Wall Street is set to open higher on hopes about a possible end to the longest US government shutdown, while an upbeat outlook from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) revived optimism surrounding artificial intelligence.
AMD rose almost 6 per cent in pre-market trading after the chip designer said it expected annual revenue from chip for data centres of $100 billion within the next five years, and profits to more than triple. AI-related shares fell yesterday after SoftBank sold its entire near $6 billion stake in Nvidia.
The S&P, Nasdaq and Dow Jones indices are expected to open up 0.36 per cent, 0.6 per cent and 0.24 per cent, respectively.
The FTSE 100 clawed back mid-morning losses to trade up slightly at a new high of 9,903.51. The pound was down 0.35 per cent against the dollar at $1.3101, and government bond yields remained up on jitters over political uncertainty and talk of a challenge to Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership.
Trump to host dinner for top executives
Jamie Dimon
BRETT COOMER/HOUSTON CHRONICLE/GETTY IMAGES
President Trump is set to host JP Morgan boss Jamie Dimon and a string of top executives at a private White House dinner this evening, according to reports.
The gathering, which will include the Nasdaq chief executive, underscores Trump’s efforts to deepen ties with corporate leaders as the administration aims to strengthen capital markets and onshore manufacturing.
A White House official confirmed that Trump was meeting with financial leaders following a report on CBS News, but did not confirm a guest list.
Trump has held a series of private meetings with business leaders as his administration seeks to promote economic growth while navigating the fallout from his trade tariffs.
Dimon has been vocal in expressing concerns over the impact of the tariff regime, having warned in April that “a recession remains in question, but it will slow down growth.”
JP Morgan has since announced a $1.5 trillion investment program aimed at industries central to national security and economic resilience, including manufacturing, defence and energy.
Marshalls shares rise on update
Marshalls specialises in pavements, driveways and patios
MARSHALLS
A steadying of the ship after a debilitating profit warning at Marshalls in the summer prompted a mild rally in the shares as the company reported on its first ten months of the year.
Marshalls specialises in the pavements and paviors for the public sector and domestic driveways and patios and as such is often seen as a bellwether for public, commercial and private spending.
The main business is still struggling, but the company reported good returns from its subsidiary businesses in pipes managing water and sewage, and in solar roofs for new homes, in a trading update. Group revenue rose 2 per cent to £548 million.
The shares, which slumped 25 per cent in the summer, rose nearly 5 per cent on Wednesday, or 8p, to 180p.
NSK plans put 350 UK jobs at risk
RONNY HARTMANN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Japanese car parts manufacturer NSK plans to close two factories in County Durham, putting about 350 jobs at risk.
The Tokyo-based company has launched a consultation over proposals to halt production at the sites in Peterlee, which produce bearings used by carmakers thought to include Volkswagen and Renault. It said it has faced “persistent challenges in the profitability of locally manufactured products”.
Automotive parts suppliers are being affected by the shift away from traditional engines and toward electric vehicles.
The plans form part of ongoing restructuring across European operations, as NSK withdraws from unprofitable businesses.
Trade union Unite said the closure proposal was a “betrayal” of the workforce. Its national officer Steve Bush stressed that “bearings will still be needed for cars long after diesel and petrol engines have been phased out”.
Royal Mail owner delivers slower growth
Revenue at International Distribution Services increased 1.6 per cent to £6.5 billion in the six months to September 28. This was markedly slower than the 8.2 per cent growth registered in the same period in 2024, which had benefited from the blizzard of postal ballots, political mail-outs and polling cards around the general election.
Royal Mail sales rose 1.5 per cent to £3.98 billion, with 5 per cent growth in its parcels division offsetting a 10 per cent drop in letter volumes. Revenue at GLS, its international parcel delivery unit, was up 1.9 per cent to £2.48 billion.
The results straddle the period during which the group was taken private by Czech tycoon Daniel Kretinsky’s EP Group in a £3.6 billion takeover, which was completed in June.
The rise in employers’ national insurance contributions announced in Rachel Reeves’s maiden budget added £120 million to payroll costs.
Hailing a “solid performance”, Martin Seidenberg, the chief executive, said the group was focused on rapidly expanding its out-of-home delivery network, and plans to almost double Royal Mail’s 24,000 drop-off and collection points to 45,000 by 2030, including shops, lockers and parcel post boxes.
FTSE 100 turns negative from record high
The FTSE 100 gave up its early gains to turn negative in late morning trading.
