Author: WTX Business Team

Financial Times – Call of Duty maker Activision rails at UK for barring $75bn Microsoft deal Summary of the front page Activision, the maker of Call of Duty, said Britain is “clearly closed for business”, according to the FT. The UK competition regulator blocked Microsoft’s $75bn acquisition of the company on Wednesday. The paper says the move drew a “furious response” from the video games maker, which said the ruling contradicted the UK’s ambitions to…

New CBI boss starts job as crisis continues The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) is facing a crisis as it struggles to survive amid allegations of sexual misconduct. Rain Newton-Smith, former chief economist at the CBI, will take over as director general on Wednesday as the organisation deals with the fallout from claims of workplace harassment, sexual assault and rape. The CBI has admitted failing to fire staff who had sexually harassed female workers and…

Record number of people relying on food donations The Trussell Trust, the UK’s largest food bank provider, has reported an unprecedented rise in the number of food parcels distributed in the past year. Nearly three million food parcels were distributed, an increase of 37% from the previous year, with 1.1 million of these parcels provided to children. In December, on average, a food parcel was given out every eight seconds. Despite the pandemic and rising…

Bank of England economist says people need to accept they are poorer The Bank of England’s chief economist, Huw Pill, has warned that people in the UK must accept that they are poorer, or else prices will continue to rise. Speaking on a podcast in the US, Pill stated that workers’ demand for higher wages and businesses’ decision to raise prices are adding to inflation, which is currently at 10.1%, far higher than the Bank…

Financial Times – Sunak and Hunt pressed to deliver on pledge to mend ties with business Summary of the front page The Financial Times says Jeremy Hunt admitted yesterday that corporate taxes were too high, as business called for the government to make good on promises to mend ties with the private sector. Mr Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak were addressing corporate leaders at a Business Connect event where bosses called for the return of…

CITY AM – Bosses exit as economy struggles CITY AM SAYS Chiefs of the UK’s top companies have been exiting their roles at a doubly quick pace over the last year, driven by boards trying to insulate their firms from the economy being whacked by rising prices and interest rate hikes with a change in leadership, a new study out today shows. Some 38 chief executives of Britain’s largest companies left their roles in 2022,…

Financial Times – Sunak launches City charm offensive with new business forum as CBI reels Summary of the front page The Financial Times says Rishi Sunak will hold the first of a series of summits with corporate leaders on Monday as the Tories seek to “repair the damage done by the Brexit years and fend off Labour’s attempts to become the party of business”. The paper says the debut of the “Business Connect” forum, which…

£55bn withdrawn from Credit Suisse before rescue Credit Suisse has announced that 61.2bn Swiss francs (£55.2bn) left the bank in the first quarter of 2023, revealing the scale of the bank run that prompted its state-backed rescue in March. The bank’s wealth management division saw the assets it managed fall to 502.5bn francs, 29% lower than the same period last year. “These outflows have moderated but have not yet reversed as of April 24, 2023,”…

NBCUniversal boss Jeff Shell ousted after ‘inappropriate relationship’ at work Jeff Shell, the CEO of NBCUniversal, has resigned from the company after an independent investigation into an “inappropriate relationship” with a colleague. Comcast, the parent company of NBCUniversal, has not yet announced who will replace him. Until a new CEO is appointed, NBCUniversal’s senior executives will report directly to Comcast president Mike Cavanagh. Shell, who is married, has been with NBCUniversal for nearly two decades…

Financial Times – US decoupling from China would be disastrous for both, Yellen warns Summary of the front page The Financial Times reports US treasury secretary Janet Yellen has warned that any effort to decouple from China would be “disastrous”, adding national security measures targeted at Beijing were not designed to “stifle” the economy. The launch of SpaceX’s Starship is the main image on the front of the paper, which says Mr Musk put a…

Rainfall washes out retail sales in March UK retail sales dropped by 0.9% in March compared to February, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Retailers blame the wet weather for the fewer number of shoppers. Non-food retailers were the hardest hit, with department stores and clothing shops reporting a drop in volumes. Food shops also saw a decline in sales, down by 0.7%, mainly due to shortages of some products. The ONS reports…

Financial Times – Goldman hit by trading slowdown as retail reversals drives higher costs Summary of the front page One of the biggest financial institutions in the world, Goldman Sachs, has seen its profits slump by nearly 20%, amid its efforts to pull back from its consumer banking work, the Financial Times says. The front page features a picture of Tim Cook as the Apple CEO is in India as the American company opened their…

