Oil prices plummet as Saudis lead supply drive April 4, 2025 Oil prices are falling to their lowest close since 2021 as eight countries including Saudi Arabia and Russia surprised market leaders by announcing an increase to production. The shock decision by the OPEC+ alliance, delivered via a video conference on Thursday, came less than 24 hours after President Trump’s Liberation Day tariff announcements intensified global [...]
FTSE 100 and global markets slump and gold surges amid tariff panic March 31, 2025 The FTSE 100 dipped 0.7 per cent as markets opened on Monday, with the FTSE 250 down a further 1.28 per cent. The moves followed a sharp drop in Asian markets overnight. The Nikkei 225 plummeted more than four per cent overnight, amid a global market panic as investor and consumer confidence drops ahead of [...]
Swedish battery maker Northvolt files for bankruptcy March 12, 2025 Swedish battery maker Northvolt has filed for bankruptcy after failing to secure funding amid ongoing financial struggles. The company had experienced a series of mounting challenges in recent months as it struggled to hit production targets despite liquidity support from lenders including Goldman Sachs and Blackrock. It had previously sought US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection [...]
Rumours of the death of DEI have been greatly exaggerated February 19, 2025 Donald Trump and Elon Musk may be dismantling DEI in the States, but in Britain and Europe it remains buried deep. We must root it out or risk being left poor, defenceless and exposed, says James Price A few years ago, the term ‘vibe shift’ entered the online lexicon. Broadly, it describes a moment of [...]
Goldman Sachs scraps diversity rule that ‘served its purpose’ February 12, 2025 Goldman Sachs has scrapped a diversity rule which barred it from advising all male, all white boards on company flotations. The now-ditched rule stated the investment bank would only help a business sell its shares on a stock exchange if it had two board members that fitted diversity requirements – one of whom had to [...]
If we want growth, we should listen to the small businesses that create it February 12, 2025 Small business owners are creative and impactful entrepreneurs, adept problem-solvers with a natural optimism. If we want answers on driving growth, it’s worth asking: what would they do? Says Charlotte Keenan It’s no secret what this government is focused on: achieving growth. It’s a mission that is essential but challenging to put into practice, and [...]
Barclays the latest to harden line on office attendance rules January 30, 2025 Barclays has become the latest blue chip firm to tighten its office attendance policy, asking staff to attend the office a minimum of three days a week. The British-headquartered lender unveiled a more stringent approach to hybrid working in a memo to staff earlier this week, which cut the minimum number of days staff can [...]
UK economy: Wage growth was twice as high in Britain compared to the US January 28, 2025 The figures will reinforce concerns that high wage growth might prop up inflationary pressures in the economy in 2025.
Bank of England: Goldman Sachs expects deep interest rate cuts January 22, 2025 Markets are significantly underestimating the chance that the Bank of England will have to step up the pace of cutting interest rates, Goldman Sachs has argued. Traders anticipate just two interest rate cuts this year with one more cut priced in for 2026, which would leave the benchmark Bank Rate at 4.0 per cent. It [...]
Wall Street banks JP Morgan, Citi and Goldman Sachs report bumper profit January 15, 2025 Some of Wall Street’s biggest banks reported a surge in profit today on the back of a rebound in dealmaking and strengthening equity markets toward the end of last year. JPMorgan Chase, the US’s biggest lender, said profit had jumped 50 per cent to $14bn (£11.41bn) through the final quarter as its dealmakers and traders [...]