The index was down 14 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 9,885.47, after rising 25 points earlier to a new record high.
Experian, the credit check company, was the biggest faller despite upgrading its outlook for full-year revenue growth. The drop followed an announcement from the Fair Isaac Corporation (Fico) launching a licensing model for its credit score algorithm, potentially reducing reliance on companies such as Experian.
Supermarket shares were lower, with Tesco among the main fallers on concerns about increased competition during the festive season. EasyJet was down after Jet2 announced plans to start flying from Gatwick airport.
Housebuilders were also among the fallers after Taylor Wimpey reported a softer market due to uncertainty about possible property taxes in this month’s budget. The FTSE 250 company fell 3 per cent. In the blue chip index, Berkeley, Persimmon and Rightmove were lower.
SSE was the biggest riser are revealing a £33 billion investment plan to bolster the electricity network and support renewable energy.
The pound weakened against the dollar on expectations of interest rate cuts after data showing a slowdown in the labour market.
Gilt yields remained higher on jitters over political uncertainty, although tax rises in the budget remain a focus.
ONS to publish less to improve key economic data
The Office for National Statistics plans to release less data on health, crime and regional development next year to free up resources to improve the quality of the most important economic figures.
“Our top priority is restoring the quality of our core statistics,” said Darren Tierney, permanent secretary at the ONS, which wants to reduce the number of statistics it publishes by 10 per cent in 2026.
The announcement included a reduction in the number of health statistics, which expanded greatly during the pandemic and which the agency now wants other parts of government to take over. It said it would continue producing key population data like births, deaths and life expectancy.
Errors across a range of its headline economic data releases have dogged the ONS over the past two years, culminating in a critical government review of its operations and management changes.
BA boss boards Marks and Spencer
Sean Doyle, the boss of British Airways, is joining the M&S board
Marks & Spencer has appointed British Airways’ boss Sean Doyle onto its board, as it prepares for the “next phase of reshaping”.
It framed Doyle’s appointment as an alliance of two iconic British brands.
“Sean is a practising chief executive and an outstanding business leader in the complex and challenging airline industry. He also represents an iconic British brand with extraordinary public exposure,” M&S said.
Roger Burnley, a former chief executive of Asda, will also join the board on December 1, while Archie Norman’s tenure as chair will be extended.
Doyle said: “Being the CEO of Britain’s flag carrier is a very special job, as you are the custodian of a brand which is part of the fabric of the country. Not many brands can equal that, but M&S certainly can.”
House to vote on bill to end shutdown impasse
The Capitol building in Washington DC
CELAL GUNES/ANADOLU VIA GETTY IMAGES
The funding bill that would end the longest US government shutdown is heading to the House of Representatives for a final vote this afternoon, after the Senate approved it on Monday.
The bill, which brings Congress a step closer to ending the impasse, extends funding for most federal government agencies until January 30, while including three full-year funding bills for some parts of the government.
House Republicans are said to be confident that the package will clear the lower chamber, and President Trump is expected to sign it off.
iPhone-maker Foxconn smashes forecasts
Foxconn is going gangbusters
ANN WANG/REUTERS
Foxconn, the Taiwan-based electronics giant that assembles iPhones for Apple and servers for Nvidia, has offered a bullish outlook on AI-related demand as it posted a forecast-beating 17 per cent rise in third-quarter profit to $1.89 billion.
Young Liu, Foxconn’s chairman, dismissed talk of a tech bubble, saying: “Judging from what we see now, I am very optimistic about the AI market next year. The development of AI is still just beginning.”
Revenue at Foxconn’s cloud business, which includes AI servers, exceeded that of its consumer electronics, such as iPhones, for the second quarter in a row.
Foxconn’s shares have jumped 36 per cent this year, outperforming the broader Taiwan index’s 21 per cent gain. Its shares closed up 1.8 per cent last night ahead of the earnings release.
Federer’s tennis shoe helps drive On profits
Roger Federer with his signature tennis shoe
On, the premium sports brand in which tennis star Roger Federer has a stake, has raised its annual revenue target for the third time this year after beating quarterly sales expectations.
In the United States, On’s biggest market, customers continued to buy its running shoes and sneakers despite price increases. On’s Cloudmonster running shoe range starts at $170, while its Roger Pro tennis shoes, developed in collaboration with Federer, sell for $220.
