Breadmakers Hovis and Kingsmill in merger talks May 3, 2025 The owners of two of Britain’s biggest bread producers – Hovis and Kingsmill – are reportedly in discussions regarding a merger between the two firms as challenges deepen for the market. Associated British Foods (ABF), the owner of Kingsmill’s parent company Allied Bakeries, and investment firm Endless, which owns Hovis, are in talks about a [...]
US manufacturing sees job losses despite Trump’s hopes of a revival May 2, 2025 US manufacturing suffered 1,000 job losses in April in a blow to President Trump’s hopes to drive up employment in the sector. Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs set out to cut the country’s goods deficit as he looked to protectionist measures to revive the country’s stuttering manufacturing sector. But new data showed no immediate improvement to [...]
Chelsea move to digital tickets after banning 2,000 fans for touting May 1, 2025 Chelsea have revealed further details of their switch to digital tickets next season, which the football club says it hopes will stamp out touting. The Premier League outfit have cancelled 2,000 memberships linked to touting this season and believe that the new digital system will provide greater security. It comes a year before the top [...]
Mortgage borrowing surges ahead of stamp duty changes May 1, 2025 Net borrowing or mortgages spiked by £9.7bn in March as house buyers looked to clinch deals before higher stamp duty taxes came into effect. Net borrowing levels exceeded £13bn, according to the Bank of England, as the rise compared to February beat market forecasts of £3.2bn. EY ITEM Club’s Matt Swannell said the surge in [...]
Manufacturing edges towards year of decline amid ‘noticeable impact’ of tariffs May 1, 2025 UK manufacturing’s falling production levels show no signs of ending as the spectre of tariffs brings a “noticeable impact” on exporters’ sales, leading analysts have said. Firms have had to navigate through sticky inflation and high energy costs for the best part of three years as the UK’s weakened economy has failed to bounce back [...]
Rolls-Royce eyes nearly £3bn profit despite tariffs May 1, 2025 Rolls-Royce said it is confident it will hit underlying profit of nearly £3bn in 2025, despite ongoing tariff uncertainty. The London-listed engineering giant on Thursday held a previously guided underlying profit range of between £2.7bn and £2.9bn. It is also looking at between £2.7bn and £2.9bn of free cash flow. In a statement to markets, [...]
Trump points finger at Biden as US stocks sink amid recession fears April 30, 2025 Donald Trump has lashed out at Joe Biden, insisting that his presidential predecessor was to blame after the US economy suffered its worst-performing quarter in three years. A slew of disappointing economic data sent US stocks sharply south on Wednesday as the clearest signs yet of the damage wreaked by the White House tariff agenda [...]
10 Things You Need to Know Before Investing in Your First Whisky Cask April 30, 2025 The whisky cask market has experienced significant growth over the past decade, quietlyoutperforming other luxury assets, such as fine wine and vintage cars. With Scotch whisky exports reaching £5.4bn in 2024, showing a steady increase of around 36.7per cent over the last decade, the long-term outlook for cask whisky remains strong, providedinvestors know what to [...]
US economy shrunk by 0.3 per cent in first quarter April 30, 2025 The United States economy shrunk by 0.3 per cent in the first three months of 2025, after American companies raced to get ahead of Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs by stockpiling imports. According to official government data, the US economy fell into contraction from growth of 2.4 per cent, with the effect of higher imports compounded [...]
Construction firms lose hope but businesses are ‘showing resilience’ April 30, 2025 Construction firms have grown despondent about their business prospects despite signs of resilience across the UK economy, a new survey has found. The sector is key to the housing secretary Angela Rayner’s plans to build 1.5m homes by 2030 though early signs suggest the ambitious target will not be met. Construction saw a bigger drop [...]