Meat and coffee prices drive grocery price inflation October 14, 2025 Grocery price inflation in the UK passed five per cent in September to its highest level since July after the cost of fresh meat and coffee jumped. Like-for-like grocery price inflation rose to 5.2 per cent over the four weeks to 5 October versus the same period last year, according to the latest figures from Worldpanel [...]
South American wine is booming – try these bottles for the best experience October 7, 2025 South American wine is booming for us Brits. An Argentinian Malbec has long been a gateway, converting consumers with broodingly smooth glasses of dark fruits and spice at a good price. Last year the UK overtook China as the largest importer (by value) of Chilean wine with their lithe Sauvignon Blancs and traditional Carmère. Even [...]
‘Subdued’ services sector suffers steep drop as tax hikes bite October 3, 2025 Business activity expansion fell to a five-month low after a “subdued” services sector experienced a dull end to the third quarter. S&P’s UK Services Purchasing Managers Index Business Activity tumbled to 50.8 in September, falling steeply from the 16-month high of 54.2 secured in August. “This summer’s acceleration in output growth is now looking like [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Wetherspoons boss slams taxes; Tuna giant eyes IPO October 3, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. There is no clearer sign of the scale of political turmoil the past nine months than the soaring price of gold. The precious metal started the year near $2669 and has since soared to $3900 – a rise of over 45 per cent. The asset now looks [...]
End backward, outdated Sunday trading laws! October 3, 2025 Restrictions on large stores trading hours on Sundays are a relic of a bygone era which strangle high streets and hold back growth, says Mark Allatt In an era where the rhythm of daily life has accelerated beyond recognition, the UK’s archaic Sunday trading laws stand as a stubborn relic, stifling economic vitality and curtailing [...]
Tesco boss warns Reeves that ‘enough’s enough’ ahead of Budget October 2, 2025 Tesco boss Ken Murphy has warned Rachel Reeves that business will struggle to absorb more costs as fears rise of another tax raid in this Budget. UK retailers were hit by higher labour costs after an increase in the minimum wage and employer’s national insurance costs this April, after changes made at last October’s budget [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Tesco shares rally; OpenAI nets $500bn price tag October 2, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. The FTSE 100 is leading the City higher this morning as it continues to build on records sealed earlier in the week. The index rose 0.2 per cent to 9,464.91 this morning, following on from yesterday’s gains. Also continuing its rally was gold, propelled on by the [...]
Profit at Jamie Laing’s Candy Kittens slashed after major change September 29, 2025 Profit at Candy Kittens, the cat-shaped confectionary brand owned by Radio One DJ and Made in Chelsea star Jamie Laing, has been slashed after it made a major change in 2024. The business, which specialises in vegetarian and vegan sweets, decided to switch focus to distribute more to grocers in the UK at the end of 2023 and signed [...]
Require ‘default’ UK weighting in pensions or risk stock market doom loop, report says September 25, 2025 Pension funds should be required to have a “default” UK weighting to prevent the London stock market getting caught in a “doom loop”, a new report has argued. A UK weighted default fund with an allocation of between 20-25 per cent, if made a requirement for defined contribution (DC) pensions with an opt-out for individuals, [...]
Amazon Fresh to close all UK stores September 23, 2025 Amazon is set to close all 19 of its Amazon Fresh stores in the UK, just four years after launching its first supermarket outlet in London. It has been revealed that the tech giant plans to convert up to five of these locations into Whole Foods Market stores, a US organic food chain it acquired [...]