Spring Budget 2024: Government banks largest monthly surplus on record before March statement February 21, 2024 January's figures are the last round of monthly borrowing figures before the Spring Budget, which is scheduled to be held on 6 March.
HSBC unveils record annual profits and fresh buyback but hurt by $3bn writedown on China bank holding February 21, 2024 HSBC has posted record annual profits on the back of higher interest rates and announced a new $2bn share buyback, while its earnings in the final quarter of 2023 were hit by $3bn in charges from its stake in a Chinese bank.
Frasers boss Mike Ashley’s legal battle against Morgan Stanley kicks off in London February 21, 2024 Ashley's business is claiming the US bank used "unlawful means" to close out bets on Hugo Boss stock, which resulted in the company losing around £50m.
Rio Tinto announces another bumper dividend for investors despite profit slump as focus on cash flow pays off February 21, 2024 The world's largest iron ore producer reported underlying earnings of $11.8bn (£9.4bn) for 2023, down from $13.4bn (£10.6bn) a year earlier
‘Tax sandwich’ on offer despite Chancellor’s promise of March cuts February 21, 2024 Lower interest rate expectations are likely to increase the Chancellor's headroom from £13bn in the Autumn Statement to £23bn this spring, according to the Resolution Foundation.
Take down of Lockbit won’t stop the hackers, warn security experts February 21, 2024 Cybersecurity experts have warned that hackers could swiftly bounce back from a UK-led operation to take down ransomware group Lockbit.
Crypto and AI are opposites that attract February 21, 2024 Last week Open AI introduced Sora - their text-to-video model - that creates realistic videos from a simple prompt. Open AI CEO, Sam Altman, also expressed his desire to raise an eye-watering $7 trillion, or 3.5x the current total crypto market cap, to fuel chip design and manufacturing to cater for increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).
FTSE 100: What’s moving markets today? February 21, 2024 Asian shares follow Wall Street's decline, HSBC's full-year profit soars by 78%, Walmart hits a record high; investors await the Fed minutes and tech darling Nvidia’s earnings report for market direction.
Walmart shares hit all-time high on solid holiday quarter sales February 21, 2024 Walmart shares closed at a record high and led the Dow Industrials after forecasting fiscal 2025 sales above Wall Street expectations and raising its annual dividend by 9%.
Why one of football’s leading execs thinks Saudi’s success is “remarkable” February 21, 2024 Inside Saudi interviews football grandee and Inter Milan chief executive Beppe Marotta, in Riyadh for the Italian Supercoppa