Want to be as rich as retirees? Buy shares in them August 5, 2026 Firms selling to British retirees have rocketed in value this year – Simon Hunt asks why. The Nasdaq 100 is up around 14 per cent since the start of the year, at the time of writing, while the FTSE 350 is up 9 per cent. But one stock portfolio is doing better than both. I [...]
Glencore targets secondary listing in Australia as London loses mining shine August 5, 2026 Glencore will launch a secondary listing in Australia in the latest blow to London’s ailing stock market as miners continue to eye opportunities away from the UK. The mining and trading juggernaut, which is among the largest companies on the FTSE 100 boasting a market cap of £64.4bn, is pursuing the listing following its group’s [...]
IHT pension scramble shows ‘no sign of slowing down’, says Royal London boss August 5, 2026 The mass scramble among UK pension savers to avoid being pulled into the inheritance tax net shows “no sign of slowing down”, as the policy shakeup creeps closer. From April 2027, pensions will be included in the scope of inheritance tax (IHT), meaning unused funds and death benefits will count towards the value of a [...]
Nscale doubles London office space as UK staff grows sixfold August 5, 2026 Nscale has doubled its London office space as the AI hyperscaler cements its presence in the capital, Morning Wire can reveal. The tech startup, which develops data centres for AI firms and is reportedly eyeing a $25bn valuation in an upcoming IPO, has leased out an extra floor in the Mayfair building that houses its [...]
Royal London hits assets record amid pension push August 5, 2026 Royal London recorded a new record high for assets under management, as the group was buoyed by resilient market activity and an influx of pension wealth. Assets under management (AUM) climbed to £212bn, up from £199bn at the end of the last financial year, driven by positive market movements and investors taking the “Iran war [...]
L&G cheers push into private credit as profit jumps August 5, 2026 Legal & General cheered a rise in profit amid a greater push into private credit by its asset management arm. The FTSE 100 firm toasted the “continued fundraising success” across its private markets investments as it vowed to increase investment over the next two years. Total private markets assets under management (AUM) jumped by more [...]
‘Grinding it out’: Ibstock swings to loss and cuts dividend amid building slump August 5, 2026 One of the UK’s biggest brickmakers has bemoaned a ‘challenging’ housebuilding market as it slashed its dividend and swung to a loss. Leicestershire-based Ibstock, which is London’s second most shorted stock with a reported short interest of 12.9 per cent, posted a loss of £27m for the first six months of the year, down from [...]
Next hikes targets as heatwave boosts sales August 5, 2026 Next has upgraded its profit targets for the year after breezing past second quarter expectations, putting its shareholders in line for a bumper payday. The FTSE 100 retail giant hiked its pre-tax profit expectations for 2026 to £1.24bn, around £25m higher than previously estimates. If achieved the figure would mark 7.3 per cent growth on [...]
As it happened: Stocks rise as oil fluctuates after Red Sea attack; US-Iran deal ‘being circulated’ August 5, 2026 Welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. Oil prices have snapped a losing streak following Yemen’s Houthis said they had attacked a Saudi vessel in the Red Sea. Brent crude drew back above the $80 per barrel mark on Wednesday morning on the news, but prices were still down for the week by around 10 [...]
Ask the expert: How do I avoid double tax on my pension? August 5, 2026 Got a question for our expert? Email [email protected] Fidelity personal financial specialist Marianna Hunt is back on hand to answer your burning questions, and today a reader is looking to avoid the incoming double tax blow. Q: I’m hoping to retire soon and am just deciding where I will draw my income from. I had [...]