Business

Ann Summers boss Jacqueline Gold has died at the age of 62, her family has said. The multi-millionaire businesswoman, who passed away with her family at her side on Thursday evening after seven years of treatment for breast cancer, was hailed an “absolute warrior” by her sister. It comes just two months after the death

A tumultuous week in the markets ended on an uncertain note – suggesting fears remain after large losses from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. The FTSE 100 (Financial Times Stock Exchange) index of the most valued companies on the London Stock Exchange started the day at around the 7,500 mark – better than all

Security guards at Heathrow Airport are to strike over Easter in a dispute over pay, with passengers warned they face “severe delays”. The Unite union said flights using Heathrow Airport will “experience severe delays and disruption this Easter” as the workers stage a 10-day walkout. More than 1,400 security guards employed by Heathrow Airports Ltd

Royal Mail has been referred to the industry regulator by a committee of MPs which has accused the company of failing in its duty to deliver letters six days a week and questioned whether its management is negligent. The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee declared that the company had “systematically failed to deliver”

The European Central Bank (ECB) has maintained its fight against inflation and imposed a large set of interest rate hikes despite market turmoil. Bank balance sheets have suffered because of the effect of interest rate increases, which are thought to have contributed to recent crises at Silicon Valley Bank and Credit Suisse. But the central

The FTSE 100 and other major European stock markets have taken a beating as concern over the health of US banks crosses the Atlantic. London’s blue chip index lost £75bn in combined market value by the close after suffering its deepest fall, on a points basis, since the early days of the COVID crisis. Sentiment

The chancellor has announced the budget for 2023. The UK will now not enter a technical recession this year, the independent forecasters, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said. Inflation will more than halve and reduce to 2.9% by the end of the year, the OBR expects. Budget live:The announcements as they happen Here

Tempting as it is to believe that the chaos with Silicon Valley Bank and its British arm are of interest only to members of the tech community and financial nerds, it has already had a very real bearing on all our lives. For evidence, look no further than the money markets, where investors bet on

A total of 220,000 working days were lost to strike action in January, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show. In the first month of this year, strike action was taken by teachers, rail workers, driving examiners, bus drivers and NHS staff. The number is down on the 822,000 days lost to strikes

Rishi Sunak has said Jeremy Hunt will still be chancellor at the next election after criticism his number two did not have enough economic vision. The prime minister, for the first time, confirmed to Sky News that Mr Hunt will remain chancellor when the next general election comes around in January 2025. “Of course,” Mr

HSBC has bought the embattled UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB UK), securing the deposits of more than 3,000 customers worth £6.7bn. Confirming a story broken on Monday by Sky’s City editor Mark Kleinman, the Bank of England, which had been preparing to bring the bank into an insolvency process, said all depositors’ money

HSBC Holdings has emerged as a potential ‘white knight’ bidder for Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) UK as the government and regulators seek to avert the lender’s insolvency. Sky News has learnt that HSBC was on Sunday night exploring a bid for the British arm of the stricken technology-focused lender, joining a slew of smaller rivals

The government is “working to recognise the anxiety” of businesses caught up in the collapse of the the UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank, the prime minister has said. Speaking to reporters during an official trip to the US, Rishi Sunak said the government has been “working through over the weekend” to respond to the

The collapse of the UK branch of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) is being mitigated by the Treasury and Bank of England, according to the Treasury. US regulators shut down the country’s 16th largest bank, in the biggest collapse of a financial institution since the 2008 financial crisis. SVB had failed after depositors – mostly technology

Thames Water is facing crunch talks over its finances amid mounting concerns about its ability to service a debt mountain which stands at more than £14bn. Sky News has learnt that Thames Water, which is privately owned and employs about 7,000 people, has in the last few weeks hired Rothschild, the investment bank, and the

The UK arm of Grant Thornton, the accountancy and professional services provider, is drawing up plans to invest millions of pounds in its Indian sister firm. Sky News understands that the top ten auditor has asked its more than 200 UK partners to vote on the proposal later this month. One source said the deal

The economy rebounded to grow by 0.3% in January, according to official figures which reaffirmed that the UK avoided recession at the end of last year. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported a recovery for output last month after the bigger than expected contraction of 0.5% witnessed in December, which went unrevised in the

The government has announced the construction of sections of HS2 will be delayed by two years to save money. The high-speed railway was initially set to link London and the West Midlands with a further phase extending to cities in the North. However, Transport Secretary Mark Harper said on Thursday: “We have seen significant inflationary

The biggest producer of oil and gas in the North Sea has reported that the government’s energy profits levy (EPL) has “all but wiped out our profit for the year”. Harbour Energy said it had “reduced our UK investment and staffing levels” and bolstered its aim to expand elsewhere as a result of the hit

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers’ union (RMT) has said planned strike dates on 14 train operators will go ahead, but they insist they are open to discussions with bosses. The union said the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), representing 14 train operators, invited them to discussions to settle its ongoing dispute, but on the condition