Reeves’ Budget will fail to rescue public finances, top bank predicts November 19, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ upcoming Budget will not live up to market hopes of fiscal caution nor will it solve problems around high government expenditure, analysts at a leading City bank have warned. Reeves has said she intends to build a larger fiscal buffer than £9.9bn in order to “absorb shocks” next week while the Budget [...]
Britain’s business spirit still alive at Global Entrepreneurship Week November 19, 2025 There is more to be done to smooth the path for future founders, but Britain should be proud of its strong pool of entrepreneurs, writes Timothy Barnes.
Lloyds to acquire London fintech in bid to grow digital offerings November 19, 2025 Lloyds Banking Group is acquiring London based fintech Curve, as it looks to boost its digital offerings and compete against popular challenger banks. Curve, which was founded in 2015, operates as a digital payment wallet which combines all debit and credit cards alongside alternative payment sources, such as cryptocurrency, onto a single platform. The platform [...]
Jet2 shares soar as Tiktok meme pays dividends November 19, 2025 Jet2 has seen its shares jump after a viral TikTok trend helped the London-listed airline see record passenger numbers over the summer. The London-listed business said it saw an increase of 750,000 passengers flown to 14m over the six months to the end of September. That helped group revenue rise 5 per cent to £5.3bn. Jet2 [...]
Inflation stays high in pre-Budget warning to Reeves November 19, 2025 Inflation hit 3.6 per cent in the year to October, it has been revealed, in the last set of prices data Chancellor Rachel Reeves will see before a crucial Budget focused on curbing the cost of living. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said inflation cooled slightly from last month’s figure of 3.8 per cent, [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Inflation falls to 3.6 per cent, WH Smith CEO quits November 19, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Global markets downturn continued on Tuesday, with Europe left swimming in the red. The FTSE 100 closed the day down 1.27 per cent at 9,552 as the boss of Google gave the latest warning on the soaring valuation of tech stocks. Sundar Pichai, the head [...]
My advice for Rachel Reeves? Learn how to spin a yarn November 19, 2025 Economic history shows us the importance of a narrative. If Rachel Reeves wants to help the economy, she needs to learn how to tell a story.
Markets will determine whether Reeves has any credibility left November 19, 2025 It’s a regrettable reality that a politician – or an entire government – can limp on for months or even years after losing credibility in the eyes of voters. In contrast, when markets think the credibility is gone the consequences can be much more immediate. Just ask Liz Truss. One week from today, the Chancellor’s [...]
Recession fears as insolvencies creep up amid construction woes November 18, 2025 The number of insolvencies crept up in October, official data has shown, amid further pressures on the construction industry and worries that Budget measures may sound the death knell for struggling companies. Data released by the Insolvency Service showed a 1.7 per cent month-on-month rise in insolvencies. On a year-on-year basis, official numbers show insolvencies [...]
JP Jenkins secures Pisces licence as ‘discussions ongoing’ with rivals November 18, 2025 JP Jenkins has become the latest securities venue to secure a Pisces operator licence by the UK’s financial regulator as competition heats up to attract businesses to the new private market. The approval makes JP Jenkins the second company to have received a licence from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) after London Stock Exchange operator [...]