Business

Food inflation has decreased for the sixth month in a row and is now at a level not seen in more than a year, according to figures from an industry lobby group and consumer information company. In the year up to October the rate of food price rises stood at 8.8%, down from 9.9% in

Lenders approved the lowest number of mortgages since January last month, according to figures from the Bank of England. Just 43,328 home loans for house purchases were signed off in September – a third consecutive monthly decline – while net approvals for remortgaging fell to 20,600. That was the lowest total since January 1999. The

Rishi Sunak has been warned not to ignore the “here and now” threats to people’s jobs posed by artificial intelligence, as Elon Musk and the creator of ChatGPT jet in for a landmark UK summit. Bletchley Park is set to welcome more than 100 figures from politics and business from today, including the likes of

Meta has reported a sharp rise in revenue following an upturn in advertising on its social media platforms Facebook and Instagram. It reported revenue of $34.2bn (£28.2bn) for the quarter to the end of September – a 23% increase on the same period last year. Analysts had been expecting a figure of $33.6bn (£27.7bn). Reduced

Bitcoin shot up 6% on Tuesday to its highest value in nearly a year-and-a-half. The price rose as high as $35,198 (£28,844) at one point amid speculation US regulators could soon approve an exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on its market price. This would allow investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without owning the cryptocurrency directly

Emma Crosby is joined by Olivia Gallarati, who’s an oil markets analyst at Energy Aspects. Chris Noice from the Association of Convenience Stores speaks to Emma about the problem of shoplifting. And Vistry announces job cuts after a slump in demand. :: Listen and subscribe to The Ian King Business Podcast here. Advertisement

One of Britain’s biggest chains of car repair shops is gearing up for a sale that could value it at about £400m. Sky News has learnt that Steer Automotive Group has appointed City advisers to sound out prospective buyers. Sources said on Friday that a formal process was not yet underway although initial discussions were

Nokia has revealed plans to shed up to 14,000 jobs following a slump in sales. The Finland-based telecoms technology firm, which has 86,000 staff worldwide, said it was launching a cost-saving drive across the business in a bid to boost its margins. Nokia reported a 20% fall in sales during its third quarter. Comparable net

Last month’s inflation data release completely changed the outlook for Britain’s economic policy. The number came in far below what economists had expected, prompting the Bank of England to pause its rises in interest rates, with wider implications for the state of the British economy. This month’s inflation release – covering the rise in prices

The Senedd has banned GB News from its internal TV system after a recent broadcast. Former UKIP and Brexit Party leader, and GB News presenter, Nigel Farage said the decision showed “just how awful the Welsh Labour administration is”. However, the decision to ban GB News from the Senedd‘s TV system is one for the

The rate of inflation failed to nudge downwards as expected last month, remaining at an annual rate of 6.7% according to official figures. The headline consumer prices index (CPI) measure had been predicted to slow to 6.6% in September by a Reuters poll of economists. The higher than expected number – largely a consequence of

As the conflict in the Middle East enters its second week, we hear from the US treasury secretary Janet Yellen about military support for Israel. Lisa Hooker from PWC talks about consumer confidence in the run-up to Christmas with Ian. And, Andrew Noble, from Par Equity, discusses venture capital investments. :: Listen and subscribe to

Janet Yellen has told Sky News the United States can “certainly” afford wars on two fronts, as the conflict between Israel and Hamas threatens stability in the Middle East and the US continues to support Ukraine’s fight against Russia. Talking exclusively to Wilfred Frost ahead of a meeting of finance ministers in Luxembourg, the US

As the UK competition watchdog gives the green light for Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard, Ian King is joined by Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority. Sky’s economics and data editor Ed Conway interviews Jeremy Hunt as the chancellor attends the IMF-World Bank meeting in Marrakesh. Sophie Lund-Yates, from financial service

UK wholesale gas prices have risen again and are now at their highest level since mid-February. Prices rose to nearly 135 pence a therm (a unit of heat used to measure gas) on Friday afternoon. It comes after gas costs hit a six-month high of nearly 123p a therm on Tuesday afternoon – a level

It is considered unlucky by many – but house hunters who are happy to live in a property numbered 13 could get a bargain, analysts have discovered. Unfortunately this means sellers could get a raw deal as their homes have the lowest average value compared with other properties numbered one to 100, it has been

Households could face a one-off charge of £17 a year to help prevent energy suppliers from going bust. Ofgem says rising prices and the cost of living crisis meant consumers were £2.6bn in debt over the summer – a record high – piling pressure on businesses. The energy regulator argued that consumers could end up

Microsoft owes the US Treasury $28.9 billion (£23bn) in back taxes, plus penalties and interest according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The figure, which Microsoft disputes, stems from a long-running IRS investigation into how Microsoft allocated its profits among countries and jurisdictions in the years 2004 to 2013, according to a securities filing Critics

A new free phone line has been created by the UK’s food safety watchdog to help people report suspected food fraud. Food fraud is a blanket term used by governing agencies to describe all types of food-related crime. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) says this often involves selling food or drink that isn’t what it

Ian King talks to George Lagarias from Mazars about the economic risks from the unrest in the Middle East. He also discusses the fall in grocery price inflation with Tom Steel from Kantar. We also hear all the latest market analysis from Investec’s John Wyn-Evans. Listen and subscribe to The Ian King Business Podcast here.