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Monday newspaper round-up: Debanking, mortgage rates, London office space

(Sharecast News) - Banks are closing more than 1,000 accounts every working day, according to new data that has fuelled the growing row over so-called "debanking" and prompted Nigel Farage to call for a royal commission to investigate what he said was a scandal. Hours after the former Ukip leader revealed he was spearheading a website to campaign on behalf of people whose accounts had been shut, data revealed a big jump in the numbers of customers dumped by their bank. - Guardian The biggest regulatory shake-up of UK retail financial services for two decades will come into force on Monday in an effort to crack down on rip-offs and poor customer service. The changes include stronger rules on value for money and giving fair pricing to all customers, with experts predicting that some older financial products that do not meet the new higher standards are likely to be removed from sale. - Guardian

Home buyers could benefit from mortgage rate reductions following an expected 0.25 percentage Bank Rate rise later this week. Brokers said that as long as the Bank of England does not surprise with a larger than expected interest rate rise on Thursday, lenders should soon have the confidence to start competing for a dwindling pool of borrowers. - Telegraph

Demand for office space in London has slumped as the shift to working from home takes root. The Covid-19 lockdown, which saw many workers forced to work from home, has had a significant impact on working practices with an increasing number of businesses opting for hybrid working styles for their staff. - Telegraph

British manufacturers have continued to supply Russia with key industrial equipment despite the invasion of Ukraine, analysis of trade data shows. After the full-scale invasion was launched in February last year, many of Britain's industrial manufacturers quickly wound down their business relationships with Russia. The government introduced what it described as "sweeping" restrictions on what material UK suppliers could export to Russia, focusing on areas that are big tax-earners for the Kremlin. - The Times

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Wednesday newspaper round-up: Thames Water, Johnson & Johnson, BoE
(Sharecast News) - Thames Water may need as much as £10bn in debt and equity investment to repair its finances, according to a representative of creditors hoping to lend the struggling utility another £3bn. London's high court heard evidence on Tuesday that suggested the UK's largest water company may need significantly more resources than the roughly £6.3bn it has previously indicated. - Guardian
Monday newspaper round-up: Zero-hours contracts, Barclays, Asos
(Sharecast News) - Hundreds of thousands of British workers are on zero-hours contracts despite being with the same employer for years, according to analysis from the TUC. The majority of zero-hours contract workers have been with their employer for more than 12 months, while one in eight have not been granted regular employment rights after more than a decade working in the same place, the organisation said. - Guardian
Friday newspaper round-up: Apple, Daily Mail, OpenAI, Homebase
(Sharecast News) - Apple slightly beat analysts' expectations in its first-quarter earnings for fiscal year 2025 on Thursday. The iPhone-maker's revenue rose by 4%, coming in at $124.30bn, barely above estimates of $124.12bn. Earnings per share were $2.40, just ahead of analysts' expectations of $2.35. Shares rose more than 8% in extended trading after CEO Tim Cook indicated in an earnings call on Thursday that Apple is on the trajectory for revenue growth next quarter. - Guardian
Thursday newspaper round-up: Car production, UK retailers, water bills, KPMG
(Sharecast News) - The architect of a ban on newspaper takeovers by foreign states has demanded that an Abu Dhabi fund be forced to sell The Telegraph by Easter. Baroness Stowell, the Conservative chairman of the Lords communications and digital committee, said the Government should impose an ultimatum on RedBird IMI. It should be backed by the threat of regulatory action, she said, to strip the fund of control of what has been dubbed "the newspaper auction from hell". - Telegraph

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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