FTSE 100 Live: Stocks to jump; oil tips over $110 on lack of US-Iran progress FTSE 100 Live Welcome back to the City AM FTSE 100 liveblog. London’s blue-chip index is set to reverse some of its losses earlier in the week as investors weigh up the rising price of oil. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – surged above $110 per barrel on Wednesday, resuming its advance following mixed [...]
OBR expected to sound alarm on Healey’s spending pressures Economics Britain’s fiscal watchdog is likely to sound the alarm on the spending pressures facing the government when it lays out its analysis of the Budget next week, economists have predicted, in what would be a significant move signalling the scale of the challenges facing the Chancellor. Analysts have said the Office for Budget Responsibility could [...]
OBR expected to flag warning over Healey’s spending pressures Economics Britain’s fiscal watchdog is likely to sound the alarm on the spending pressures facing the government when it lays out its analysis of the Budget next week, economists have predicted, in what would be a significant move signalling the scale of the challenges facing the Chancellor. John Healey is facing a crunch Spending Review next [...]
‘Own goal’ – City chiefs warn Healey higher bank taxes hurt jobs outside London October 21, 2026 Top City chiefs are launching last-ditch attempts to stop a punishing tax raid on banks at the Budget, warning the move will hurt jobs and growth outside of London. Rain Newton-Smith, the chief executive of the CBI, is set to warn Chancellor John Healey that increasing taxes on banks would be an “own goal for [...]
Barclays set for investment bank boost as Venkat’s overhaul in focus October 20, 2026 Barclays‘ investment bank could be in line for another major boost. But Samuel Norman takes a look at the progress investors will be wanting to hear on its latest strategy plans. When CS Venkatakrishnan laid out his sweeping restructuring of Barclays he promised a “simpler, better and more balanced” bank. Key to this was reducing [...]
Andy Haldane: This will be ‘a Budget for the backbenchers, not business’ October 20, 2026 A former Bank of England chief economist has warned he expects to see “further borrowing” and “further tax rises” in next week’s Budget as he threw his weight behind Kemi Badenoch’s plan on the UK economy. Speaking at an Ipsos event, Andy Haldane said the Budget has been a “less lengthy and a less leaky [...]
Healey’s cost of living battle just got harder as workers face ‘real terms pay cut’ October 20, 2026 Andy Burnham and John Healey have spoken at length about efforts to provide “breathing space” to both households and businesses. This task at next week’s Budget has now become more difficult. Over the summer the jobs market continued to weaken. Workers are at risk of being worse off while job seekers are finding it harder [...]
John Healey rules out capital gains tax hike in Budget October 20, 2026 John Healey has squashed speculation he will raise capital gains tax in the forthcoming Budget after rejecting calls from his Cabinet colleagues. The Treasury was facing lobbying efforts from top ministers, including Louise Haigh and Wes Streeting, to raise the capital gains tax (CGT) rate from its current level of 24 per cent for higher [...]
Job vacancies fall below 700,000 for first time in over five years October 20, 2026 Job vacancies have fallen below 700,000 for the first time in over five years, official data has shown, as the UK labour market continued to show signs of weakening. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said vacancy levels decreased in the three months to September by 21,000. It means the number of job vacancies stood [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 slides on market pressures; Google Cloud outage October 20, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM FTSE 100 liveblog. London’s blue-chip index are extending Monday’s losses after a bruising showing following tension in European bond markets. A bond-sell off hit Europe following tensions in France after the Prime Minister introduced a curfew to contain explosive riots. The 10-year yield on French bonds – a direct [...]