

HSI is campaigning for the British Government to make the United Kingdom a fur-free zone by extending the cat, dog and seal fur bans to include all fur-bearing species. As a member of the EU single market, under rules relating to free movement of goods the UK is not currently at liberty to ban the import of animal fur, which is farmed in several European countries. But Brexit could give the government the freedom to reflect the public’s distaste for all fur and close our borders fully to this cruel and outdated trade.

Bass continued: “The government banned fur farming as unethical in the UK more than ten years ago, but perversely we have since been importing that same cruelty from fur farms overseas. The vast majority of British people believe that animal fur has no place in our high streets and wardrobes, and would support a UK ban. Mandatory, clear labelling of all fur is urgently needed to stop consumers being misled, but ultimately to properly protect both animals and consumers, the government must use the opportunity presented by Brexit to ban all UK fur imports.”

Frequently Asked Questions:

There is no legal requirement to use the specific word “fur” on items containing real fur. EU regulations do require items defined as “textile products” to carry the confusing wording “contains non-textile parts of animal origin” but as well as not clearly telling consumers it means “real animal fur”, in practice this wording requirement is rarely adhered to at all.

Products sold online are exempt even from the above confusing wording requirement, and footwear or non-garment accessories such as handbags and keychains are also excluded.

Under consumer protection legislation, it’s technically illegal to mislead. However, the regulation – with respect to the sale of animal fur – is very poorly enforced, and ‘an honest mistake’ is considered a legitimate defence and so retailers are rarely prosecuted.

HSI believes that all products containing real animal fur (including clothing, footwear, accessories etc) should be clearly labelled in plain English. Such labelling is already in place in the US and Switzerland, and should include the animal species (both common and scientific name); country of origin (where the animal was bred/trapped and killed); how the animal was reared and killed (trap caught or reared in a wire cage, for example).

Media contact: Harriet Barclay, HBarclay@hsi.org, +44 (0)7794354596

Notes:

Output: Major companies, including Amazon, Boohoo, Groupon and TK Maxx, sold products in the UK containing real animal fur that they advertised as synthetic, according to tests conducted by charity Humane Society International and Sky News. The investigation led campaigners to call for a ban on fur imports. Although fur farming was prohibited in the UK in 2003, such imports remain legal. TK Maxx is offering refunds to affected customers, while Groupon and Boohoo are reviewing their procedures. Amazon said that it could delete the accounts of sellers failing to meet the company’s guidelines.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

Input:
UK agency workers paid £400m less than peers
 Agency workers are collectively underpaid by £400m a year compared to their full-time counterparts, with the pay gap costing temporary admin staff £990 a year on average, according to new research.

The Resolution Foundation said the loss of pay across all sectors took the average loss for each of the UK’s 800,000 agency workers to £500 a year, up from £430 last year.

The charity said it was shocked to find that around 85% of temporary staff suffered a pay deficit while working in the same job for more than three months. It said agency workers that stayed with one employer for more than three months were expected to have the same pay as full-time employees.

Lindsay Judge, a policy analyst at the foundation, said many employers were using loopholes in the law that allow agency workers to sign away their right to equal pay.

“Agency workers deserve to be paid the same as employees if they’re doing the same job, so the government should look to close the loophole that allows agency workers to sign away their right to equal pay.

“With the government-commissioned Taylor Review noting this abuse, we’re hopeful that 2018 will be the year of action on fair pay for agency workers.”

Last year, labour market economist John Philpott found that more than one in five workers, around 7.1 million people, were in precarious employment, up from 5.3 million in 2006.

A report by the GMB union this summer warned that the number of workers who could be dismissed at short notice was nearer 10 million.

The foundation said some agency workers earned a bonus to compensate in part for the loss of pension contributions, with interim managers and senior social care staff topping the list of those workers who command high wages.

Workers in the category for caring, leisure and other service occupations earn £218 more on average than equivalent full-time members of staff, while temporary managers and directors enjoy a £2,477 pay boost compared to full-timers.

But administrators lost £990 a year compared to full-time employees and the average sales or customer service worker lost £800 a year.

The report said: “These pay penalties exist despite the Agency Worker Regulations 2010 which gives those with 12 weeks-plus of continuous service in the workplace pay parity with comparable employees.”

It said the regulations allow agency staff to forgo their right to equal pay with directly employed staff in return for a contract that offers pay between assignments, known as a “Swedish derogation” contract. It said these were “widely abused, as noted by the government commissioned Taylor Review of Modern Working Practises”.

Frances O’Grady, the TUC general secretary, said: “Two people working next to each other, doing the same job, should get the same pay rates. But too often agency workers are treated like second-class citizens.

“It’s time to end this undercutters’ charter and for the government to scrap this loophole. It’s recent review into modern employment practices called for precisely that.”

Output: UK agency workers are collectively paid £400m ($534m) less than their permanent peers, according to research by charity the Resolution Foundation. Temporary admin staff experience an average pay gap of £990 annually. The average individual loss for the country’s 800,000 agency workers is £500 per year, up from £430 in 2016. After three months with the same employer, agency workers are legally expected to have the same pay as full-time colleagues. However, 85% were found to have a pay deficit. “Swedish derogation” contracts, which offer pay between assignments, are used to allow workers to sign away equal pay rights.


Instruction: create a high quality summary of the given input

Input:
UK agency workers paid £400m less than peers
 Christmas is coming – and many of the presents we’re all busy buying are being picked and packed in warehouses, delivered by drivers, or sold to us in shops by staff who are not directly employed, but who work through an agency instead. So how has this part of the workforce fared over the course of 2017?

