Elon Musk’s Space X in talks with Wall Street banks over mega IPO January 23, 2026 Elon Musk’s aerospace firm Space X is holding early-stage discussions with a flurry of leading Wall Street banks about a potential listing that could rank among the largest market debuts ever. According to the Financial Times, the company is considering Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America for senior roles on [...]
Fund giant slashes UK exposure as investors sour on Britain January 23, 2026 One of the world’s largest money managers is shedding its investments in the UK, after investors said they wanted more of their cash to be allocated overseas despite a government push to encourage investment in domestic equities. Vanguard, the world’s second largest asset manager, said it would reduce its £52bn Life Strategy fund’s UK equity [...]
Castore add Australia to growing rugby portfolio January 23, 2026 Manchester-headquartered Castore has signed a five-year deal with rugby union’s Wallabies, which will see the sports apparel brand on Australia’s shirts at their home World Cup. “The new agreement will see the Wallabies, Wallaroos, Australian men’s and women’s sevens teams and Australian pathways teams proudly wearing Castore-issued sportswear from January 2026,” a statement read. The [...]
Private sector bounces back but Reeves leaves hospitality reeling January 23, 2026 The UK’s private sector expanded at the fastest rate in nearly two years in the first month of 2026 but the reeling hospitality sector was still feeling the crunch from Labour policy. The latest Flash Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) from S&P Global showed a major uptick in the all-important services sector, which is often seen [...]
Babcock boss bows out after shares grow sixfold January 23, 2026 The boss of Babcock is to step down after presiding over a sixfold increase in the company’s share price during his five-year tenure. David Lockwood, who joined the defence giant as its chief executive in September 2020, will step down from the company’s board at the end of the year, the firm revealed on Friday. [...]
UK retail sales see modest Christmas rise following Budget January 23, 2026 UK retail sales inched up slightly in December, as consumers returned to the high street for Christmas shopping after the Autumn Budget, but failed to halt an overall fall in purchases during the final quarter. Retail sales volumes are estimated to have increased by 0.4 per cent in December, following falls of 0.1 per cent [...]
Donald Trump hits JP Morgan and Jamie Dimon with $5bn lawsuit January 23, 2026 President Donald Trump has JP Morgan and its top boss, Jamie Dimon, in a $5bn (£3.7bn) lawsuit following claims the banking giant debanked him for political reasons. Earlier this month, Trump blasted America’s biggest bank for “incorrect and inappropriately” discriminating against him after the President alleged JP Morgan stopped offering him services after the Capitol riots [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Babcock boss exits; Retail sales fall in golden quarter January 23, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. Today is the final day of the World Economic Forum in Davos and what a ride it has been for capital markets. The FTSE 100 started Monday’s trading session at a cool 10,235.31 before shedding some points as Trump turned up pressure on his tariff [...]
Consumer confidence has been negative for 10 years January 23, 2026 Consumer confidence inched up slightly this month despite remaining in negative territory, a leading survey has indicated, indicating a degree of “resilience” despite a decade of consumer pessimism. The overall index score on GfK’s closely monitored consumer confidence survey rose by one point while feelings about personal finances over the next 12 months edged [...]
Budget fails to dampen commercial property activity January 23, 2026 Leasing and investment demand for commercial real estate remained high in the last few months of 2025, as the industry swerved Budget uncertainty that rattled the housing market. While growth in demand was slightly tempered by speculation surrounding tax changes, year-on-year figures remained robust among individual spaces. Office space investment demand reported a four per [...]