Business

Financial markets are giving their first reaction to the early evidence of a record-breaking win for Labour in the general election. A respected exit poll by Ipsos, carried out for broadcasters including Sky News, was the first to put an estimate on the size of the majority expected for Sir Keir Starmer’s party. The 170

Drivers are being warned that fuel prices are on the rise again amid rising oil costs and suggestions that motorists are still getting a raw deal. The AA declared on Tuesday that a 10-week run of falling pump prices had come to an end. The motoring group said that while average costs were still locked

As the latest reduction in the energy price cap takes effect, households are being warned of a big lift in bills ahead due to higher wholesale gas prices. The cap, which limits what suppliers can charge per unit of energy, fell by 7% overnight in the wake of the latest three-month review by industry regulator

Britain’s fourth-biggest household energy supplier is lining up bankers to explore options including bringing in a new investor or a sale, 15 years after it launched in a bid to challenge the industry’s oligopoly. Sky News has learnt that OVO Group, which was founded by Stephen Fitzpatrick, is close to hiring Rothschild to assist with

Around three million UK households will see their mortgage repayments rise over the next two years as high interest rates continue to take effect, the Bank of England has said. As many as 400,000 homes are likely to experience “very large increases” of more than 50%, its financial policy committee said. Money latest: 27 areas

Many of us envisage retirement as a peaceful winding down after several decades of hard work. But an increasing number of mortgage holders face having to put their relaxation on ice as they’re left with no choice but to work past their pension age to pay off long-term mortgages. Homeowners are still reeling from painful

Microsoft has regained the title of the world’s most valuable public company just days after it was overtaken by one of its rivals. Computer chip maker Nvidia lost its hold on the top spot after its shares slipped by 3.5% in the US on Thursday, leaving the company valued at $3.2trn (£2.5trn). Microsoft’s shares also

Inflation falling back to 2%, the magic number as far as the Bank of England and the increasingly desperate Conservative election campaign are concerned, is unequivocally welcome news. It has been a long road down from the peak of 11.1% in October 2022 and a great deal of hardship has been felt along the way.

UK inflation has eased to 2% – increasing the prospect of an interest rate cut this summer. The consumer prices index (CPI) rate for the year to May was confirmed by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Wednesday. The figure indicates that prices are still rising, but at the slowest pace since spring 2021.

Self-driving cars are safer than those driven by humans, except when it is dusk, dawn, or the vehicle is turning, according to a new study. Autonomous vehicles are involved in fewer accidents than cars driven by humans, researchers from the University of Central Florida have found. However, although the research generally showed self-driving cars to

The UK had the lowest rates of business investment out of all G7 nations for a third year in a row, a new report has claimed. The economies of the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan are all said to have attracted higher levels of funding from the private sector – as a percentage

China may target the European Union’s pork producers in retaliation for EU tariffs on its electric cars. The world’s second largest economy revealed on Monday that it had launched an investigation into imports of pork for human consumption from the bloc. The Commerce ministry inquiry was in response to a complaint by Chinese pork producers

House prices have been flat in recent weeks but the market overall remains “steady”, according to new figures from a leading property website. Rightmove said there was 0% growth in the four weeks to 8 June, compared with the previous month. The average price of a property coming to the market was £375,110 during the

Jaguar Land Rover is to invest more than £1m to help police tackle car thefts in the UK as part of ongoing efforts to reassure its luxury vehicle owners.  The cash will be used to support police operations in hotspots, as well as fund intelligence gathering and target ports used by criminal gangs to smuggle

Denmark’s food agency has recalled three South Korean spicy instant ramen noodle products – warning consumers they are so hot they might cause “acute poisoning”. The Samyang Foods products being withdrawn are Samyang Buldak 3x Spicy & Hot Chicken, 2x Spicy & Hot Chicken and Hot Chicken Stew. The agency issued the warning on Tuesday

The BBC’s content arm is among the suitors vying to buy the television production company which owns the rights to The Gruffalo. Sky News has learnt that BBC Studios is participating in a sale process for Magic Light Pictures, which has won three BAFTAs and secured a quartet of Oscar nominations. The auction is being

Administrators to The Body Shop are aiming to clinch a sale of the stricken cosmetics retailer by the end of the month, even as its former owner veers away from making an offer for it. Sky News has learnt that FRP Advisory, which was appointed to handle the chain’s insolvency in January, has asked for

The world has a new second most valuable public company – the AI microchip maker Nvidia. Riding the artificial intelligence (AI) boom – Nvidia’s share price has risen to the extent that it’s now worth more than $3trn (£2.34trn) and overtaken Apple. Only Microsoft is a more valuable company listed on a stock exchange, while

Since 1992 the Premier League has been funnelling previously unimagined wealth to the elite players, coaches and clubs of English football.  For almost as long as it has existed, however, those running the league have battled to maintain the commercial and competitive balance on which its success is based. Competition is its essence, predictability a

Manchester City are taking legal action against the Premier League over its financial rules. The legal challenge, in the form of arbitration, will be heard on Monday, according to The Times. Sky News reported in February the competition was facing legal battles and had been warned by a club that changes to rules governing commercial