Perhaps unsurprisingly in a year when low levels of unemployment and a falling numbers of migrants have led to a tighter labour market, the number of agency workers plateaued in 2017 (Figure 1). When we launched our agency worker project last year we suggested that if this contingent way of working grew at a similar rate to that we had observed in the previous five years, we could expect to see as many as one million agency workers in the UK by the end of the decade. The latest data now suggests we are no longer on trend to reach that threshold.

Figure 1: Agency workers over time: UK Source: RF analysis of ONS, Labour Force Survey

But is this more propitious labour market also feeding through to improvements in agency workers’ pay? At first glance this would appear to be the case: average hourly pay for those working through an agency grew by 2 per cent in real terms over the first three quarters of 2017, in contrast with a 2 per cent fall for other types of staff. While some of this uplift was provided by the National Living Wage – with over a quarter of agency workers paid at or very close to the wage floor, above inflation increases in the NLW have a significant effect – on balance, all agency workers look to be doing better in the pay stakes than their directly employed counterparts.

Or are they? Before directly employed staff decide to jump jobs they should think about how the pay levels of agency workers compare with their salaries. When we compare the hourly wage of agency workers and employees with same personal characteristics (age, gender, migrant status, ethnicity, experience and the like) who do the same type of work (when it comes to industry, occupation or whether the job is full or part-time for instance), we can see that agency workers remain at considerable disadvantage. On average, over the period 2011-2017 we estimate that like for like, agency workers have been paid 23p less an hour than employees who work directly for a firm.

However, this ‘agency pay penalty’ is not distributed equally through the workforce. As Figure 2 shows, in some occupations working via an agency comes with a pay premium rather than a pay penalty. But interestingly we don’t observe the simple occupational gradient as we might expect, with those in higher paid jobs able to extract more from the workplace while those lower down the occupational scale subject to heavier penalties.

Figure 2: Difference in hourly pay between agency workers and employees controlling for personal and job characteristics, by occupation: UK

Source: RF analysis of ONS, Labour Force Survey

So what explains this picture? We think (at least) four things could be going on. First, managers and senior staff who work through agencies often take on unpopular, trouble-shooting roles for which they may be able to command a premium. Second, many workplaces in caring and leisure have legally required staff ratios – as we have noted for social care, this can oblige firms to pay a premium for staff needed at short notice. Third, other research has shown that in professions such as teaching, staff are prepared to accept a lower pay rate in order to avoid what they see as high levels of bureaucracy. And fourth, the smaller penalties we observe in elementary and other low paid jobs may simply be because so many in those occupations are at the wage floor that the difference between the pay of agency workers and other staff is naturally slight.

Whatever the reasons, the fact that an agency worker sitting (or standing or lifting) next to an identical employee is not being paid an equivalent rate should give us pause for thought. We estimate that across all occupations, agency workers lost £400 million of earnings in 2017 as a result of the agency pay penalty. That’s a lot of Christmas presents they could have bought for their families, but also a loss to the public purse. With over one in ten agency workers claiming tax credits or Universal Credit the state is substituting at least some of these lost wages, as well as forgoing the additional tax it could levy if agency workers were paid in full.

This state of affairs is all the more concerning given that the government introduced the Agency Worker Regulations 2010 explicitly to give those with 12 weeks-plus of continuous service in the workplace pay parity with comparable employees. While we have some concerns about how agency workers interpret survey questions about length of service (do they report the length of single assignments, for example, or instead the length of time they have worked with a specific agency?), it is possible to look at the subset of agency workers who say they have been working in their existing role for 3 months-plus (Figure 3). As this shows, in some (but not all) occupations the agency pay penalty is attenuated. Nonetheless, we still estimate the lost earnings of these longer term workers totals around £300 million for 2017.

Figure 3: Difference in hourly pay between agency workers and employees controlling for personal and job characteristics, by occupation and length of employment: UK

Source: RF analysis of ONS, Labour Force Survey

It’s fair to say that there could be a number of reasons why these lower rates of pay exist which we aren’t picking up in our analysis here. Perhaps agency workers are less motivated, for example, or lack a very specific set of skills needed for the job? But another potential explanation lies with the very law designed to end unequal pay between agency workers and employees. The 2010 Regulations allows agency staff to forgo their right to pay parity with direct employees in return for a contract that offers pay between assignments (a so-called ‘Swedish derogation’ contract). But as both the Taylor Review and the joint BEIS-Work and Pensions Committee report have acknowledged this year – and three focus groups we have run recently with agency workers also confirm – such contracts are widely abused.

In this festive season maybe it’s time for the government to give agency workers a present too. Closing this loophole in the law and enforcing the right of agency workers to equal pay with comparable employees would be a gift to the tune of £990 a year for the average administrator who works through an agency, £800 a year for the average sales or customer service staff and £285 a year for the typical worker in an elementary occupation. Now that really would make for a merry Christmas, one and all.

Output: UK agency workers are collectively paid £400m ($534m) less than their permanent peers, according to research by charity the Resolution Foundation. Temporary admin staff experience an average pay gap of £990 annually. The average individual loss for the country’s 800,000 agency workers is £500 per year, up from £430 in 2016. After three months with the same employer, agency workers are legally expected to have the same pay as full-time colleagues. However, 85% were found to have a pay deficit. “Swedish derogation” contracts, which offer pay between assignments, are used to allow workers to sign away equal pay rights.