Motorpoint sold hundreds of cars using AI agent as profits jump November 12, 2025 Motorpoint has revealed it sold hundreds of cars using its new AI agent as the car dealer reported a jump in profits. Chief executive Mark Carpenter said the use of the agent allowed the London-listed firm to be more persistent with its sales strategy when human sales agents might have given up. “We’ve sold about [...]
Fuller’s boss hits out at ‘lack of clear plan’ from Chancellor amid Budget fears November 12, 2025 The boss of one of Britain’s biggest pub chains has taken aim at a “lack of clear plan” from the Chancellor as the hospitality sector braces for another round of tax rises at the forthcoming Budget. Simon Emeny, executive chair of Fuller’s, said the government needed “new ideas, new thinking” if it is to live [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Taylor Wimpey and Fuller’s Budget warning; Starmer under fire November 12, 2025 Good morning from the Morning Wire live blog team. The FTSE 100 is springing back to life this week, managing to seal its second consecutive record close at 9,899.60p after a 1.15 per cent gain and bringing the index a whisker away from the 10,000 mark. The blue-chip index has rallied after the US government [...]
UK investors withdraw from equities at record pace amid bubble and Budget fears November 11, 2025 UK investors have withdrawn from equities at a record pace amid investor nerves over soaring stock prices and a flurry of forthcoming tax hikes at the Budget. As much as £7.3bn was pulled from equity funds in the four months to the end of October, according to figures from Calastone, representing the largest outflow ever [...]
ESG-backed firms ‘fell twice as much’ as FTSE 100 in 2024 November 11, 2025 UK firms that gained approval from an Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) ratings provider fell by twice as much as the FTSE 100 in 2024, researchers have said in a report spelling out the costs and problems companies face in complying with sustainability targets. Analysts at the right-leaning think tank Policy Exchange said firms incurred [...]
Oxford Instruments shares rally despite early profit disruption November 11, 2025 Manufacturing and research company Oxford Instruments has seen its shares rocket despite a steep fall in profits during the first half of the year. The group’s stock rallied 9.93 per cent in early morning trading to 1,970, as the group confirmed it was beginning to recover from “significant disruption” in the early months of the [...]
Princes shares jump as boss of tinned tuna giant eyes M&A spree November 11, 2025 The boss of Princes Group has laid the foundations for future deals after the firm’s admission to the London Stock Exchange helped build up its “firepower”. Simon Harrison, chief executive of Princes, said the listing marked a “milestone period” for the group and created “exciting opportunities to pursue value accretive mergers and acquisitions, in line [...]
Vodafone chief shakes off Budget gloom as shares jump November 11, 2025 Vodafone’s chief executive has said the forthcoming Budget is “not a big thing for us” after the telco defied wider economic gloom to deliver a dividend hike. The FTSE 100 firm said it saw 1.2 per cent growth in the UK in the six months to the end of September, while Germany, a key market, [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Vodafone shares lead blue-chip rally; Unemployment rises November 11, 2025 Good morning from the Morning Wire liveblog team. What are you looking forward to more – Black Friday or Budget day? They are two vital days that UK retailers are bracing for in this month’s calendar, both of which can provide a major boost to firms – or crushing disappointment. Retail sales today show another [...]
City execs plot new junior market to rival AIM November 10, 2025 A group of City execs have laid out plans for a new small-cap market in a bid to rival the ailing AIM and rejuvenate London’s public markets. Former Boku boss Jon Prideaux and former AIM chief executive Martin Graham are understood to have approached investors over a £4m fundraising to launch the new exchange, known [...]