Paragon maintains pace as stamp duty changes slow mortgage lending July 29, 2025 Paragon has weathered a shakeup in stamp duty as analysts hailed the FTSE 250 bank’s “excellent momentum” in the first nine months of the financial year. The London-listed business recorded £1.1bn mortgage lending for the first three quarters, but estimated full-year volumes at the lower end of targets at £1.6bn. The firm said subdued activity [...]
WH Smith sells Funky Pigeon brand for £24m in travel pivot July 29, 2025 WH Smith has sold its Funky Pigeon brand to Card Factory, as the retailer sheds legacy assets ahead of a pivot towards becoming a pared down travel retailer. The Bristol and Guernsey-based novelty greeting cards line was sold for £24m, with Card Factory looking to integrate its technology into its consumer business. Funky Pigeon’s sale [...]
Barclays investment bank powers £1bn profit jump in first half July 29, 2025 Barclays rounded off the first half of 2025 with a major bump in profit as its all-important investment banking arm rallied on global markets turmoil. The FTSE 100 bank delivered a 28 per cent increase in profit before tax as it topped £5.2bn for the first six months of the year. The firm’s investment bank [...]
UK markets face ‘serious challenge’ in risk-averse investors July 28, 2025 UK stocks are being stung by national risk aversion with Brits “low emotional capacity for risk” triggering widespread under-investment. Nearly six in ten Brits were unwilling to face the prospect of short-term losses on investments, according to Fresh research from Oxford Risk found and the UK’s second largest platform for private investors, Interactive Investor. Over [...]
European markets rally as Trump and EU ink trade deal July 28, 2025 Markets across Europe opened in the green on Monday morning after President Donald Trump sealed a trade deal with the EU after months of discussion. The Cac 40 in Paris was up over one per cent and Germany’s DAX and Amsterdam’s AEX nearly one per cent. In London, the FTSE 100 jumped over 0.4 per [...]
Wood Group likely to recommend takeover sparking delisting fears July 28, 2025 London-listed engineering and consulting firm Wood Group said it is likely to recommend a takeover by Middle Eastern-based privately owned company Sidara sparking another potential delisting from the London Stock Exchange. Wood said on Monday that Sidara, formerly known as Dar Al-Handasah, had expressed interest in acquiring the group with a 35p per share deal. [...]
ITV beats expectations despite profits dip, as streaming and Studios deliver July 24, 2025 ITV has delivered half year results ahead of expectations, bolstering confidence in its turnaround strategy despite a sharp fall in profits. Growth in digital advertising and continued momentum at ITV Studios offset tough comparisons with last year’s advertising period during the men’s Euros. The FTSE 250 broadcaster reported a 31 per cent drop in group [...]
Burberry: Early signs of turnaround take shape July 18, 2025 Burberry reported a smaller-than-expected dip in sales this morning as new chief executive Joshua Schulman’s early efforts to revive the luxury label begin to take hold. In a trading update for the 13 weeks to 28 June, the British fashion house said retail revenue fell six per cent to £433m, with comparable store sales down [...]
Future: Marie Claire owner stays on track as US ad market steadies July 17, 2025 Future PLC told the market on Thursday that it remains on course to meet full-year expectations after a steady third quarter, buoyed by signs of stabilisation in the UK advertising market and solid magazine performance. The FTSE 250 media group behind titles like TechRadar, Marie Claire and The Week said trading for the three months [...]
FTSE 100 passes 9,000 points for first time July 15, 2025 The FTSE 100 hit another all-time high on Tuesday, sailing past the 9,000-point barrier for the first time ever despite continued uncertainty around tariffs acting as anchor on other major stock markets. London’s blue-chip equities index hit 9,016.98 points in early trades, taking its overall gains for the year up 10.3 per cent. Its constituents [...]