Retail investors cool on AI and pile into defence sector July 30, 2025 Retail investor appetite for AI stocks has cooled as geopolitical tensions spark a surge in enthusiasm for the defence sector. Over 50 per cent of retail investors believe the defence sector will deliver the strongest growth over the next six months, according to new research from online investing and trading platform IG. AI-related industries slipped [...]
Swatch: Rachel Reeves’ tax hikes could see profit fall further July 16, 2025 Swiss watch brand Swatch has warned its UK profit could continue to shrink as a result of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ tax hikes. The business has said the increase in employer’s National Insurance contributions – which were announced in October 2024 and came into effect in April this year – will increase operational costs. Swatch added [...]
OpenAI’s security crackdown signals new AI battle July 8, 2025 Silicon Valley’s $300bn crown jewel, OpenAI, is shifting focus from building artificial intelligence to protecting it. OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT and arguably the most scrutinised name in AI, has imposed a sweeping internal lockdown. From biometric fingerprint scans, to offline ‘tented’ R&D zones, the San Fransisco-based firm is tightening security across the board amid [...]
Gordon Murray Automotive: The supercar stars of Goodwood July 4, 2025 This week’s Goodwood Festival of Speed will celebrate the 60-year career of Gordon Murray CBE. From his early days at the Brabham F1 team to establishing his own car company, Murray is one of the motoring world’s greatest innovators. Born in South Africa, the young Murray designed, built and raced his own ‘IGM-Ford’ sports car. [...]
Carmarker Lotus: ‘No plans’ to shutter UK factory despite fears of closure June 28, 2025 Lotus has said it has ‘no plans’ to close its Norfolk factory despite media reports that the carmaker may move production to the US. Reports on Friday suggested that the company’s Hethel factory – which employs 1,300 people – could be closed within a month, but Lotus said it is “continuing normal operations” in a [...]
Brussels’ tobacco ban risks fuelling illegal immigration June 28, 2025 A proposed EU tobacco tax hike risks fuelling organised crime, illicit trade, and people smuggling across Europe and into the UK, says Tom Pursglove Recent headlines suggest that up to 50,000 illegal migrants could cross the Channel this year – a figure that provokes a palpable sense of dread amongst the British public. People have [...]
Bond markets calm despite government benefits u-turn June 27, 2025 The cost of government borrowing has stayed flat on Friday morning despite the Starmer administration’s costly benefits U-turn blowing a £3bn hole in the UK’s precarious public finances. Gilts – the name for UK government bonds – opened in a muted fashion across the curve. 10-year yields nudged down two basis points (bps) in early [...]
Totally Wicked: Vapes giant sold to Chinese investor June 26, 2025 Family-owned vapes retailer Totally Wicked has been sold to a Chinese investor, it has been revealed. The Lancashire-headquartered company, which was founded in 2008 by Jason Cropper, has been acquired by Wittyace UK Holding. The business is controlled by Chinese national Ying Wang and is registered in Cambridge. It is ultimately owned by Wittyace Hk Holding [...]
Pop star Estelle tells us what she’d eat for her last meal June 26, 2025 Grammy award-winning British singer, rapper, and actor Estelle tells us what she would eat for her last meal, from West African puff puff to Granadian saltfish and a glass of whisky My mother and my grandma were both chefs. Mum went to school for it, and learned how to cook all these amazing things. She would come [...]
How thriving, free-market Hong Kong came under the boot of communist China June 26, 2025 What began on this day in 1843 ended in a strange form of decolonisation. The UK handed over a territory to China, not by popular demand, but to abide by international treaties, knowing that to the other side such agreements were worthless, says Eliot Wilson If you have any real memory of the handover of [...]