Hermès and Gucci shares tank in ‘dismal’ week for luxury brands April 16, 2026 Investors have fled from leading luxury stocks like Hermès and Gucci this week after they revealed tumbling sales as a result of the Iran war. The market was quick to respond to the poor results from several top fashion houses, as doubts swirl around the Middle East’s role as a key market for luxury brands. [...]
UK rejoins Erasmus: British students to study across Europe from 2027 April 16, 2026 Six years after Brexit, British students will soon be able to study and work across Europe again, as the UK formally re-joins the Erasmus programme. The legal text, signed in Brussels on Wednesday, is intended to bring the UK back into the programme in 2027 after the UK pulled out of in December 2020 as [...]
Octopus CMO Rebecca Dibb-Simkin: I was warned against joining an energy startup April 16, 2026 Octopus CMO Rebecca Dibb-Simkin takes us through her career, from being warned off energy startups to her love of Greggs chicken bakes.
LIV Golf under ‘pressure’ but is ‘the future of the game’, says CEO O’Neil April 16, 2026 LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil says the breakaway tour is facing a “moment of pressure” but has dismissed suggestions that it is on the verge of collapse. Reports this week stated that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund could withdraw its funding of LIV Golf, having spent more than $5bn on bankrolling the signing of stars [...]
M&S Sparks rewards overhauled as retailer offers cash perks April 16, 2026 Marks & Spencer has overhauled its Sparks card reward scheme using AI after shoppers demanded cash perks instead of the existing points-based system. The upmarket food and clothing giant said it is responding to consumer criticism of its loyalty scheme by offering “personalisation and pounds, not points and tricksy pricing”. The Sparks Card had faced [...]
UK chief executives scramble as Anthropic expands London AI hub April 16, 2026 Anthropic is expanding its London footprint with a new office for up to 800 staff, as UK bank bosses ramp up engagement with the firm over concerns about its latest AI models. The US-based company said it will scale up from its current base of more than 200 employees in the capital, with the new [...]
AI job cuts top 50,000 in 2026 as Snap, Oracle, Meta slash roles April 16, 2026 More than 50,000 tech jobs have been cut in 2026 as tech behemoths such as Snap, Oracle and Meta link layoffs to AI and a shift in spending towards AI infrastructure. Recent figures from Challenger, Gray & Christmas show over 52,000 roles were eliminated in the sector in the first quarter alone, with AI cited [...]
Drop the drip pricing: Consumer watchdog snarls at sneaky fees added late in online bookings April 16, 2026 Online consumers hit by ‘drip pricing’ – when last-second, unavoidable costs are added at the checkout – may be about to save some cash, as websites levying such ‘sneaky fees’ move to the forefront of a crackdown from regulators. The Competition and Markets Authority announced its latest action against this illegal-but-widespread practice yesterday. It slapped [...]
Santander UK tipped for ‘large’ hike to motor finance provisions April 16, 2026 Santander UK is expected to top up its provisions for the motor finance scandal following the final outline of the financial watchdog’s redress scheme. The Spanish-headquartered banking giant has been one of the most vocal critics throughout the scandal, which relates to the use of discretionary commission arrangements (DCAS) in car financing. Banks were accused [...]
Beer fear: CO2 shortage could lead to state-backed beer at World Cup April 16, 2026 Brits face drinking state-backed beer during the Fifa World Cup as CO2 shortage fears leave breweries and boozers reliant on government gas. The war in Iran has caused chaos across Gulf shipping lanes with government analysis suggesting a closure of the Strait of Hormuz for a long period of time could lead to shortages of [...]