FTSE 100 close: US recession jitters outweigh oil price surge on London index June 5, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 lost momentum in the afternoon session today after new data revealed the US economy is wilting under the weight of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes. The capital’s premier index slipped 0.1 per cent to 7,600 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of [...]
‘Pandemic years are behind us’: Global airlines’ profits to double to $10bn this year June 5, 2023 The airline industry’s primary trade body has doubled its global profit outlook for the sector this year to nearly $10bn (£8bn), as travel restrictions have all but disappeared and the world returns to international travel after the Covid-19 pandemic. Global airlines are predicted to see total revenues of $803bn (£648bn), according to the International Air [...]
Boosting renewables is the best way to just stop oil, says Octopus Energy boss June 5, 2023 The best way to 'Just Stop Oil' is to accelerate the transition to renewable energy, argued the boss of Octopus Energy Greg Jackson.
Explainer: What’s behind a potential price cap on essential food June 5, 2023 Now, it’s been so long it’s almost hard to remember when it started, but the price of pretty much everything has been going up in the UK for months on end. Food was always the most painful item area to go up in price – with the “eat or heat” tragic dichotomy predominating last winter. [...]
Families splashing cash despite high inflation and interest rates fuels services growth June 5, 2023 Families splashing the cash despite high inflation and interest rates crimping their budgets is keeping Britain’s services economy motoring along, a closely watched survey out today shows. S&P Global and the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply’s (CIPS) final purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the services sector, which generates about £2 in every £3 in [...]
British businesses mull ‘onshoring’ supply chains in response to soaring costs June 5, 2023 Snags in international supply chains lingering on from the Covid-19 pandemic are steering mid-sized businesses toward bringing their production lines back to the UK, a new survey out last night showed. Research by consultancy BDO found just under 50 per cent of the 500 firms they surveyed are considering “onshoring” as much of their operations [...]
London seals European finance investment crown every year since Brexit June 5, 2023 London is beating away the dire warnings that Brexit would knock it off its perch as Europe’s top finance hive and is even drawing in more investors amid high inflation and interest rates, a new report out today unveils. Foreign investors pumped cash into 46 financial services projects in the capital last year, up from [...]
Retailers urge rethink on net zero ‘grocery tax’ as public blame Brexit for rising costs June 4, 2023 Top retailers have urged the government to rethink plans for green levies to fund the recycling of food packaging in a bid to avoid a further rise in spiralling food costs. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned the scheme, dubbed the ‘net zero grocery tax’, could push up shopping bills by up to £4bn [...]
‘Can’t come soon enough’: Will Sunak follow through on 2p tax cut reports? June 4, 2023 Rishi Sunak’s mooted plans to reduce the tax burden from a seven-decade high with a 2p cut in income tax ahead of the next election have been welcomed by Tory campaigners. Reports surfaced in the Sunday Telegraph that the PM – an ex-City banker – is keen to cut charges in order to incentivise work [...]
House prices to stutter after Bank of England interest rate hikes June 4, 2023 House price growth is poised to stutter, new figures out this week are expected to show, as prospective homeowners are gradually priced out of the market by the Bank of England’s successive interest rate rises.