Author: WTX Business Team

Budget 2023: The key points of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Spring Budget Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced the budget for 2023. The UK will now not enter a technical recession this year, the independent forecasters, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said. Inflation will more than halve and reduce to 2.9% by the end of the year, the OBR expects. Key points: • As expected, the government is extending the energy price guarantee (EPG) which keeps the average household bill at £2,500 until the end of June by capping the unit price of electricity. The typical bill was due to…

Budget to boost lifetime allowance for pension savings In an effort to encourage people to continue working, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt plans to use his Budget to increase the lifetime allowance for pension savings to up to £1.8m. This would address government concerns that higher wage earners, such as doctors and consultants, retire earlier. The annual cap on tax-free pension contributions may also be raised from £40,000 to £60,000, which is expected to benefit millions of workers. Currently, any excess over the lifetime allowance of £1.07m is subject to a tax charge. The allowance has been seen as an issue in…

UK job vacancies fall for eighth time in a row Companies in the UK blamed economic pressures for holding back on hiring new staff, as job vacancies fell for the eighth consecutive time. The official figures were released a day before Wednesday’s Budget, where the Chancellor is expected to outline plans to encourage people back to work. Between December and February, the number of job vacancies fell by 51,000 compared to the previous three months. However, despite the decline, there are still 1.1 million job vacancies, 328,000 more than in the January to March 2020 period before the pandemic. The…

Global bank stocks slump after Silicon Valley Bank collapse, despite Biden reassurances Despite assurances from the US president that the financial system is safe, bank shares in Asia and Europe have dropped after the collapse of two US lenders. Authorities moved to protect customer deposits in the aftermath of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank, but investors are concerned that other lenders may still be affected.  Global share prices dramatic drop The global share prices have fallen sharply, with Japan’s Topix Banks index falling over 7%, the worst in over three years. The country’s largest lender,…

CITY AM – Silicon Valley Bank UK: What we know (and what we don’t) on Sunday evening The Bank of England is set to put Silicon Valley Bank UK into insolvency as soon as this evening – with tech champions warning that the bank’s collapse could be an extinction-level event for a host of UK firms. This story has been updated as of Monday morning The bank’s accounts are effectively frozen, meaning that firms will be unable to access their deposits – possibly leaving them unable to pay bills or salaries. SVB UK’s parent firm in the US has been…

CITYAM – The German Job City AM says Hundreds of jobs could be created from a £500m investment in Oxford by BMW, as it looks build electric models of its Mini in Britain. The German car-maker is reportedly preparing to unveil a major injection of cash – including £75m of government-approved funding – as first reported by Sky News’ Mark Kleinman. The investment of around £500m includes funding from the government’s Automotive Transformation Fund, backed by Jeremy Hunt, and seeks to jump-start Britain’s car production industry. This comes after car production in Britain fell slightly in January as thousands continued…

Premier League football helps UK economy rebound A return of Premier League football and more kids in their classrooms in January helped UK GDP bounce back from the decline seen in December, the Office for National Statistics said Friday. GDP rose 0.3% month-on-month, recovering part of the 0.5% decline seen in December. Official figures show that the UK economy grew by 0.3% in January, rebounding from a sharp fall in December. The growth was largely driven by a recovery in school attendance, the return of Premier League football after the World Cup, and a strong month for private health providers…

Adidas unsure what to do with €1.2bn Yeezy goods Adidas is currently weighing its options for the €1.2bn (£1bn) worth of shoes from Kanye West’s Yeezy line that were left over after the sportswear company ended its partnership with the rapper last year. Kanye West now goes by the name Ye. Despite Ye’s anti-Semitic comments that led to the split, fans still want to purchase the shoes. Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden has said that the company is considering selling the footwear and donating the proceeds to charity, but ruled out other options such as burning the shoes or giving them…

