Lloyds shares upgraded to ‘Buy’ after interest rates tailwind April 30, 2026 Analysts at UBS slapped a ‘Buy’ rating on shares in Lloyds Banking Group as the financial services giant looks to receive a bump to its bottom line from the elevated interest rate path. Jason Napier, analyst at UBS, said: “Given the tailwinds from rate hedges… we see strong future momentum in profits as a relatively [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held as hawks warn of ‘highly uncertain’ energy prices April 30, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has today decided to hold interest rates at 3.75 per cent in a hawkish display. In last month’s decision, the Bank held rates in a unanimous decision. Afterwards, short-term gilt yields, which reflect government borrowing costs, sharply rose as traders priced [...]
Lloyds fires bank tax warning shot as industry ‘ripe for cash grab’ April 29, 2026 Lloyds Banking Group has warned the Treasury not to look at the banks for a tax raid as the industry sets its sights on booming profits in 2026. The FTSE 100 giant beat profit expectations by a cool £200m in the first-quarter after booking £2bn. This was also followed up by an upgrade to its [...]
FTSE 100 banks £16bn payday to face economic reality check April 27, 2026 Provisions for sour loans threaten to take a bite out of profit growth as Barclays kicks off FTSE 100 banks earnings season next week whilst economic tensions loom over the wider financial industry. UK banks will give a snapshot of the gathering tensions in the economy next week as the nation’s top lenders update the [...]
Santander and TSB kick off mortgage rate cuts after Iran turmoil April 16, 2026 Santander and TSB have kicked off the mortgage rate cutting cycle after lenders pulled deals and hiked their rates amidst the turmoil in Iran. From Thursday, Santander said it would be lower the price on higher loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages products by near 0.3 per cent, which includes its two-year fixed, first-time buyer products. Meanwhile, TSB said it [...]
‘Mortgage mayhem’: Deal lifespans hit record low as interest rate cut hopes dim April 13, 2026 Borrowers have been left in a “mortgage maze” after lenders frantically pulled deals due to the unfolding crisis in the Middle East leading to the lowest average shelf-life on record. The average mortgage was on the market for just eight days in March – the lowest since records began in November 2011. This marks a [...]
‘Mortgage mayhem’: Banks’ rates soar past 5.5 per cent amid Iran war volatility March 25, 2026 The UK mortgage market has been flipped upside down with Brits facing higher prices to borrow in the short-term as the Iran war rattles the economy. The average five-year fixed deal for a homeowner has spiked to 5.54 per cent this morning, up from 4.95 per cent at the start of March, according to financial [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks soar as Trump claims ‘victory’ in Iran; Economists clash on inflation March 25, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Fresh figures this morning revealed inflation rose three per cent in the year to February 2026, unchanged from the 12 months to January 2026. Grant Fitzner said: “The largest upwards driver was the price of clothing, which rose this month but fell a year ago. “This was offset [...]
Mortgage deals shrink by a fifth since outbreak of Iran war March 23, 2026 The number of mortgage deals on offer for homeowners have shrunk by nearly a fifth since war broke out in Iran just over three weeks ago. Just shy of 1,500 fewer residential mortgages were available on Monday morning, compared with March 9, amounting to a contraction of 19.5 per cent. According to financial information platform [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held in first unanimous vote in eight years March 19, 2026 Welcome back to City AM‘s ongoing coverage of the interest rates decision. Interest rates have been held as rate-setters at the Bank of England warned the war in Iran could send prices spiralling as soon as April. In the first totally unanimous vote in eight years, all members of the Monetary Policy Committee voted to [...]