Business

Food prices may not fall at all, the chief economist at the Bank of England has said. The cost of sustenance “could still remain higher than it was” before the invasion of Ukraine caused the rate of food price rises to accelerate. “Unfortunately the days of seeing food prices fall, that does seem to be

Consumers spent less in shops as wet weather dampened demand for typical seasonal goods in July, latest figures show. Total UK retail sales increased 1.5%, according to the retail sales monitor from retail representative British Retail Consortium (BRC) and big four accountancy firm KPMG. But at the same time official figures showed the rate of

The BBC faces scrutiny over the sale of one of its historic London studios after the emergence of a rival – and possibly higher – bid from a consortium including the Hollywood film producer Matthew Vaughn. Sky News has learnt that a syndicate comprising Mr Vaughn, Sir Len Blavatnik, the billionaire investor in Warner Music

A final decision is in sight for Microsoft’s protracted bid to acquire the maker of Call Of Duty now that the UK’s competition regulator has closed its public consultation on the matter. The Competition and Markets Authority will consider comments from the public – which were submitted over the past week – and Microsoft’s amended

UK car sales have grown all year, despite borrowing becoming more expensive and a cost of living crisis creating difficult financial conditions for consumers. The number of new cars registered grew 28% in July, compared to a year earlier, in the seventh month of growth this year, according to data from the Society of Motor

UK energy chiefs will gather in Downing Street today to discuss net zero as a debate rages in both main parties about the future of green policies. Industry leaders from EDF, SSE, Shell and BP will meet Grant Shapps, the energy security secretary, just days after the government announced it would grant more than 100

House prices will likely fall further in the coming months after a closely-watched index reported the biggest drop in 14 years, experts predict. It comes after Nationwide reported that annual property values declined by 3.8% in July – the sharpish fall since July 2009. The average home is now worth £260,828 – a fall of

Wine and gin drinkers will have to shell out more from today as alcohol taxes rise. The shake-up aims to encourage drinkers to cut back by taxing all alcohol based on its strength, rather than the previous categories of wine, beer, spirits and ciders. The increase will see duty rise by 44p on a bottle

A consumer debt advice start-up aimed at helping Britons weather the cost-of-living crisis has secured external funding ahead of its public launch. Sky News understands that SuperFi, which is aimed at an estimated 18m adults who are wrestling with monthly household bills, will announce on Friday that it has raised $1m in a pre-seed round.

Tech giant Meta is the latest company to beat Wall Street revenue expectations as the number of people using its platforms grew, but Metaverse losses mounted and AI spending rose. Revenue at the WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook parent company was up 11% to $32bn (£24.7bn), greater than the 7% growth expected by analysts. User numbers

A British healthcare company which allows patients to perform blood tests at home to aid their cancer treatment has received a $20m (£15.4m) funding shot in the arm. Sky News understands that Entia, which has previously struck partnerships with the likes of Pfizer, the American pharmaceuticals behemoth, will announce this week the closing of a

In Premier League rules strengthened in March, being convicted of corruption would disqualify someone from owning or controlling a club. But Tottenham insist Joe Lewis should no longer be described as their owner while fighting charges in the US. A change quietly made last year saw Lewis officially cease to be someone with “significant control”

THG, the London-listed online health and beauty retailer, is in advanced talks to buy City AM, the London-based business newspaper which is teetering on the brink of administration. Sky News has learnt that THG, which owns brands such as Cult Beauty and Look Fantastic, is negotiating the purchase of City AM with BDO, the accountancy

The energy regulator has published a series of proposals that, it hopes, will provide greater protections for households and businesses in time for the coming winter when gas and electricity charges peak. Ofgem said it was responding to complaints about poor customer service standards through planned new rules to ensure households can contact suppliers and

Robinhood Markets, the US stock trading app, has hired a senior executive from Freetrade, a British fintech company, to spearhead revived plans for a UK launch. Sky News has learnt that Jordan Sinclair, a former Barclays executive, has been appointed as Robinhood’s UK CEO. A filing registered with the Financial Conduct Authority shows Mr Sinclair’s

Spotify is raising the price of its ad-free premium service in more than 50 countries, including the US, UK and Ireland. The music-streaming company, which has more than 200m Premium subscribers, said the move will result in a $1 (78p) increase for US-based plans. This means the price of a single plan will now start

A Conservative peer who played a key role in establishing the Culture Recovery Fund during the ravages of the pandemic is being lined up as the next chair of Historic England. Sky News has learnt Lord Mendoza, the provost of Oriel College, Oxford, is expected to be unveiled in the post in the coming weeks.

Credit Suisse has been fined a record £87m by the Bank of England for “extremely serious” risk management failures. The bank, which was subject to a forced takeover by Swiss rival UBS earlier this year, fell “well below” regulatory standards in its dealings with private investment firm Archegos Capital Management, officials said. Credit Suisse lost

If I get through a meeting without saying a word, I consider it a great success. Unfortunately, there are times when I can no longer stay under the radar. The microphone must be unmuted, the camera might have to go on, and all the attention is on me. At least, that was the case until

The UK’s gas storage is “materially behind” Europe, the chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica has said. Chris O’Shea said there was a need to expand gas storage and his company was seeking to bring the UK’s largest gas facility to full capacity, but the efforts did not have government regulatory agreement. While the