The company’s shares rose as much as 10 per cent in pre-market trading after it also raised its annual margin forecasts.
Third-quarter sales increased 25 per cent year-on-year to 794.4 million Swiss francs (£758 million), beating analysts’ forecasts of SFr726.8 million. Zurich-based On now expects 2025 net sales of SFr2.98 billion, up from SFr2.91 billion expected earlier. It raised the gross profit margin forecast to 62.5 per cent from 60.5 per cent to 61 per cent.
Fuller’s boss urges fresh ideas for pubs
The hospitality industry is pleading with the chancellor not to raise taxes again
FULLER’S
The boss of Fuller, Smith & Turner hopes Rachel Reeves will avoid further punitive financial measures on the hospitality sector in the budget and urged the chancellor to deliver “fresh ideas” on stimulating growth in the pub sector.
Simon Emeny, executive chairman of the pub group, said: “For the country to be prosperous again and to ultimately stop taxing everybody to oblivion we need to have some meaningful economic growth.”
His comments were made as Fuller’s revealed bookings for the all important Christmas period are up 16 per cent on the year before, which was slightly ahead of management’s expectations.
Like-for-like sales in the six months to the end of September rose 4.6 per cent, lifting revenues to £207.5 million and adjusted pre-tax profit by 28 per cent to £22.5 million. The board declared an interim dividend of 7.85p, a 6 per cent increase on last year. Fuller’s shares rose 2.6 per cent this morning.
Avon eyes expansion after turnaround
Avon is looking to expand
New management who arrived in 2023 to sort out Avon Technologies signalled they have completed their transformation programme a couple of years early and said they are now looking at expanding, which could include a return to acquisitions.
Avon had been memorably felled by buying a business making bullet-proof vests that turned out not to be bullet proof.
Having delivered 14 per cent growth in revenues in the year to the end of September at $313 million and pre-tax profits 37 per cent better at nearly $35 million, the company is eying “opportunities” related to wares for the military and emergency services: helmets, smart goggles, gas masks, breathing equipment for divers and chemical suits.
The shares rose more than 5 per cent, or 100p, to £19.60.
UK car insurance premiums fall in third quarter
Car insurance premiums have been falling
JAROSLAW KILIAN/GETTY IMAGES
Motor insurance premiums have fallen in each quarter of 2025, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).
Between July and September, the average premium was £551, down £13 from the previous quarter and £56 lower than in the third quarter of 2024.
Despite the easing of premiums from their peak, claims pressures remain significant, the ABI said. ABI members paid out £3 billion in car insurance claims during the third quarter. Repair costs accounted for 64 per cent of the total, or £1.9 billion, reflecting the high complexity and expense of modern vehicle repairs. Theft-related claims added a further £142 million.
Chris Bose, ABI’s director of general insurance policy, noted that families are still facing cost-of-living pressures and that underlying claims costs remain high. He warned that any rise in insurance premium tax in the budget could reverse months of progress in reducing premiums.
Gilt yields rise on talk of Starmer challenge
Investors sold government bonds this morning as reports of a challenge to prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership created political uncertainty, unsettling the market ahead of the budget.
Yields on UK government bonds, which rise when the price of bonds falls, rose across the curve. The yield on the 10-year gilt, regarded as a proxy for government borrowing costs, rose 3 basis points to 4.42 per cent, after trading as low as 4.38 per cent yesterday.
Bond yields have been falling after Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, said she would raise taxes in the budget to fill any fiscal gap and stressed that her fiscal rules were “iron clad”. This reassured bond investors, but a possible new Labour leader could change things.
FTSE 100 rises to new high
London’s leading share index has extended its record high this morning, buoyed by corporate news and optimism about an end to the US government shutdown.
The FTSE 100 rose 25 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 9,924.78 as it heads closer to 10,000.
SSE was the biggest riser after revealing a £33 billion investment plan to bolster the electricity network and support renewable energy.
Experian, the credit check company, gained after strong first-half results. The company said it expected full-year revenue growth of 11 per cent, at the top-end of its outlook.
Housebuilders were among the fallers after Taylor Wimpey reported a softer market due to uncertainty about possible property taxes in this month’s budget. The FTSE 250 company fell 3.36 per cent. In the blue chip index, Berkeley, Barratt Redrow and Rightmove were lower.
A Jet2 plane at Newcastle airport
ALAMY
Britain’s largest package holiday provider is to begin scheduled flying from Gatwick for the first time from late March next year.
