Wagamama owner sheds 2,000 jobs as losses widen October 2, 2025 The owner of Wagamama shed more than 2,000 jobs as its losses widened during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The Restaurant Group, whose other major brand is Brunning & Price, has posted a pre-tax loss of £32.2m for 2024, new accounts filed with Companies House show. The total comes after the business [...]
Bank of England’s Mann calls for sustained interest rate hold October 1, 2025 The Bank of England’s Catherine Mann has called for interest rates to be held where they are for longer before making a larger cut to revive the sluggish growth outlook, citing a recent spike in consumer inflation expectations as evidence price rises were embedding into the economy. The external Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member known [...]
‘Packaging tax’ to force further price rises October 1, 2025 UK businesses will be forced to pass the vast majority of costs incurred by a new packaging tax onto consumers, in a move that will stoke already rampant food inflation and compound financial pressures on hard-pressed households. According to fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), retailers plan to pass over 80 per cent [...]
Bank of England’s Breeden says inflation ‘hump’ is transitory September 30, 2025 The Bank of England’s deputy governor has warned keeping interest rates too high could drag inflation below the Bank’s two per cent target in comments that further exposed the divergence that exists among central bank officials over the long-term path of inflation. In a dovish speech delivered at Cardiff Business School, financial stability deputy chief [...]
Farmfoods: Iceland rival battles rising costs September 30, 2025 Budget supermarket chain Farmfoods has said rising costs weighed on its profit as it battled to keep prices down for its customers. The business, which is headquartered in North Lanarkshire in Scotland, has posted a pre-tax profit of £33.1m for 2024, up from the £25.5m it achieved in 2023. However, Farmfoods said “increased cost pressures” resulted [...]
Retail body warns against tax hikes amid ‘nightmare’ inflation September 30, 2025 Britain’s largest retail business group has warned the Treasury that further tax hikes on businesses will keep shop prices “higher for longer”, after data showed food inflation in September remained at its highest levels since the height of the cost-of-living crisis. British Retail Consortium (BRC) chief executive Helen Dickinson said even if the Chancellor chooses [...]
GBK: Gourmet Burger Kitchen creates 600 jobs amid profit return September 29, 2025 Gourmet Burger Kitchen has created almost 600 jobs as it returned to profit during its latest financial year. The restaurant chain increased its headcount from 1,652 to 2,235 in 2024, according to new accounts filed with Companies House. The results have also revealed that Gourmet Burger Kitchen achieved a pre-tax profit of £4.8m for the [...]
Pizza Express slices value by over £40m as sales slide September 25, 2025 Pizza Express slashed its value by more than £40m in 2024, it has been revealed, as its sales also dipped. The restaurant chain’s pre-tax losses went from £7.9m to £40.7m while new accounts filed with Companies House also show its revenue slipped from £454.5m to £442.1m over the same period. In the UK and Ireland, [...]
Huge losses continue at Haven owner as hundreds of jobs created September 24, 2025 The group behind Haven holiday parks and Warner Leisure Hotels continued to make huge losses in 2024 despite its turnover jumping by almost £100m. Bourne Leisure, which is owned by investment giant Blackstone, has reported a pre-tax loss of nearly £170m for its latest financial year, having also lost £166.5m in 2023. However, new accounts filed [...]
OECD: Taxes and tariffs to damage UK economy September 23, 2025 Higher taxes and the sting from US tariffs are set to restrain UK growth, according to forecasters at the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), with inflation soaring above all other countries other than the US. The OECD’s latest update on the state of the global economy said the UK’s “tighter fiscal stance” means [...]