Business

The chairman of M&S has written to Brexit minister Lord Frost to warn that EU plans to end its stand-off with the UK over Northern Ireland threaten to add to, not ease, red tape. Archie Norman said the Brussels offer “could result in worsening friction and cost and a high level of ambiguity and scope

The rate of inflation has hit its highest level for a decade as prices rise across the UK economy, with fuel and energy costs leading the way. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the consumer prices index (CPI) measure jumped to 4.2% in October from 3.1% the previous month – a bigger leap

Celebrities like Robbie Williams, Bear Grylls and Holly Willoughby have signed a letter led by Martin Lewis calling on the prime minister to take action on paid scam adverts. The consumer champion has long campaigned against bogus ads using his face to lure users and wants tech giants to be held responsible under the upcoming

The chairman of the Premier League is on the brink of resigning following a backlash from clubs over its handling of the Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle United. Sky News has learnt that Gary Hoffman, who only took up the non-executive post 18 months ago, is close to finalising his exit after coming under pressure to

They’re only two little words – but they are symbolic of a huge shift at one of the world’s most important companies. If its management gets its way, following a shareholder vote, Royal Dutch Shell will become plain Shell. The change of name is part of a plan under which the company will shed its

Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has admitted he is “very uneasy” about high inflation – but dismissed the idea that Britain could face a 1970s style wage-price spiral. Mr Bailey was being questioned by MPs over the Bank’s latest decision to leave interest rates on hold at a record low of 0.1% – surprising

The owner of Burger King’s British operations has picked two banks to serve up a whopper of a London float next year. Sky News has learnt that Bridgepoint has hired Bank of America and Investec to spearhead the fast-food giant’s initial public offering during the first half of 2022. The precise timing and size of

A US-listed real estate investment trust has won a hotly contested auction of one of Britain’s biggest holiday resort operators in a knockout deal that underlines the sector’s post-pandemic boom. Sky News has learnt that Sun Communities has agreed to pay in the region of £900m for Park Holidays, which owns more than 30 sites

Three is a trend, so the saying goes. So news of two more big company demergers today, hot on the heels of the three-way break-up of 129-year-old US industrial giant General Electric announced on Wednesday, suggests that “doing the splits” is being looked at anew by company boards. Toshiba, one of the best known companies

Lord Cruddas, the Conservative peer, is exploring a surprise break-up of CMC Markets, the financial spread-betting firm he founded 32 years ago, into two separately listed companies. Sky News has learnt that the board of CMC could announce within days that it has begun work on the potential split. City sources said this weekend that

A long-awaited plan for railways in the Midlands and north of England will be published next week that could see the eastern extension of HS2 from Birmingham to Leeds mothballed. Regional political leaders are anticipating publication of the government’s integrated rail review for the Midlands and north imminently, with many braced for delays to key

Drugs firm AstraZeneca has said it plans to start earning a “modest” profit from its COVID-19 vaccine having previously sold it at cost. The Anglo-Swedish company has until now not been making a profit from the Oxford coronavirus jab and said it would not do so during the pandemic. The vaccine has in fact proved

The economy is recovering, but the pace of that recovery is diminishing – that’s the big picture from today’s gross domestic product statistics. However, the UK is getting ever closer now to regaining the income lost during the crisis. Quite where we are on that front depends somewhat on which measure you’re looking at. Image:

Britain’s economic growth slowed to 1.3% in the third quarter, official figures show. It meant that gross domestic product (GDP) remained 2.1% lower than pre-pandemic levels, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The economy’s July-September performance was slightly weaker than the figure of 1.5% expected by economists and marks a sharp slowdown compared

The annual rate of inflation in the US has hit its highest level in more than three decades, fed by faster than expected rises in the cost of fuel and food. The headline consumer prices measure rose to 6.2% in October – a level not seen since 1990 – after a 0.9% surge on the