FTSE 100 Live: Stocks fall as Trump ramps up pressure; Unemployment at four-year high Markets Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Thousands more Brits exited the jobs market in November as the estimated number of payrolled employees fell by 33,000. New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the UK unemployment rate for people aged 16 years and hit 5.1 per cent in September [...]
Fashion giant Zara holds a mirror up to retail disruption Retail Zara is on a mission to be more digital. From AI generated models, to reduced production timelines, to a new AI-powered virtual try-on feature, the moves point to a wider shift within the sector. The Spanish retail giant has spent the last few weeks modernising its strategy, fully embracing AI adoption to cut costs and [...]
Who still gets hired in the 2026 workplace? Business Britain’s labour market has probably never felt more precarious than it does now, as the struggling economy and the rapid rise of AI take effect. Redundancies are at their highest since the pandemic, unemployment has risen to 5.1 per cent, and entry-level opportunities, the traditional stepping stones for grads and young workers, have all but [...]
Windfall taxes: Major North Sea jobs cuts revealed by oil and gas giant December 1, 2025 Around 100 offshore jobs are set to be cut by oil and gas firm Harbour Energy amid pressure from UK windfall taxes. The company, which is the UK’s largest oil and gas producer, has announced the proposed job losses as part of a review into its operations in this country. In a statement, managing director [...]
Labour hopes AI will save UK economy from jobs crisis November 20, 2025 The government has announced a sweeping package of AI investment intended to create thousands of new jobs across the UK, at a time when businesses warn that rising employment costs and rapid advances in AI are already driving workforce reductions. Ministers have confirmed billions of pounds of private and public AI investment, including a new [...]
Robots set to replace couriers at Uber Eats November 20, 2025 Uber Eats and Starship Technologies have announced a partnership to deploy autonomous delivery robots across the UK, Europe, and the US, starting in Leeds this December. While the pair have argued the move promises faster, cheaper, AI-powered deliveries, it may also reignite fears over the future of human couriers. Starship, which operates the world’s largest [...]
Royal London: AI set to take key roles in asset management November 20, 2025 AI is poised to take on some of the traditional roles in asset management, and the sector can no longer ignore it. Royal London Asset Management’s chief data officer, Rob Middleton said firms need to stop skirting the conversation and accept that the shift is already reshaping how teams work. “We have to attempt to [...]
Pizza Hut: Restaurants arm owed £30m as 1,100 jobs lost November 3, 2025 The company behind Pizza Hut’s restaurants in the UK owed almost £30m as it collapsed with the loss of more than 1,100 jobs, it has been revealed. DC London Pie entered administration towards the end of last month with FTI Consulting appointed to oversee the process. Now, a new document has revealed the full story [...]
The Entertainer makes huge loss as Reeves’ Budget forces job cuts November 3, 2025 The Entertainer made a raft of redundancies as a result of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first Autumn Budget as it fell into the red during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. Teal Group Holdings, which also includes Early Learning Centre and Addo Play, cut 41 jobs and withdraw 15 other roles which were being [...]
Facebook cuts 660 UK jobs as revenue nears record November 3, 2025 Facebook cut more than 600 UK jobs as its revenue passed the £3bn mark in 2024, it has been revealed. The London-headquartered arm of the US giant reduced its headcount from 6,338 to 5,679 during its latest financial year. The fall comes after Facebook’s UK headcount had stood at 7,053 at the end of 2022. [...]