Heathrow told to cut passenger charges again The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has told Heathrow Airport to reduce its passenger charges for airlines in 2024, as a result of passenger numbers rebounding faster than expected after the Covid pandemic. The average charge per passenger at Heathrow for 2023 is currently £31.57, but this is set to decrease to £25.43 in 2024 and remain stable until the end of 2026. Although airlines pay these charges, they may impact airfares if companies decide to pass on some of the costs to passengers. Lower costs for travellers Heathrow bosses want to see the…

Elon Musk apologises to sacked Twitter employee after online spat Elon Musk has apologised to a Twitter employee he had an exchange with on the platform, who was trying to work out if he had been fired. The incident began when the employee, Halli Thorleifsson, tweeted to Mr Musk that the head of HR at Twitter was unable to confirm his employment status. Musk responded by questioning what work Thorleifsson had been doing, leading to a series of back-and-forth tweets. Later, Thorleifsson received an email confirming that he had been fired, prompting Musk to call him “the worst” in a…

FT – Speaker McCarthy to meet Taiwan’s leader in US to avert Beijing backlash  The Financial Times reports that the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, is to meet Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen amid ongoing tensions between Beijing and Washington. The paper says McCarthy expressed a wish to visit Taiwan before becoming speaker, but that the pair have agreed to meet in the US because of Taiwanese security concerns. Following a visit to Taiwan by McCarthy’s predecessor, Nancy Pelosi, China dispatched warships and military aircraft to the waters surrounding the island. Read the story here

City AM – Tony Danker: CBI boss steps down amid sexual misconduct allegation City AM says The head of the Confederation of British Industry, Tony Danker, has stepped down from the role amid misconduct allegations. The announcement was made in the Guardian, after the publication reported that the CBI had hired lawyers to investigate alleged impropriety. The CBI insisted it takes all allegations “extremely seriously” but until an investigation in completed they “remain unproven”. It is understood that the director general of the organisation made unwanted contact with a female member of staff and considered it to be sexual harassment.…

Pret A Manger gives staff third pay rise in a year Pret A Manger has announced its plans to give employees another pay rise – that’ll be the third within a year!  The increase, set to begin in April, will result in a 19% boost in year-on-year pay for shop workers, making Pret A Manger’s baristas some of the highest-paid in the industry, with wages ranging from £11.80-£14.10 per hour based on experience and location. This announcement follows similar moves by other retailers such as Tesco, Asda, Aldi, and Lidl, all of which have raised their workers’ pay in response…

Financial Times – Northern Ireland trade deal eases post-Brexit tensions with Brussels Summary of the front page The Financial Times says the trade deal will ease post-Brexit tensions with Brussels. The paper describes the agreement as a “turning point” but says many Eurosceptic Tories may wait to take their lead from the DUP, whose leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, told the Commons on Monday that there remained some “key issues of concern”. Today’s top stories Like this article? Leave a comment UK National newspapers Previous Next

Eggs and margarine drive food inflation to record 17.1% According to research by Kantar, prices for food and drink in shops have hit record highs due to rising costs of milk, eggs, and margarine. Grocery prices rose by 17.1% compared to the same period last year, the highest rate since Kantar started keeping records in 2008. One in four shoppers is now struggling financially, and households may face an £811 increase in their annual grocery bill if they don’t alter their shopping habits. Rise in food prices due to war The conflict in Ukraine has disrupted the supply of grains,…

City AM – London set to power recovery CITYAM says Last year was one of great change: a year of two monarchs, and three prime ministers. There were some great historic events, such as the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. But to quote the late Queen’s words from 30 years ago, when we consider the political and economic volatility, 2022 may not be a year on which we “look back with undiluted pleasure”. Yet I am optimistic for the City of London and the wider UK in 2023. Despite the serious economic challenges that the UK faces, we can bounce back stronger…

Even the manager who encouraged staff to #SleepWhereYouWork wasn’t spared.

