Business

Amazon has revealed plans to shut three UK warehouses, a decision that will affect 1,200 jobs, but open two new major fulfilment centres. Sites in Hemel Hempstead, Doncaster and Gourock, in the west of Scotland, have been proposed for closure. A spokesman said all the workers would be offered roles at other existing Amazon locations.

Consumer spending failed to keep pace with inflation in December, figures suggest, likely bolstering the view among economists that the UK is in recession. Closely watched data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Barclaycard showed spending rose by 6.9% and 4.4% in value terms respectively in December compared to a year ago. Both readings

Businesses are set to secure £5.5bn in scaled back government support to help them with their energy bills from the start of April, after the current scheme ends. The new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will reduce rather than cap energy costs for businesses and will last for 12 months. The latest measure replaces the Energy

All businesses are set to secure further taxpayer support for their energy bills when the current scheme ends in March but at a reduced cost to the taxpayer. The government is set to confirm later on Monday that it has decided on applying a discount to wholesale prices, for up to a year, following talks

Richard Branson has revealed a bizarre story about finding Elon Musk in the kitchen of his New Mexico house in the middle of the night before his first space flight. In an interview this weekend, Mr Branson said the Twitter and Tesla owner was completely barefoot, holding his fast-asleep baby X Æ A-12, and had

The UK’s flag carrier airline has rolled out its first uniform change in 20 years, offering its 30,000 workers a choice of jumpsuits, hijabs, three-piece suits, and tunics. From spring this year, engineers and ground handling agents will be dressed in the designs of fashion designer, Ozwald Boateng, with cabin crew, pilots and check-in agents

Rail minister Huw Merriman will meet union leaders including Mick Lynch of the RMT on Monday after three weeks of unseasonal disruption left the two sides apparently as far apart as ever. While both say they are ready to talk, unions remain committed to further strikes if required and the government is legislating to limit

Windfall tax payments are to hit Shell by around $2bn (£1.7bn), the oil and gas company has estimated. The cost of the UK’s energy profits levy and the EU’s recently announced solidarity contribution will reach $2bn (£1.7bn) in tax liabilities in the final three months of its financial year, the firm said in a fourth

House prices have dropped for the fourth month in a row as cost of living pressures and higher borrowing costs dampen demand. The average house price fell to £281,272 in December, according to data from Halifax. It was a 1.5% decrease from November prices, which had already fallen more than 2%, representing the fastest decrease

Rail passengers are facing a fourth day of travel disruption as thousands of workers continue to strike over jobs, pay and conditions. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 14 other train operators will walk out on Friday in action that is set to last 48 hours. Only around

Hauliers exporting goods to the European Union have faced fresh disruption since the turn of the year as a glitch in the UK’s digital customs system and new demands from French authorities threaten delays. Drivers heading to ports in the first few days of January found they were unable to enter details of shipments in

Amazon has announced that it is cutting 18,000 jobs – the biggest round of layoffs in the company’s history. In a note to employees, chief executive Andy Jassy confirmed that the e-commerce giant’s brick-and-mortar stores – including Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go – will be especially impacted by the cuts. Those working in human resources

Government support for business energy bills will be cut in April as the chancellor moves to reduce taxpayer exposure to the soaring cost of gas and electricity in 2023. Jeremy Hunt told business leaders and trade groups they should expect state support to be reduced when the current support package ends in the spring, having

Food inflation hit a record annual rate in December as cash-strapped households prepared for Christmas, according to a retail sector report. The latest British Retail Consortium-NielsenIQ shop price index showed typical food grocery costs up 13.3% last month compared with December 2021. The rate had stood at 12.4% in November. The data showed fresh food

Crisis-hit Cineworld has denied claims by the owner of rival Odeon that they have held talks over the sale of cinemas, saying it intends to sell the group as a whole and is yet to begin the process. AMC Entertainment said last month that it had backed out of negotiations with Cineworld on the purchase

Strikes by rail and road staff are set to cause extensive disruption to commuters returning to work after the Christmas break – amid fears that continued walkouts could cause a years-long slump in demand for train travel. About 40,000 members of the RMT union from Network Rail and 14 train operators are taking industrial action

Close to 50 shops shut down every day in 2022, more than at any other point for at least five years. In a bruising year for retail, 17,145 shops closed last year – up by nearly 50% on 2021, when 11,449 shops shut. Analysis by the Centre for Retail Research found about 47 sites shut up

A group of financial investors which have lent hundreds of millions of pounds to Matalan are close to finalising a deal to take control of one of Britain’s biggest homewares retailers. Sky News understands that the senior lenders, which include prominent City names such as Invesco and Man GLG, could strike a deal within the

Ministers are urging the chancellor to provide £300m of taxpayers’ money to avert the closure of British Steel’s two blast furnaces – a move that would trigger the loss of thousands of industrial jobs in northern England. Sky News has learnt that Grant Shapps, the business secretary, and Michael Gove, the levelling-up secretary, wrote to

In response to the release of thousands of pages of his tax returns, former US president Donald Trump warned “horrible things” were to come, taking aim at “radical left Democrats”. The former US president was unable to stop Democrats in Congress divulging the information, covering 2015 to 2020. In a statement responding to the release,