Black Friday boost fails to materialise for Britain’s high streets December 9, 2025 UK retail sales failed to meet shops’ expectations this Black Friday as pre-budget jitters dampened spending. Retail sales increased by 1.4 per cent year on year in November, against a decline of 3.3 per cent in November 2024 and below the 12-month average growth of 2.5 per cent, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). [...]
Are the rich getting richer because the poor are getting poorer? December 9, 2025 Adherents of the zero-sum belief that the rich are only rich because they have taken something from the poor cannot explain why the number of poor people fell massively while the number of rich people rose massively, says Rainer Zitelmann “The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer” – few statements have [...]
The Old Course Hotel is bringing a modern twist to a classic December 8, 2025 St Andrews is known for three things: being the third oldest university in the English-speaking world; sparking the love affair between Prince William and Kate; and being the home of golf. If you’re thinking of checking it out, the famous The Old Course Hotel has teamed up with some impressive experts to create a variety [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Reeves to be grilled, interest rates nerves, Netflix swoop, Employment Rights Bill December 8, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog covering the FTSE 100 and other big market moves. Rachel Reeves is set to be grilled by MPs at the Treasury Select Committee later this week on the Budget while economists will begin looking ahead to the final interest rates decisions of the year to be made [...]
Economic uncertainty leads to dwindling vacancies in London December 8, 2025 Permanent hires in London fell for the eighth consecutive month in November, driven by ongoing economic uncertainty and dwindling vacancies. According to the latest report from professional services firm KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), the decrease in hiring quickened in the capital last month, with the reduction in permanent vacancies one of [...]
High earning families at risk of losing thousands due to Budget measures December 8, 2025 The measures introduced in this year’s Autumn Budget could leave a typical high earning family thousands out of pocket, new research has found. According to analysis from wealthtech advisory platform Y TREE, high earners could lose out on nearly £280,000 over the next twenty years as a result of Reeves’ Budget policy changes, jumping to [...]
First Trust Global Portfolios Management Limited Announces Distributions for certain sub-funds of First Trust Global Funds plc December 5, 2025 First Trust Global Portfolios Management Limited (“FTGPM”) announces the declaration of the quarterly distributions for the following sub-funds of First Trust Global Funds plc, ISIN Fund Name Frequency Dividend per Share IE00BZBW4Z27 First Trust US Equity Income UCITS ETF Class A Quarterly $0.2285 (USD) IE00BWTNMB87 First Trust US Large Cap Core AlphaDEX® UCITS ETF Class [...]
Bank of England decision to cut interest rates could be ‘closer call’ December 5, 2025 The Bank of England’s expected decision to cut interest rates by 25 basis points could be a “closer call” than markets predict, analysts have said. Markets have all but priced in interest rates falling to 3.75 per cent at the Bank’s next decision in mid-December after a flurry of data points pointed to a continued [...]
Bank of England: Businesses cut staff at fastest pace since pandemic December 5, 2025 British businesses cut jobs at the fastest rate since the pandemic in the run-up to Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget. A closely-watched survey from the Bank of England, which quizzes finance directors on their staffing levels, showed employment in the private sector fell by 1.8 per cent in November – the steepest monthly decline since July [...]
House prices hit record high but overall growth slows December 5, 2025 UK house prices reached a record high in November, however overall growth slowed to the weakest rate since 2024 according to the latest data from Halifax’s house price index. Prices were broadly unchanged last month, edging up £138, bringing the average house price to £299,892, a new record high. This follows a 0.5 per cent [...]