Food prices rise at fastest rate for 45 years The cost of living rose more than expected last month due to the rising prices of bread, cereal, and chocolate. Inflation, which measures the rate of price rises, fell to 10.1% in the year to March from 10.4% in February, but it was widely expected to fall below 10%. Grant Fitzner, chief economist for the ONS, said that globally, food prices were falling but that had…

Sacked CBI boss Tony Danker says reputation ‘destroyed’ Tony Danker, the former boss of business group giant, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), has claimed his “reputation has been totally destroyed” after being dismissed over complaints about his behaviour. In his first interview since being fired on 11 April, Danker acknowledged he had made some staff feel “very uncomfortable” and apologised for that. However, he told BBC’s Today programme that his name had been wrongly…

Cryptocurrency exchanges face headwinds even as crypto value rises Sky News says Last year was a torrid one for those who love cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, the biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, fell by 64% during 2022 and Ethereum, the second largest, by 67%. Dogecoin, the cryptocurrency that started as a joke yet then became beloved by Elon Musk and his followers, fell by nearly 60%. This year, though, cryptocurrency values have rallied sharply. Dogecoin is up by…

Cost of British food basics increases by up to 80% in a year The Guardian says The price of staple foods such as cheddar cheese, white bread and pork sausages has soared by up to 80% in some shops over the past year, in further evidence of how inflation is hitting those on the tightest budgets the hardest. Porridge oats topped the price increase ranking among a basket of British basics measured by the consumer…

EasyJet boss says it is prepared for summer despite ongoing strikes The Guardian says The boss of easyJet said the travel industry was much better prepared for this summer than last year when staff shortages led to chaos at airports, although he warned that ongoing strikes could cause some disruption. The budget airline lifted its profit outlook for this year after summer bookings rose and passenger numbers over Easter returned to pre-pandemic levels. Johan Lundgren,…

Financial Times – Savers withdrew nearly $60bn from three US banks as Apple raises heat Summary of the front page The Financial Times says savers withdrew nearly $60bn from US banks Charles Schwab, State Street and M&T in the first quarter as customers moved their money in search of higher interest rates. Traditional banks could face further threat because of Apple and Goldman Sachs’ new savings account in the US that will pay 4.15% interest…

More people looking for work as vacancies fall The latest official figures suggest that the uncertain economic outlook is affecting employment, with a rise in jobseekers and a fall in job vacancies. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that between December and February, around 220,000 more people were seeking work than in the previous three months. The number of job vacancies fell for the ninth consecutive quarter, with a drop of 47,000 from the…

UK firms have sharpest rise in confidence since 2020 UK chief financial officers (CFOs) have seen the sharpest rise in confidence since 2020, according to a survey by Deloitte. The improvement came as CFOs became less concerned about energy prices and Brexit-related issues. The survey, conducted between 21 March and 3 April, showed that 25% of CFOs felt better about the future than worse, compared to 17% feeling the opposite three months ago. Deloitte chief…

Greener flights will cost more but will reduce carbon emissions by 70% Sustainable Aviation, an industry group representing UK aviation, has said that efforts to decarbonise air travel are likely to increase ticket prices, which could deter some passengers from flying. Measures such as using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which is several times more expensive to produce than traditional jet fuel, will “inevitably reduce passenger demand”, according to the group, which includes airlines such as…

Scrap all existing smart motorways, says AA The Automobile Association (AA) has called for all existing smart motorways in England to be scrapped, joining campaigners who have raised concerns over safety. Smart motorways use technology to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion, including the use of the hard shoulder as an extra lane. Critics argue that the removal of the hard shoulder has led to deaths. The government cancelled the construction of 14 new smart…

CITY AM – City warms to Rishi CITYAM SAYS As Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer doesn’t tire of reminding voters: expertise beyond politics can be invaluable. For the current resident behind that most famous front door, it’s so far proved an advantage. Liz Truss’ accountancy background may not have aided her short-lived leadership bout, but – for the City’s boardrooms at least – her successor could hardly be better suited for the clean up. Financial…

Financial Times – Bank of England consider urgent reform of deposit guarantee scheme Summary of the front page The lead story on the front page of the Financial Times says the Bank of England is considering “urgent” reforms to its deposit guarantee scheme following turmoil in the sector last month caused by the collapse of US lender Silicon Valley Bank, which saw billions withdrawn from the firm’s UK entity. The paper’s lead image shows smoke…

Ford launches hands-free driving on UK motorways The UK government has approved Ford’s BlueCruise technology, which allows drivers to take their hands off the wheel while driving on certain motorways. The system can control steering, acceleration and braking, but requires a camera to monitor the driver’s eyes so they stay focused on the road.  Initially, the technology will only be available for 2023 models of the electric Mustang Mach-E SUV, and will be offered on…