Business

Millions of train passengers face a hike in fares of nearly 6% from March, the Department for Transport has said. The increase is being imposed to support “crucial investment and the financial stability” of the railway, the department said. Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “This is the biggest-ever government intervention in rail fares. “I’m capping

Sam Bankman-Fried has been extradited to the US from The Bahamas as he faces criminal charges relating to the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Authorities in the Bahamas said the FTX founder had waived his right to challenge the extradition and Bankman-Fried was witnessed leaving a magistrate court in Nasssau in a dark SUV. According

Elon Musk is polling Twitter users to ask if he should step down as head of the social media platform. Mr Musk, one of the world’s richest people, bought Twitter for $44bn in late October, but his short tenure has been turbulent. The owner of Tesla and SpaceX set his poll in motion just after

Ian King looks at the latest as tens of thousands of nurses walk out over pay – in one of the biggest strikes in the history of the NHS. Plus, looking at the Bank of England’s announcement on interest rates. And Ian speaks to the firm designing bottles for champagne made to be drunk in

It takes a particularly committed optimist to find good news in annual inflation of 10.7%, but for economists, if not yet households, there is a glimmer in November’s data from the Office for National Statistics. The figure remains close to a four-decade high but the fact it has fallen slightly from October’s 41-year peak of

The rate of inflation eased to 10.7% from 11.1% last month, according to official figures showing that food and the cost of a night out continue to rise in price ahead of Christmas. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said falling motor fuel prices led the decline in the core consumer prices index (CPI) measure

Twitter has dissolved its Trust and Safety Council, the advisory group of nearly 100 independent civil, human rights and other organisations. The company, now run by Elon Musk, formed the council in 2016 to address hate speech, child exploitation, suicide, self-harm and other problems on the platform. It had been scheduled to meet with Twitter

The owner of the London Stock Exchange has revealed that Microsoft is to buy a 4% stake in the business as part of a deal that will see its data platform migrate to cloud technology. The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) said it had made a contractual commitment for a minimum $2.8bn (£2.3bn) cloud-related spend

The cost of antibiotics needed to treat Strep A has skyrocketed – as industry professionals claim prices have been hiked up to take advantage of “unprecedented” demand. Multiple pharmacies have warned they cannot obtain the necessary medications to treat Strep A as a 16th child died in Sussex with a suspected infection on Friday –

Twitter has been accused of secretly “blacklisting” prominent right-wing figures in the US in order to ensure they reached a smaller audience. High-profile right-wing individuals – such as talk show host Dan Bongino, conservative activist Charlie Kirk and anti-lockdown campaigner Dr Jay Bhattacharya – were apparently demoted by Twitter staff before it was taken over

The UK’s financial sector’s in for a shake-up, as the chancellor unveils plans to rip up red tape and replace a number of EU regulations. Plus, Ian King speaks to the executive director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Catherine Mallyon, as theatres cope with the cost of living crisis. And Danny Gray, the founder of

US regulators have filed a complaint aimed at stopping Microsoft’s planned $69bn (£50bn) takeover of Call of Duty games maker Activision Blizzard. Microsoft, which owns Xbox, said in January that it had agreed an all-cash deal – the biggest in the gaming sector to date. But regulators globally, including in the UK, have taken great

UK house prices dropped at the fastest rate since the financial crash in 2008, according to Halifax’s house price index. Prices fell 2.3% from October to November this year, the biggest monthly drop since October 2008, the UK’s largest mortgage lender said. A typical UK property is now nearly £7,000 cheaper as the average cost

The Saudi-led OPEC oil cartel and allied producers including Russia have stuck to their output targets, despite uncertainty over the impact of fresh Western sanctions against Moscow. The decision to maintain the status quo at a meeting of oil ministers on Sunday came ahead of the planned start of two measures aimed at hitting Russia‘s

Nearly a million private renters in England are under threat of eviction due to record high rents and soaring living costs, a leading housing charity has found. Shelter’s poll, carried out by YouGov, found one in 12 private renters in England – equivalent to 941,000 people – are currently facing eviction. Of those at risk

More energy suppliers could go bust this winter potentially taking government payments intended for customers with them, the chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica has warned. Chris O’Shea told Sky News that the UK energy market, regulated by Ofgem, offers “wealthy individuals” behind some retail suppliers a “free bet” to speculate, with other bill

Food prices increased at the greatest rate since records began – spurred on by accelerated inflation in the price of meat, eggs and dairy. Food inflation reached 12.4% in the year up to November, the highest rate in the food category since records began in 2005 and up from 11.6% in October. The figures come

The number of mortgages approved by lenders plunged to their lowest monthly level in more than two years during October, according to data from the Bank of England. A total of 58,977 loans were issued last month, down from 65,967 in September. Financial analysts said the figures likely reflected two main factors; the mortgage market

Stock markets in Asia have seen sharp falls while a recent easing in oil prices gained new momentum on Monday in reaction to growing COVID lockdowns and public protests against them in China. Brent crude futures were 3% down on the day at $81 a barrel as investors fretted over demand in the world’s second-largest

A Sky News Climate Show investigation has discovered businesses – and even some households – are switching from mains power to generating electricity from diesel because of soaring energy bills.  This comes at a big environmental cost, while a switch to renewable energy still seems out of reach to many consumers. So how can we