Author: WTX Business Team

New tax year: Bills and benefits rise, but tax rise risk looms The new tax year has started with warnings for people to be cautious with their finances due to tax, pension, and benefit rules. Income tax thresholds are frozen until 2028, meaning pay rises could push people into a higher tax bracket. The Office for Budget Responsibility predicts that 3.2 million new taxpayers will be created, with 2.6 million people paying higher rate tax. …

Financial Times – Trump enters not guilty plea to 34 counts on day of drama in New York Summary of the front page Trump’s “day of drama” is the main story on the front page of the Financial Times. The paper also covers allegations of workplace misconduct at the Confederation of British Industry, which has resulted in the organisation cancelling all external events today. The paper reports that the “dramatic legal reckoning” will threaten Mr…

Financial Times – EY banned from German audit work for two years after Wirecard scandal Summary of the front page The Financial Times reports that EY has been banned from taking on any newly listed audit clients in Germany for two years over failures in its work for collapsed payments company Wirecard. Germany’s audit watchdog, Apas, also announced a €500,000 (£439,000) fine for EY, the paper reports. The front page pictures electric scooters and reports Paris…

Richard Branson’s rocket firm Virgin Orbit files for bankruptcy Virgin Orbit, the satellite launch company founded by British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, has filed for bankruptcy in the US due to a failure to secure new investment. The company, which is a spin-off from Sir Richard’s space tourism firm Virgin Galactic, halted its operations weeks ago and announced that it plans to cut 85% of its 750-strong workforce. Virgin Orbit will now look to find…

Economist – America vs China: It’s worse than you think Economist says you may have hoped that when China reopened and face-to-face contact resumed between politicians, diplomats and businesspeople, Sino-American tensions would ease in a flurry of dinners, summits and small talk. But the atmosphere in Beijing just now reveals that the world’s most important relationship has become more embittered and hostile than ever. In the halls of government Communist Party officials denounce what they…

City AM – Britain goes own brand Recession fears see Brits stock up on own-brand kitchen staples CITY AM SAYS THE COST of living crisis is beginning to be felt in the pockets of ordinary punters – with more than one in three turning towards own brand products to keep the kitchen cupboard stocked. New research from KPMG suggests more than half of UK consumers have reduced ‘non-essential’ spending amid recession fears, with eating out…

Cineworld ditches sale of UK, US businesses after failing to find buyer Cineworld has abandoned plans to sell its cinema businesses in the US, UK, and Ireland after failing to find a buyer. The cinema chain operator also announced that it has made a conditional deal with lenders to exit bankruptcy. The company, which owns the Picturehouse chain in the UK, intends to raise $2.26bn of new funding to turn around the business, including restructuring…

UK strikes agreement to join Asia-Pacific trade bloc FT says The UK on Friday unveiled an agreement to join an 11-member Asia-Pacific trade bloc, with British prime minister Rishi Sunak claiming it proved his government was seizing “post-Brexit freedoms”. Talks on Britain becoming a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership were finally wrapped up after two years of haggling over quotas and tariffs. The UK will be the first country to…

UK-Asia trade deal to boost UK economy by 0.08% The UK has signed a trade deal with 11 Asia and Pacific nations, including Australia, Canada, and Japan. This deal will help UK exporters by lowering tariffs on products like cheese, cars, and chocolate. The agreement, called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), will create a market of around 500 million people. CPTPP was established in 2018 and includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile,…

Virgin Orbit lays off 85% of staff after failing to secure funding Virgin Orbit has announced that it will lay off 85% of its workforce and suspend operations for the foreseeable future due to its inability to secure new investment. The rocket company was founded by British billionaire Sir Richard Branson and earlier this year the company had attempted to launch the first-ever satellite launch from UK soil. Whilst the mission was unsuccessful, it was…

Twitter takeover: Elon Musk announces Blue Tick shakeup Twitter boss Elon Musk has announced changes to the social media platform’s paid feature, Twitter Blue.  Starting 15 April, only verified subscribers will have their posts recommended to other users and be allowed to vote in polls. Posts from non-paying accounts will not appear in the “For you” stream of recommended tweets. The current subscription fee for blue-tick verification is $7 (£5.70) per month and also provides…

CITY AM – UK economy not out of the woods yet UK recession still on the cards after aggressive Bank of England interest rate hikes Read the business pages here   CITYAM SAYS A recession is still on the cards in the UK despite the economy performing much better than experts predicted just a few months ago, new forecasts out today project. Higher interest rates and households responding to the cost of living crunch gripping their…

