Rolls-Royce shares hit new high as FTSE 100 rallies to record February 18, 2026 Rolls-Royce was among a whole host of City heavyweights storming higher on Wednesday helping the FTSE 100 seal another record. The aerospace giant jumped 2.2 per cent to 1,325.50p taking it to a new all-time high ahead of January’s previous peak of 1,305.00p. The move came as defence titan BAE System jumped near four per [...]
UK house prices see modest growth amid London slump February 18, 2026 UK house prices ticked up last year, but the London market continued to lag after property tax speculation and high mortgage rates constrained affordability. The average UK house price increased by 2.4 per cent annually in December 2025, slowing from 2.8 per cent growth in the year to November, according to the latest data from [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Inflation falls to near year-low; BAE leads stock rally February 18, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Inflation has fallen to a near year-low this morning hitting its slowest pace since March and fuelling hopes that the Bank of England will take the chop to interest rates next month. New data from the Official for National Statistics showed rose the Consumer Price [...]
What happens if workers start wearing Meta glasses to the office? February 18, 2026 Meta smart glasses are going from niche to norm, so what happens when people start wearing them in the office, asks Paul Armstrong.
Employment Rights Act changes could cost Premier League clubs millions February 18, 2026 Premier League clubs could be forced to pay millions in player dismissal fees when Labour changes to the Employment Rights Act come into force next year. It comes as the UK’s unemployment rate reached a near five-year high on Tuesday morning. The Employment Rights Act, a brainchild of former deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, will [...]
John Lewis boosts staff pay despite losses February 18, 2026 Retail giant John Lewis has announced a £108m investment in staff pay despite losses at the retail giant tripling over its last financial year. The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns supermarket Waitrose, announced on Wednesday it will hike shop floor pay by 6.9 per cent, which it says will boost the pay packet of [...]
Back Dragon to rise to the Top in Year of the Horse Cup February 17, 2026 EXPECT a huge crowd at Sha Tin in Hong Kong on Thursday as the Chinese New Year race day gets underway with an 11-race programme, featuring the Year of the Horse Cup (7.00am) over a mile. This is the day when horse racing fans arrive at the track armed with all their lucky pens, keyrings, [...]
LA mayor calls for Wasserman resignation over Epstein files mention February 17, 2026 The mayor of Los Angeles has called on Casey Wasserman to resign as chairman of the 2028 Olympic Games after his name was found in a recent dump of the Epstein files. Karen Bass told US Network CNN that she “cannot fire him” but said that Wasserman, whose namesake talent and sports marketing agency is [...]
Businesses to rush redundancies ahead of new Employment Rights changes February 17, 2026 Businesses plan to carry out a “clean up” of redundancies by the end of the year in anticipation of the Employment Rights Act coming into force next January. The government’s plan to remove the unfair dismissal cap in its Employment Rights Act will lead to more claims, especially among higher-earning employees. To avoid expensive layoffs [...]
Is AI really to blame for Britain’s rising unemployment? February 17, 2026 Unemployment has risen to 5.2 per cent, the highest level since 2021, as the UK’s labour market continues to cool. But how much of that stagnation can reasonably be attributed to AI? The latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show the jobless rate climbed in the three months to December, while the number of [...]