Jet2 has secured slots for six aircraft at the airport, expanding its presence in the south of England. It takes the total number of Jet2 bases across the UK to 14.
Steve Heapy, the chief executive, said: “We see this as a once in a generation opportunity to accelerate our growth from the UK’s largest beach and city leisure destination airport.”
Nationwide to keep all branches open until 2030
Nationwide in Cardiff
ALAMY
Nationwide Building Society has pledged to keep each of its 696 Nationwide and Virgin Money branches open until at least 2030.
The new commitment, which extends the lender’s existing “branch promise” by at least another two years, applies even when a Nationwide branch and a Virgin Money branch are close to each other. Nationwide bought Virgin Money last year.
Dame Debbie Crosbie, the chief executive, said: “Branches are important to our customers, to communities and to the health of our high streets.”
SSE unveils £33bn investment plan
SSE has revealed its new investment plan
SSE ENERGY/STUART NICOL
The power company has unveiled a £33 billion five-year investment plan, partly funded by a £2 billion equity raise, as it seeks to upgrade the UK’s regulated electricity networks and its renewables business.
SSE said about 80 per cent of the planned spending, or £27 billion, will go towards upgrading the regulated electricity networks, with the remainder invested selectively in renewables and flexible generation assets.
Martin Pibworth, the chief executive, said: “This Transformation for Growth investment plan is built on a once-in-a-generation opportunity to upgrade the UK electricity network and build a cleaner, more secure and more affordable energy system.”
SSE said it will maintain its progressive dividend policy, targeting 5 per cent to 10 per cent annual dividend growth from a 64.2p 2024/25 baseline.
Taylor Wimpey reports softer market conditions
Lysaght Village houses being built by Taylor Wimpey in Wales
ALAMY
FTSE 250 housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has reported softer market conditions in the second half of 2025, reflecting uncertainty ahead of this month’s budget.
From June 30 to November 9, the net private sales rate per outlet per week was 0.63 (2024: 0.71), with a cancellation rate of 17 per cent, unchanged from last year. In the year to date, the net sales rate was 0.72 (2024: 0.73) with cancellations at 16 per cent (2024: 15 per cent).
Jennie Daly, the chief executive, noted that market conditions remained challenging due to budget uncertainty and ongoing affordability pressures, amid speculation of potential new property taxes.
Taylor Wimpey expects to deliver full-year UK completions and operating profit in line with prior guidance. It expects to build 10,400–10,800 homes (excluding joint ventures) and report group operating profit of about £424 million.
BAE Systems reaffirms upgraded guidance
An Italian Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon jet
REUTERS
The defence company reported strong trading as it reaffirmed its upgraded full-year 2025 guidance, in an stock exchange update.
BAE Systems has secured more than £27 billion in new orders in 2025, with additional deals expected before year-end. Recent contracts include £4 billion for 20 Typhoon aircraft for Turkey, $3.3 billion in US electronics programmes, $1.7 billion for combat vehicles, £1.1 billion in MBDA missile orders and £900 million for the Dreadnought submarine programme.
The company expects sales growth of 8 per cent to 10 per cent to about £30.5 billion to £31.1 billion, and underlying profit up by 9 per cent to 11 per cent to around £3.3 billion.
Charles Woodburn, the chief executive, said: “With a strong order backlog, established positions on key programmes and continued investment to support our future growth, we’re confident in the outlook for our business.”
IEA turns bullish on oil demand
US energy secretary Chris Wright has criticised the IEA’s previous stance
ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Global oil and gas demand could continue rising until 2050, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), marking a shift from earlier projections of a rapid transition to clean energy.
In its latest World Energy Outlook, the IEA’s “current policies scenario”, which reflects existing government measures rather than climate pledges, forecasts oil demand reaching 113 million barrels a day by mid-century, about 13 per cent higher than in 2024.
The agency last used this scenario in 2019 before focusing on pledges to hit net zero. This year, however, it dropped the “pledges scenario”, citing insufficient new national climate commitments for 2031–2035. Under the Biden administration, the IEA had previously projected oil demand would peak this decade and that further investment in fossil fuels would be unnecessary to meet climate targets. It is a stance criticised by Trump energy adviser Chris Wright as “nonsensical.”
The IEA’s data and forecasts remain highly influential, shaping energy and investment strategies for governments and corporations worldwide.