Natwest shares slip as bank upgrades income on higher interest rates Banking Natwest breezed past profit expectations in the first quarter of the 2026 and is predicting a greater bump to its bottom line on the back of higher-than-expected interest rates. The FTSE 100 giant booked a £2bn pre-tax profit in the first three months of the year, up from £1.8bn in the same period last year [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held as hawks warn of ‘highly uncertain’ energy prices Markets 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 [...]
Santander UK profit slides after motor finance reserves balloon Banking Santander UK’s profit took a knock in the first quarter of the year after the bank made another hefty top up to its motor finance provisions. The UK arm of the Spanish banking giant booked a £202m pre-tax profit for the first three months of 2026. This was down 44 per cent from the same [...]
Lloyds shares drop after income upgrade on higher interest rates April 29, 2026 Lloyds Banking Group has upgraded its income targets for the year as the bank expects to bring in more cash as interest rates remain elevated from the Iran war. The FTSE 100 financial giant – which counts Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland among its subsidiaries – said it expects net interest income to [...]
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 [...]
‘There’s a lot of risk out there’ – Bank of England warns of market ‘adjustment’ April 24, 2026 A top Bank of England official has warned that global markets could fall even further with current share prices not reflecting the economic risks at play. Sarah Breeden, the Bank’s deputy governor for financial stability, said: “There’s a lot of risk out there and yet asset prices are at all-time highs. “We expect there will [...]
Barclays sweetens mortgage deals as interest rate decision takes focus April 22, 2026 Barclays has become the latest bank to wade into the flurry of mortgage rate cuts as lenders turn their attention to next week’s interest rates decision. The FTSE 100 giant cut rates across more than 20 mortgage products from Wednesday morning. It follows on from a slew of reductions from the likes of HSBC UK, [...]
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 [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Entain leads modest stock jump; Surprise growth ‘pushed to rear view’ April 16, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Markets are betting the latest round of peace talks will bring some resolution to the conflict in the Middle East. US markets managed to clinch a record high close on the latest news of peace talks but in London the FTSE 100 splintered and finished [...]
‘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 [...]