Lloyds and Natwest shares fall in ‘perfect combination’ of fears November 14, 2025 Lloyds and Natwest shares were among the top fallers on the FTSE 100 index on Friday as a combination of fears weighed upon City stocks. The FTSE 350 bank index lost 2.17 per cent over the course of the day amid a widespread sell off across the blue-chip index. The FTSE 100 fell 1.1 per [...]
Rachel Reeves panics markets by ditching plans for income tax hike November 14, 2025 Rachel Reeves is understood to have scrapped plans to break Labour’s manifesto and hike income tax in the forthcoming Autumn Budget. The Chancellor was poised to hike income tax by 2p whilst cutting national insurance by the same amount in a move that would break Labour’s pledge to not raise taxes on ‘working people.’ Over [...]
Persimmon makes progress despite Budget uncertainty November 13, 2025 London-listed housebuilder Persimmon has made steady progress this year, despite a variety of macroeconomic headwinds. Forward sales have risen 15 per cent since July 1 to £2.79bn, with three-quarters of forward sales being private. Just over four-fifths of Persimmon’s expected private house deliveries have already been exchanged or completed, it said. “Progress has been achieved [...]
If income tax thresholds remain frozen benefits should too November 13, 2025 Consistency matters. If the fiscal situation is truly so dire that tax thresholds must remain frozen, then the same logic should apply to spending, says John O’Connell The biggest casualty of the upcoming Budget will not be the rich or the poor. It will be those who are caught in the middle: the working and [...]
FTSE 100 closes in on 10,000 after outperforming US indices November 12, 2025 The FTSE 100 is inching a step closer to the magic 10,000 mark after almost a year of outperforming counterparts across the Atlantic. London’s blue-chip index rallied on the open before giving up some gains to settle on a broadly flat level. It follows two consecutive record closes with the City shrugging off bubbling tensions [...]
Rachel Reeves mulls second booze tax hike November 12, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considering an increase in taxes on alcohol in line with a higher reading of inflation in a repeat of last year’s Budget, according to reports. Reeves could hike duties by the retail prices index (RPI) inflation rate in a bid to raise more cash to fill an estimated £30bn fiscal hole [...]
Taylor Wimpey shares slump as boss blasts Budget uncertainty November 12, 2025 The boss of Taylor Wimpey has blamed weak market conditions that hit the firm’s bottom line on the uncertainty surrounding the forthcoming Budget. Jennie Daly, chief executive of the housebuilder, said: “Market conditions remain challenging, impacted by uncertainty ahead of the upcoming UK Budget and continued affordability pressures.” Shares in Taylor Wimpey were down over 3.5 [...]
Brits confidence in European economy outpaces UK as Budget fears grow November 11, 2025 Brits have admitted to having more confidence in the strength of the European and global economy than the UK as Budget fears consume the country. Fresh Barclays research has revealed Brits confidence in the European economy has ranked above the UK for the tenth consecutive month. Of the 2,000 surveyed, 22 per cent had faith [...]
Two thirds of Brits want tax-raising Reeves to resign November 11, 2025 The latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy poll will make difficult for the Chancellor, says Matthew Lesh Last week, Chancellor Rachel Reeves played with fire. In what was officially titled a “scene setter” speech ahead of the Budget, she tried to soften the ground for tax rises. After committing to not come back for more after last [...]
Retailers hit by subdued October as Budget threat looms November 11, 2025 UK retailers suffered a “subdued” October as Brits tightened their pockets ahead of what is expected to be a tax-heavy Autumn Budget. Retail sales increased 1.6 per cent year-on-year but remained below the 12-month average of 2.1 per cent, marking the weakest growth since May. The new data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and [...]