Autumn Budget: B&Q boss hands Reeves tool kit for growth Retail Ahead of the Autumn Budget, City Reporter Samuel Norman sits down with top industry names for a Budget Briefing. This week, the boss of retail stalwart B&Q warns truly fixing the foundations starts with building confidence. After Labour’s monumental 2024 general election sweep, Chancellor Rachel Reeves seized her economic tool kit, telling Britons she was “fixing [...]
Oxford Instruments shares rally despite early profit disruption Business Manufacturing and research company Oxford Instruments has seen its shares rocket despite a steep fall in profits during the first half of the year. The group’s stock rallied 9.93 per cent in early morning trading to 1,970, as the group confirmed it was beginning to recover from “significant disruption” in the early months of the [...]
Gen Z’s entrepreneurial dreams threatened by lack of support Business Gen Z is leading the country’s entrepreneurial boom, but a lack of professional support could threaten their future as business leaders. Over 80 per cent of 18 to 24 year olds have engaged in a form of entrepreneurial activity, such as selling products online or having a ‘side hustle’ alongside a full time job, according [...]
Retail footfall sinks for sixth straight month as Brits fear Budget taxes November 7, 2025 Footfall at the UK’s shops has declined for the sixth consecutive month, marking another worrying sign for the retail sector. Total activity fell by 0.7 per cent in October, led by drops in shopping centre and retail park footfall, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). BRC chief Helen Dickinson said that nervousness around the [...]
Tech stocks rally after Tuesday’s sell off November 5, 2025 US stock markets rebounded on Wednesday as investor nerves cooled after billion-dollar short positions disclosed in leading AI companies sent tech stocks in a tailspin on Tuesday. Star fund manager Michael Burry, of The Big Short fame, disclosed a $1.1bn (£843m) wager on Palantir and Nvidia shares falling on Tuesday, after drawing attention to similarities between [...]
Income tax rise could cause a fresh wave of Brits to move abroad November 4, 2025 Income tax rises in the upcoming Budget would force an increased number of Brits to consider a move abroad, a leading international removal company has warned, adding that hiking the tax would lead to “a great Q4 for companies like mine.” Speculation surrounding a rise in income tax in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ November Budget has [...]
Business rates burden to disproportionately hit London offices October 28, 2025 The upcoming change in how business rates are calculated will affect far more office-based firms in London than elsewhere and may cause a rise in closures, according to a new report. The business tax reforms, scheduled for next April, will introduce a higher rate of payment for properties worth over £500,000. The new multiplier for [...]
The ‘confidence gap’ is discouraging women from investing October 23, 2025 The UK financial services’ sectors fixation with the ‘confidence gap’ is actively turning women away from investing, a trading platform has warned. An analysis by Etoro of more than 80 UK reports on women investing by the financial services industry, found a repeated belief that the gender investment gap was caused by a lack of [...]
Rachel Reeves told to scrap business rates for new profit tax in Budget October 14, 2025 A City accountancy firm has called on Chancellor Rachel Reeves to scrap business rates in her Autumn Budget and replace them with a new profit tax. Lubbock Fine said business rates, which have been the topic of much lobbying in recent weeks, should make way for a variable local tax on profits. The firm said [...]
Co-op warns 150,000 jobs at risk ahead of Autumn Budget October 13, 2025 The Co-op has warned that 60,000 small shops and 150,000 jobs could be lost without business rates reform in next month’s Autumn Budget. The Manchester-headquartered group has said Britain’s high streets “face a critical moment” and that Chancellor Rachel Reeves needs to announce “maximum” business rates relief on 26 November. The call comes after City [...]