Business

Donald Trump has described it as “very dangerous” for the UK to do business with China, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived in Shanghai on the third day of his official visit to the country. Trump’s comments followed the announcement of several agreements aimed at boosting trade and investment between the UK and China, reached after Starmer met Chinese president Xi Jinping in Beijing. Speaking to reporters at the premiere of a documentary about his...

Octopus Energy Group has unveiled a major joint venture with PCG Power to trade renewable electricity in China, marking a significant expansion into the world’s largest clean energy market. The deal was announced during Keir Starmer’s official visit to China, with Octopus founder and chief executive Greg Jackson joining the UK business delegation in Beijing. The new venture, called Bitong Energy, will combine PCG Power’s position as one of China’s fastest-growing investors and solutions providers...

Tens of thousands of so-called “zombie” businesses could collapse this year as mounting cost pressures and weak demand push companies to breaking point, insolvency specialists have warned. New research from Begbies Traynor shows a sharp rise in businesses experiencing severe financial strain, with a 44 per cent increase in companies classed as being in “critical financial distress” in the final three months of last year compared with the same period in 2024. In total, 67,369...

Lloyds Banking Group is handing more than £3.1 billion back to shareholders after delivering stronger-than-expected annual profits, underlining the financial firepower of Britain’s biggest domestic lender. The FTSE 100 bank reported full-year pre-tax profits of £6.66 billion, up 12 per cent on 2024 and comfortably ahead of the £6.38 billion forecast by City analysts. The performance was supported by lower-than-expected bad loan provisions and growing income from non-lending activities. Lloyds announced a final dividend of...

The UK’s advertising watchdog has banned a series of adverts by Coinbase, ruling that they implied cryptocurrency could help ease cost-of-living pressures and downplayed the risks associated with crypto investing. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld complaints from members of the public after the adverts ran in August, depicting Britain in various states of decline alongside a satirical slogan and the Coinbase logo. The campaign included three poster adverts and a video which portrayed families,...

Driverless taxis could begin operating in the UK as soon as September, according to Waymo, the US self-driving car firm owned by Alphabet. Waymo said it plans to launch a pilot robotaxi service in London in April, with the ambition of carrying paying passengers later in the year once regulations allow. The UK government has said it intends to introduce new rules in the second half of 2026 to permit fully autonomous taxi services, though...

Apple has reported its strongest-ever quarterly iPhone sales, helping to lift overall revenues despite weaker performance in other parts of the business. In results published on Thursday, the US technology giant said total revenue rose to $144bn (£82.5bn) in the final three months of last year, driven by record sales of the iPhone. Apple said iPhone demand reached an all-time high during the quarter, supported by improved sales in China, as well as continued strength...

Tesla has reported its first annual fall in revenue as the electric carmaker accelerates a strategic shift away from legacy vehicle models and towards artificial intelligence and robotics. The company said total revenues fell 3 per cent in 2025, marking the first year-on-year decline in its history, while profits plunged 61 per cent in the final three months of the year. Tesla also confirmed it will end production of its Model S and Model X,...

China has agreed in principle to allow British citizens to travel to the country for up to 30 days without a visa, Downing Street has confirmed, following high-level talks in Beijing aimed at resetting relations and boosting economic ties. The announcement came after Keir Starmer met Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital, making him the first UK prime minister to visit China in eight years. No start date has yet been confirmed for the visa...

The Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025, and the Act will be implemented on a phased basis, through to 2027. There are, however, two specific implementation dates to be aware of this year: 6 April 2026 and 1 October 2026. April 2026 Paternity leave and Parental leave From 6 April, there will be a day-one right to paternity leave and parental leave. The current requirement for 26 weeks’ and one...