Bank of England to avoid signalling faster interest rate cuts February 4, 2026 The Bank of England will not signal a faster pace of interest rate cuts over the coming months to combat jobs market woes across the UK economy, with some economists fearing it could send markets mixed messages on monetary policy. Markets expect interest rates to be held at 3.75 per cent on Thursday due to [...]
Donkervoort P24 RS is an unhinged Dutch supercar with 600hp February 4, 2026 Dutch sports car manufacturer Donkervoort has revealed its most powerful vehicle to date. Combining a lightweight carbon fibre body with a twin-turbocharged V6 engine gives the new P24 RS truly explosive performance. Donkervoort has used Audi engines in its sports cars for more than two decades. However, the end of production for Audi’s sonorous 2.5-litre [...]
LSEG, Sage, Rightmove shares fall as Anthropic AI rattles markets February 4, 2026 Shares in global software giants tumbled again on Wednesday morning as the latest AI innovation from Anthropic rattled global markets. The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) extended Tuesday’s losses falling near two per cent in early trading to lows of 6,774.00p before clawing back some gains. Meanwhile Rightmove led the index’s fallers, with a slump [...]
UK Retailers Eye Online Growth as AI Transforms Shopping and Delivery February 4, 2026 80% of UK retailers expect online sales growth in 2026 as AI enhances end-to-end customer experiences
Expereo and Cato Networks Collaborate to Set New Standard for Global Enterprise Connectivity February 4, 2026 One Network. One Partner. Zero Complexity.
Political uncertainty leaves British businesses only planning year-to-year February 4, 2026 Businesses are seeing political change and regulatory uncertainty as a barrier to long-term workforce planning, making it harder for leaders to implement effective workforce strategies. Nearly 80 per cent of employers find themselves unable to look beyond a 12-month horizon, according to a survey of nearly 700 employers by law firm Lewis Silkin. Lucy Lewis, [...]
Britain’s growth slumps and the Business Secretary scratches his head February 4, 2026 Having spent another day wading through the Epstein-Mandelson email traffic I was going to write another column about how unbelievably grubby the revelations are, but it’s too depressing. So, I thought I’d focus on something more cheerful; the latest downgrades to the UK’s economic growth forecasts. On his visit to China alongside the PM, the [...]
The only thing that’s growing in Britain is the civil service February 4, 2026 The salary bill for the civil service rose to £21bn last year, up more than seven per cent in a year when economic growth was anaemic at best. The private sector is funding a pay bonanza while businesses are ground down with higher taxes and more regulation, says John O’Connell While Britain’s businesses struggle with [...]
Fix Hammersmith Bridge to jolt Britain out of degrowth daydream February 4, 2026 The seven-year closure of Hammersmith Bridge is emblematic of British decline. The government must now take responsibility, says Neil Garratt “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.” We might picture a bewhiskered Victorian Londoner contemplating those words in Arthur Conan Doyle’s latest novel, The Sign of the Four, [...]
Is Guinness Bristol City deal a sign of football shirt sponsorships to come? February 4, 2026 Looming exit of betting companies from football front-of-shirt sponsorship opens the door for more consumer brands like Guinness to return, writes Matthew Fletcher-Jones. Having made the often-regrettable decision to support Tottenham Hotspur in the 1980s, I’m still pleased to see any corner shop selling Holsten Pils – the club’s shirt sponsor throughout my youth. Chelsea [...]