Meat and coffee prices drive grocery price inflation October 14, 2025 Grocery price inflation in the UK passed five per cent in September to its highest level since July after the cost of fresh meat and coffee jumped. Like-for-like grocery price inflation rose to 5.2 per cent over the four weeks to 5 October versus the same period last year, according to the latest figures from Worldpanel [...]
Retail sales slow as Budget and inflation weigh on spending plans October 14, 2025 Retail spending slowed in September, as a tax raising Budget and higher household inflation expectations forced Brits to tighten their belts before the all-important ‘Golden Quarter’. Total retail sales in September increased by 2.3 per cent year on year, down from the 3.1 per cent that the sector notched up in August and the 2.5 [...]
Hellofresh sinks further into the red as 900 UK jobs lost October 7, 2025 The UK arm of Hellofresh has sunk deeper into the red as its sales were cut during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The division has reported a pre-tax loss of £19.5m for 2024, new accounts filed with Companies House show. The latest figure comes after Hellofresh posted a loss of £755,000 in [...]
Bank of England’s Mann calls for sustained interest rate hold October 1, 2025 The Bank of England’s Catherine Mann has called for interest rates to be held where they are for longer before making a larger cut to revive the sluggish growth outlook, citing a recent spike in consumer inflation expectations as evidence price rises were embedding into the economy. The external Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member known [...]
‘Packaging tax’ to force further price rises October 1, 2025 UK businesses will be forced to pass the vast majority of costs incurred by a new packaging tax onto consumers, in a move that will stoke already rampant food inflation and compound financial pressures on hard-pressed households. According to fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), retailers plan to pass over 80 per cent [...]
Bank of England’s Breeden says inflation ‘hump’ is transitory September 30, 2025 The Bank of England’s deputy governor has warned keeping interest rates too high could drag inflation below the Bank’s two per cent target in comments that further exposed the divergence that exists among central bank officials over the long-term path of inflation. In a dovish speech delivered at Cardiff Business School, financial stability deputy chief [...]
Retail body warns against tax hikes amid ‘nightmare’ inflation September 30, 2025 Britain’s largest retail business group has warned the Treasury that further tax hikes on businesses will keep shop prices “higher for longer”, after data showed food inflation in September remained at its highest levels since the height of the cost-of-living crisis. British Retail Consortium (BRC) chief executive Helen Dickinson said even if the Chancellor chooses [...]
Cocoa price surge drives chocolate prices higher September 22, 2025 Surging cocoa prices are driving chocolate prices higher, which is having a disproportionate impact on UK food prices. UK food and drink inflation rose to 5.1 per cent in August, in a fifth consecutive annual increase and the highest since January 2024, amid fears that this figure could reach 5.7 per cent by the end [...]
Heinz: UK profit rockets despite ketchup and baked beans battles September 22, 2025 Profit has nearly doubled at the UK arm of Heinz despite “strong competition” from rivals to its sauces and beans categories. The London-headquartered division of the US giant has reported a pre-tax profit of £191.9m for 2024, according to new accounts filed with Companies House. The total is up from the £104.1m it achieved in [...]
Asda boss slams tax hikes: ‘Businesses have to be allowed to invest’ August 28, 2025 Asda chair Allan Leighton has warned that the Government must change the way it thinks about growth or risk a stagnating economy. Ahead of Asda’s quarterly results – where the grocer reported its fourth consecutive quarter of improving like-for-like sales – Leighton said that the company has a “simple philosophy… if you want growth, you [...]