Author: WTX Business Team

Sir Keir Starmer has declined to confirm that Rachel Reeves will be Chancellor at the next general election. The Prime Minister was asked about Reeves’ role following a speech in London on artificial intelligence (AI) and insisted he was “completely confident” in her. Continue Reading …

EU yards carry out crucial repairs for Russian Arctic gas tanker fleet European shipyards have been providing essential maintenance to Russian ice-class tankers, enabling the continued transport of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia’s Yamal plant in the Arctic, despite stringent Western sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector.

Extra bank holiday 2025: Hospitality industry slams Number 10 decision Bank holidays 2025: Number 10 has announced the additional day off has been canned It had been rumoured that an additional bank holiday would make its way onto the calendar for 2025 to earmark the end of WWII, but Number 10 has announced that the extra day off won’t be going ahead. UK hospitality bodies have slammed the government’s decision to can the extra bank…

Pound sterling continues to suffer as traders pare bets on Fed rate cuts Sterling suffered again on Monday, falling to a 14-month low against the dollar amid a global sell-off prompted by concerns that the US Federal Reserve will only cut interest rates once this year. The pound was trading as much as 0.7 per cent lower against the dollar this morning, dropping to $1.211. It was the worst performing currency against the dollar in…

Mark Zuckerberg’s unexpected ‘free speech’ overhaul of Meta’s content moderation has sparked concerns among advertisers that it will lead to a surge of harmful content and misinformation across the social media platform.  Multiple advertising bosses told the Financial Times that Meta’s move to end its fact-checking programme and weaken hate speech policies could cost the platform, where marketing represents the majority of its $135bn in annual sales, if brands fear their adverts might run next…

British Steel is poised to scrap plans to return steelmaking to Teesside in a big jobs blow for northeast England. The Chinese-owned group had planned to build one “green steel” furnace in Teesside — creating hundreds of jobs in the process — and another at its main works in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, under a major business restructuring. However, both furnaces will now be built in Scunthorpe under plans being discussed with Labour ministers. Continue Reading …

Price hikes are coming as firms battle Reeves tax raid, Bank of England survey suggests Inflationary pressures are likely to persist this year as firms prepare to hike prices to combat the effects of Rachel Reeves’ tax-raiding Budget, a survey from the Bank of England suggests. The Bank’s latest decision maker panel, which surveys finance chiefs around the country, showed that firms’ inflation expectations picked up in December. Expected price growth in the year ahead…

Pound sterling continues to sink as UK economy ‘clearly on very shaky ground’ Pound sterling has continued to sell off this morning, and UK government bond yields have ticked higher as UK risk assets remain under pressure. The pound fell below $1.23 against the dollar in early trade and is currently down 0.7 per cent against the dollar and 0.6 per cent against the euro. Meanwhile, the domestically focused FTSE 250 index opened lower 0.6…

UK fintech funding races ahead of Europe According to new figures, the UK’s fintech sector was beaten by only the US on total investment last year despite a sharp fall in funding on 2023 levels. As global fintech investment fell 20 per cent globally to $43.5bn (£35.2bn), the UK attracted $3.6bn (£2.9bn) of total funding, more than the next five European countries combined, according to data from Innovate Finance. Despite the sharp fall in new…

UK government borrowing costs continued rising on Wednesday, and the value of sterling dropped as investors recalibrated their views on the UK economy.

European leaders warned Donald Trump not to meddle with the continent’s borders on Wednesday, a day after the president-elect refused to rule out taking Greenland by force.

New look to shut stores as Labour’s Budget bites Fashion retailer New Look is set to accelerate store closures and “Chicken King” Ranjit Boparan is pushing supermarkets to swallow big cost increases, as large employers across different sectors grapple with the fallout from Labour’s tax-raising budget. About a quarter of New Look’s 364 UK stores are said to be at risk of closure when leases expire, raising the prospect of significant job losses across its…

Wall Street set for listings rush as private equity sheds holdings Wall Street bankers are gearing up for a revival in initial public offerings as private equity groups seek to tap buoyant US equities markets to offload some of their flagship holdings. Several private equity-backed groups have already filed paperwork with securities regulators for IPOs, including medical devices company Medline and software maker Genesys. https://www.ft.com/content/5dcf3d4e-8e16-470b-b33d-fc73d3043f58

The FT names Donald Trump their Person Of The Year – “after the most dramatic comeback in modern US history, the president-elect promises a new era of sweeping deregulation and a profound shift to the cultural right.”

Bank of England set to hold interest rates after inflation jump The Bank of England is poised to leave interest rates on hold this week after a jump in inflation and uncertainty over the Budget’s economic impact. Policymakers are expected to keep rates at 4.75 per cent at their next meeting on Thursday after making cuts in August and November. Although inflation fell below the BoE’s two per cent target in September, the latest official…

UK companies cut jobs at fastest rate in nearly 4 years The private sector cut jobs at the fastest rate for nearly 4 years in December as firms respond to new tax rules announced in the Budget. The latest S&P Global Flash UK Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) found that while the headline figure for business confidence was unchanged from November, thanks to a marginal increase in business activity, other areas of the economy saw a…

London Stock Exchange suffers biggest exodus in 15 years as former boss sounds alarm The former head of the London Stock Exchange Group has warned its flagship bourse has become “deeply uncompetitive” amid its biggest exodus since the financial crisis. Xavier Rolet, who ran LSEG between 2009 and 2017, said lacklustre trading in London created a “real threat” of more UK firms ditching their listings in the capital for better returns overseas. His comments come…