‘We’d love an apprentice – but the government has made it too expensive’ August 26, 2026 Small companies around Britain are facing a cost of business crisis. Bowers & Jones, an award-winning manufacturing firm, tells City AM that changes to the minimum wage have priced it out of employing apprentices. When Jane Somerville led a management buyout of her manufacturing firm and shifted its entire factory across the West Midlands in [...]
Gatwick takes ‘significant’ passenger hit from Iran war August 26, 2026 Gatwick has suffered a “significant” decline in passenger numbers as a result of the Iran war after airlines cancelled flights to the region and holidaymakers swerved destinations like Cyprus, Greece and Turkey. The UK’s second-biggest airport saw total passenger numbers drop by nearly five per cent because of the Middle East conflict, weighing on revenue [...]
Energy price cap rises to three-year high August 26, 2026 Brits are set for another squeeze from energy bills this winter after watchdog Ofgem confirmed the price cap was set to rise to a three-year high. The regulator said on Wednesday the default tariff for consumers across Britain would increase four per cent to £1,723 for the final quarter of the year. The rise marks [...]
As it happened: Antofagasta leads FTSE 100 rally; oil falls as US-Iran deal ‘close’ August 26, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM FTSE 100 liveblog. The UK’s blue-chip index slipped on Wednesday morning, dragged down by oil majors BP and Shell, before recovering later in the day to be level with Tuesday’s close. Brent crude – the international benchmark – fell by more than two per cent on Wednesday to $86 [...]
Economists urge Bank of England to halt bond sales as borrowing costs climb August 26, 2026 The Bank of England should abort its costly approach to unwinding quantitative easing, which is stoking the government’s elevated borrowing costs and costing the taxpayer billions of pounds, a group of analysts and bond investors have said. The government’s long-term borrowing costs have risen to levels not seen this century, amid unease at the country’s [...]
Why investors shouldn’t rush to buy the next blockbuster IPO August 26, 2026 IPOs get investors frothing at the mouth, yet the evidence suggests they should be viewed with greater caution, writes Yves Bonzon.
That women ‘lack confidence to invest’ is a lazy answer to a major problem August 26, 2026 Explaining away the gender investment gap as a matter of confidence has shifted responsibility away from the industry and onto women.
State pension set to pile pain on next generation of taxpayers, Healey warned August 26, 2026 The state pension is set to be the main driver of tax for the next generation of taxpayers, a Labour-linked think tank has warned in a paper that urged Chancellor John Healey to levy higher charges on wealth rather than income. New research from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), the former employer of [...]
Jenrick pledges reform for small businesses August 25, 2026 Reform UK’s economics chief Robert Jenrick has billed a package of tax and red tape reforms for small businesses as the “biggest plan” presented in a decade. A week before the party’s conference in Birmingham, Jenrick has hailed a number of flagship policies designed to appeal to bosses employing fewer than 50 employees. The party [...]
Clio hires legal tech veteran to overhaul backlogged courts August 25, 2026 Legal tech firm Clio has appointed Casetext’s co-founder to lead an initiative integrating AI directly into the court system. Clio, which currently offers its tech to lawyers and law firms, will create a “dedicated product line” of legal AI software “designed around the distinct needs of courts and judges”. Lawyer Pablo Arredondo was appointed to [...]