FT – Investors pour $286bn into money market funds in scramble for safety The Financial Times leads with the recent banking crisis and how the turmoil has increased the risk to financial stability, the IMF warned. Read the business pages here

Collapsed US Silicon Valley Bank bought by rival First Citizens BancShares has purchased the assets and loans of the collapsed US lender, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced. SVB’s collapse earlier this month raised concerns about the stability of other lenders, resulting in a significant drop in bank shares worldwide. In Europe, worries over the strength of Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse led to a rushed takeover by rival…

UK households ‘spent 12% more on essentials in February than year earlier’ The Guardian says Inflation and rising bills mean UK households are spending 12% more on essentials than they were a year ago, with almost four in 10 people having to use credit cards to cover these costs, new data shows. Two days after it emerged that the UK’s annual inflation rate unexpectedly jumped to 10.4% in February, Nationwide said its figures showed that…

Bank of England warns interest rates will rise again if businesses hike prices The Independent says The head of the Bank of England has warned businesses that raising prices will lead to interest rates being hiked again. Interest rates were lifted to 4.25 per cent from 4 per cent on Thursday after policymakers on the Bank’s nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted seven to two for the quarter-point rise following a surprise jump in inflation…

UK interest rates: Another Bank of England rise expected as prices soar Following an unexpected jump in the rate of inflation, the Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates for the 11th consecutive time. Analysts predict that the Bank rate will increase from 4% to 4.25% at the upcoming Monetary Policy Committee meeting, as policymakers strive to balance inflation control with financial stability. While savers may benefit from an improved rate of return,…

UK borrowing in February hits highest level since record began  According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), government borrowing in February hit its highest level since records began in 1993, reaching £16.7bn. This increase was largely due to spending on energy support schemes for households. However, interest payments on government debt fell by £1.3bn from the previous year, due to changes in the inflation rate. Although the borrowing exceeded economists’ expectations, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt…

$3bn IMF bailout for Sri Lanka’s struggling economy Sri Lanka has been given a $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help the country overcome a crippling economic crisis. The deal provides a lifeline for Sri Lanka, which owes billions in loans, and is struggling with inflation and rising energy prices. To raise funds, the government is planning to restructure state-owned enterprises and privatise the national airline, according to the country’s Foreign…

Christine Lagarde’s comments come in the midst of persistent turmoil across Europe’s banking sector.

Thousands may have fallen for Crypto app scam The Metro says Another cryptocurrency trading app may have lost thousands of people their hard-earned savings, it has been reported. In corporate terms, iEarn Bot told customers their investments would be handled by the artificial intelligence programme, guaranteeing high returns. But experts who have investigated company, which claims to be based in the US, say it could be one of the biggest crypto scandals to date. Roxana…

City AM – It’s a Swiss rescue UBS agrees to buy Credit Suisse to avoid “unthinkable” consequences CITY AM says THE SWISS government last night brokered a discount $3bn (£2.6bn) deal that will see UBS rescue Credit Suisse from bankruptcy and avoid “irreparable” damage to the global financial system. In an extraordinary press conference last night, the Swiss President said deposit outflows on Friday at Credit Suisse on Friday meant it was “no longer possible…

Workers £11,000 worse off a year due to stagnant wages – Resolution Foundation Research shared exclusively with BBC Panorama by the Resolution Foundation think tank, which focuses on low-to-middle income households, reveals that British workers have suffered from 15 years of wage stagnation, leaving them £11,000 worse off per year. The think tank also found that typical UK household incomes have fallen further behind those in Germany, with a gap of £4,000 compared to just…

Central banks to boost flow of US dollars amid market troubles Following a turbulent period in the US banking sector and the Credit Suisse merger, six central banks, including the Bank of England, have taken coordinated action to boost the flow of US dollars through the global financial system. The US dollar liquidity “swap line” arrangement will allow banks in the UK, eurozone, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, and the US to access funding on a daily…

Silicon Valley Bank collapse If you work in the technology industry, it’s likely that you are familiar with Silicon Valley Bank. However, if you haven’t heard of this seemingly localised bank, don’t worry – it primarily served a specific clientele of startups, venture capitalists, and technology firms, with only a few branches despite holding billions in deposits. Unfortunately, the bank has since collapsed, marking the second-largest bank failure in US history, after banking regulators shut…