Global equity markets are dangerously overconfident April 28, 2026 Global equity markets show a dangerous disconnect by continuing to rally – fueled by an overconfidence in policy backstops – despite the severe and persistent supply-side risks caused by the ongoing energy shock from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, says Helen Thomas There is a growing disconnect between the resilience of global equity [...]
Barclays shares slide as sour loan provisions balloon to £823m April 28, 2026 Barclays made a mammoth reservation for bad loans in the first quarter led by the hostilities in the global market and a single name charge in its investment banking division. The blue-chip lender set aside £823m for potential loan losses, up from £643m in the same period last year, in a stark sign the firm [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks dip as oil edges higher; BP posts profit boom April 28, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Oil returned to a three-week high comfortably over the $105 mark on Monday and those gains look set to continue today. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – edged over $110 on Tuesday morning as it once again appeared peace talks in [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks dip as oil prices surge to three-week high April 27, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. There’s set to be little relief in markets this morning as investors return from the weekend to oil hitting a three-week high. The price of Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – rose two per cent to over $107 on Monday morning. [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks drop as Trump in ‘no rush’ to end Iran war; Retail sales jump on fuel rush April 24, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Donald Trump has slapped another extension on ceasefires in the Middle East following Wednesday’s intervention, where a previous deadline was set to expire. Just days ago, Trump said he was extending the ceasefire indefinitely as the deadline for strikes on Iranian power plants drew nearer. [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks slump as oil rises; Reeves tax hikes trigger borrowing boost April 23, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. An extended ceasefire may have been announced in the Middle East, but its left markets with major appetite for further peace before investor sentiment recovers. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – was trading back over the $100 mark on Thursday morning. [...]
Government launches Britain’s largest ever retail investing campaign April 23, 2026 The government has unveiled its industry-backed push to encourage households to plough their savings into the stock market, in what is set to be the largest retail investing campaign of its kind in Britain’s history. Starring a red squirrel called ‘Savvy’, the Invest for the Future campaign will seek to “drive a step change in [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks jitter as inflation surges; Trump extends ceasefire April 22, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Inflation has surged this morning follow the outbreak of war in Iran. Fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has shown the consumer price index rose by 3.3 per cent in the 12 months to March 2026. That’s up from three per cent [...]
City minister: Tax regime ‘sends a message’ to fintech IPO prospects April 21, 2026 The City minister has said the tax regime “matters” for how the UK can strengthen capital markets as part of its bid to lock down the next cohort of listing candidates. Lucy Rigby, economic secretary to the Treasury, said the government was looking to build on the “historical success of our capital market” as it [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks flat as Trump’s deadline looms; Job vacancies shrink; Primark gets spin-off April 21, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. New unemployment figures this morning have showed an unexpected twist where the joblessness rate slipped under the five per cent mark. But this was accompanied by a blow to the market with the number of vacancies fell by an estimate of 29,000 in the three [...]