Sky’s ITV takeover could be tonic for Premier League media rights value July 9, 2026 Sky’s proposed takeover of ITV is widely expected to mean more sport on free-to-air channels in the UK, but wider consolidation in the media market could also have a significant impact on the value of sports broadcast rights. A combined Sky and ITV would, if approved by regulators, create an even more powerful player in [...]
Mark Kleinman: Nationwide’s pride should be dented by member election bid July 9, 2026 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his City AM column Nationwide’s pride should be dented by member election bid ‘Proud to be different’, ran the long-running Nationwide advertising slogan. Well, quite: it’s hard to see any of Britain’s big high street banks making quite the same mess [...]
Why even gilts are outperforming the once unstoppable Magnificent 7 this year July 8, 2026 Plagued by sticky inflation and spendthrift politicians, the UK government’s bonds have spent years as an unloved asset class. But six months into 2026 and they have, so far, outperformed the Magnificent 7. Ali Lyon examines what has gone wrong for the so-called hyperscalers even as AI hype is greater than ever. Since the Bank [...]
‘If you find yourself stuck in politics, the thing to do is start a fight’ July 8, 2026 In the great work of historical fiction, Imperium, Robert Harris imagines the Roman statesman Cicero observing that “if you find yourself stuck in politics, the thing to do is start a fight.” Clacton may be a far cry from the ancient senate in Rome, but Nigel Farage has followed the playbook. Facing a parliamentary standards [...]
Farage quits to stand in ‘people versus establishment’ by-election July 7, 2026 Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has announced that he will resign as an MP and stand again as a candidate in an upcoming Clacton by-election as part of what he dubbed a battle of “people versus establishment”. In a video statement where he repeatedly attacked Sky News and The Times and Sunday Times for “harassing” [...]
Beauty and Robot can put on a show at the Valley July 7, 2026 WITH the World Cup taking centre stage in the sporting world at present, the Hong Kong Jockey Club have framed a unique eight-runner race at Happy Valley, symbolising the eight remaining nations who have reached the quarter finals of the tournament. Sporting the country’s national colours, the eight contenders will line-up in the aptly named [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 rises to defy tech gloom; oil creeps up on fresh Iran tensions July 7, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Donald Trump warned the US will “finish the job” in Iran leaving investors unnerved as he renewed military threats following the funeral of Tehran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil – traded above $72 per barrel on the news, but [...]
No Wales? No problem: Why I travelled to the World Cup even though my team weren’t there July 7, 2026 He bought tickets to see Wales play in the World Cup before they lost their place. Can Gav Murphy find solace in California despite the lack of his beloved national team? Despite everyone and everything – we are still here!” The words of the Welsh football team’s unofficial anthem, Yma o Hyd, rang out around [...]
Non-compete clauses are restraining Britain’s talent market July 7, 2026 In the US, you can hire someone for a senior role and have them at their desk in a matter of weeks. Britain should ban non-compete clauses to enable the same.
ITV says ‘no guarantees’ on jobs after £1.6bn Sky deal July 6, 2026 ITV and Sky executives have said they can make no guarantees on job cuts after the two companies announced a £1.6bn merger on Monday. Employees of ITV have been warned the tie-up between Britain’s two biggest commercial broadcasters could lead to redundancies, and there are “no guarantees” over their jobs. Speaking after the acquisition was [...]