Budget chaos takes toll on October growth as ‘prospects remain poor’ December 9, 2025 The UK economy is expected to have grown by just 0.1 per cent in October as firms grappled with Budget speculation and uncertainty, analysts have said. A Bloomberg poll of City economists predicted the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will pencil in next to no growth for the month. The expected slowdown is set to [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Fed interest rates, retail sales, GDP December 9, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City PM liveblog covering the FTSE 100 and other big market moves. Investors are bracing for a crunch decision at the Federal Reserve this Wednesday, with markets pricing in a 25 basis point cut to bring interest rates down to 3.5-3.75 per cent. Forecasters will be taking a [...]
How Natwest, Lloyds, Barclays and HSBC fired up the FTSE 100 in 2025 December 9, 2025 If 2025 was supposed to be the year of the AI bubble, nobody told Britain’s banking giants. Amidst the noise of the US tech boom, the UK’s FTSE 100 banking heavyweights, Natwest, Lloyds, Barclays, and HSBC, have staged a formidable, if understated, rally. Lloyds delivered an astonishing 75.8 per cent gain, while Barclays surged 65 [...]
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). [...]
Pubs outraged as Selfridges and Harrods see business rates slashed December 8, 2025 Rachel Reeves is facing a backlash for a cut to business rates for the likes of Selfridges and Harrods while many pubs and restaurants see a huge hike. Analysis has found that a new shake-up of business rates will cause the tax bill of luxury stores to fall, while smaller venues face double-digit increases. Harrods’ [...]
FCA to allow firms to ‘eradicate jargon’ for retail investors December 8, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is rolling out a heap of new measures to “move the dial on risk” among Britons as it bids to lead on the charge to boost retail investment, including through allowing them to remove legal jargon that confuses consumers. In a suite of consultations unveiled on Monday, the City regulator [...]
UK fintech Plum follows Klarna in securing e-money licence December 8, 2025 Smart money app Plum has managed to secure an e-money licence from the City watchdog, City PM can reveal, even as the volume of application approvals slumps. Plum, which was founded by the former head of banking at Wise, Victor Trokoudes, in 2016, has received authorisation to operate as an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) from the Financial [...]
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 PM 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 [...]
City policy chairman: London must seize chance to lead on AI December 8, 2025 Following the Budget, the UK can't afford complacency. From AI to pensions, here's how Canada can lead, writes Chris Hayward.
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 [...]