UK startup Britishvolt bought by Australian firm Recharge Industries, an Australian company, has acquired the bankrupt Britishvolt battery maker. Britishvolt had planned to construct a £4bn battery plant near the Port of Blyth in Northumberland, but it failed last month due to insufficient funds, battery expertise, reliable technology, customers, and revenue. Recharge Industries is a startup with limited manufacturing experience, and it shares similarities with Britishvolt in that regard. The parent company of Recharge Industries is Scale Facilitation, an investment fund based in New York. According to David Collard, the Australian CEO of the fund, they are bringing verified technology…

Starbucks launches olive oil coffee drinks in Italy Starbucks, the world’s largest coffee chain, is introducing a line of olive oil-infused drinks in Italy, according to CEO Howard Schultz. The Oleato range, featuring an iced shaken espresso and a latte with olive oil “steamed with oat milk”, will be launched on Wednesday in Italy, and is set to be available in Southern California in the US this spring, and in the UK, Middle East, and Japan later in the year. There will also be a cold brew coffee in which “a silky infusion of Partanna extra virgin oil with vanilla…

Councils get more money to help struggling households Starting in April, local authorities in England will receive a share of £842m from the Household Support Fund to assist households struggling the most with rising prices. Information about accessing the new funding will be updated on council websites in the coming weeks. Each council will decide how to use the money, resulting in a wide range of approaches, from ordering affordable food boxes to delivering energy-saving packs with air fryers and slow cookers. The funding has been provided every six months since October 2021 to fill in gaps in support for…

Record tax payments in January give UK unexpected boost In January, the UK government reported an unexpected surplus in its finances, despite significant spending on energy bills and EU payments. This was due to higher-than-anticipated self-assessed income tax receipts, which bolstered the country’s coffers and resulted in a surplus of £5.4bn. Although the government is due to present its Budget next month, economists noted that the public finances are still weaker than they were at this time last year, so the figures present a “mixed picture.” Martin Beck, the chief economic advisor to the EY ITEM Club, which is a…

City AM – A reit mess London’s business paper CITY AM reports on beleaguered housing investor Home REIT is set to be grilled by investors today over the state of its finances, its dilapidated property portfolio and the suitability of a recent takeover approach from a firm with links to its former investment advisor. The troubled former FTSE 250 firm is due to face shareholders at its annual general meeting in London this morning – the first time it will speak with shareholders publicly after a damning short seller report by Viceroy Research first raised concerns about its financial health…

Financial Times – Poland calls for Nato to guarantee Ukraine’s security after end of war The Financial Times reports Poland’s president has called on NATO to give Ukraine post-war security guarantees. FT says Polish president Andrzej Duda has called on Nato powers to give postwar security guarantees to Ukraine, on the eve of a visit to Warsaw by his US counterpart to reaffirm the west’s support for Kyiv a year into Russia’s war. Duda told the Financial Times that promises of security guarantees “would be important” for Ukraine and the morale of its soldiers by underscoring “this feeling that Nato…

Free school meals for all London primary schools A £130m initiative to provide free school meals to all primary school pupils for the 2023-24 academic year has been launched by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. The scheme is expected to benefit over 270,000 children in the capital and save families around £440 per child annually. The funding, which is one-off, is made possible through extra business rates income and will be run during term-time only. The mayor’s office has clarified that the scheme is implemented because council tax and business rates returns were higher than originally forecast in the…

UK craft beer giant Brewdog expands into China Scottish craft beer maker Brewdog is partnering with Budweiser China to expand in the world’s largest beer market. The joint venture will see Brewdog’s Punk IPA and other beers brewed in China at Budweiser’s Putian craft brewery, with plans to open more bars in the country. Although the company has faced controversies in recent years, including allegations of fostering a culture of fear among staff, founder James Watt said the Budweiser deal was “transformational”. China accounts for less than 1% of Brewdog’s overall sales, but the company sees the partnership as a…