Two-thirds more businesses are experiencing difficulty in accessing finance from high-street banks than they were in 2022 as mainstream lenders pull away from the SME market. That’s according to new data from Sonovate, the leading provider of embedded finance and payment solutions for the contingent workforce. These challenges are now so acute that two in […]
Birmingham has been ruled out as a replacement venue for the 2026 Commonwealth Games by West Midlands Mayor Andy Street. He was commenting after it emerged that the State of Victoria in Australia backed out of hosting the 2026 games and Alberta in Canada has been ruled out as the 2030 host. Asked if Birmingham […]
Members of the biggest rail workers’ union are to stage fresh strikes in a long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions. The Rail, Maritime and Transport workers’ union (RMT) said 20,000 of its members from 14 train operators would walk out on 26 August and 2 September, both Saturdays. The union said it had been […]
The UK government has demanded answers from Amazon following recent policy changes that have left hundreds of sellers unable to access their funds. Small business minister Kevin Hollinrake has written a letter to the tech giant seeking clarification on how it plans to mitigate the impact on sellers. The policy change, which withholds money from […]
The warm weather in June has had a significant positive impact on the UK economy, surpassing expectations and providing a much-needed lift. Official figures show that higher temperatures during this period boosted the performance of pubs, restaurants, and the construction industry, resulting in a growth rate of 0.5%. Although strikes by NHS workers affected output […]
Britain could follow America and block UK companies from investing in Chinese tech businesses, senior government figures said yesterday as they warned that Beijing represented a significant threat to the UK’s security. President Biden this week proposed a ban on US investment in Chinese businesses developing advanced technology in areas that could be critical for […]
The UK recorded better-than-expected growth in the second quarter of the year, with record temperatures in June boosting summer spending in pubs and restaurants to help the economy to avoid a recession. Official figures showed that economic output rose by 0.2 per cent in the three months to June, exceeding economists’ consensus forecasts of a […]
Multi-billionaire Elon Musk is putting Twitter building signs and other items from the company up for auction just weeks after the firm’s rebranding as X. Among the 584 lots on offer are coffee tables, outsized bird cages, and oil paintings of images that went viral. Also listed are tens of desks and chairs, a DJ […]
Halifax is set to sharply cut rates on some of its fixed mortgage deals, potentially easing pressure on some homeowners. The UK’s biggest mortgage lender will reduce rates by up to 0.71 percentage points from Friday, with a five-year fixed deal priced at 5.39% from 6.10%. Other lenders such as HSBC, Nationwide and TSB have […]
President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order that will prohibit some new U.S. investment in China in sensitive technologies like computer chips and require government notification in other tech sectors. The long-awaited order authorizes the U.S. Treasury secretary to prohibit or restrict U.S. investments in Chinese entities in three sectors: semiconductors and microelectronics, […]