Business news live: Stock markets up overnight as UK pay growth slows to below inflation rate – UK Times

A quick look back at the overnight stock markets:

In the US, the S&P 500 ended 1.1 per cent up, with the Nasdaq reaching 1.43 per cent for the day.

That was followed by positivity around Asia, where each of the Shanghai Composite, Hang Seng and Nikkei 225 are all up approaching the close. Only the latter has had a rise of less than 1 per cent.

A trial giving heating engineers a free heat pump for their own homes is to be rolled out to thousands of people after it boosted professional support for the tech.

The “start at home” pilot by innovation agency Nesta to support heating engineers to install their first heat pump in their home found it boosted their technical knowledge, understanding of living with the technology, and confidence in promoting them to customers.

Experts warn large-scale deployment of clean electric-powered heat pumps is key to replacing the widespread use of gas boilers in homes to reduce carbon emissions as part of targets to cut greenhouse gases to “net zero” by 2050.

That means installing round 450,000 heat pumps in existing homes a year by 2030, requiring 38,000 more installers trained and confident to install heat pumps before then, Nesta said.

But while the number of heating engineers and plumbers who are training as heat pump installers is on the rise, that is not translating into a large active workforce focused on the technology, a report by Nesta warned.

Amazon is set to create thousands of new jobs across the UK as part of a substantial £40 billion investment over the next three years, signalling a major expansion of its logistics network.

The technology giant confirmed that a new fulfilment centre in Hull will open this year, generating some 2,000 roles.

Another 2,000 jobs are earmarked for a site in Northampton, scheduled to open in 2026.

Beyond these confirmed locations, Amazon also announced plans for two additional warehouses in the East Midlands, slated for a 2027 opening.

Good morning and welcome back to The Independent’s live coverage of the world of business.

Across the day we’ll be updating you on the latest around the Israel-Iran situation and the knock-ons on oil markets, as well as stock market news and wider business stories across the UK.

The FTSE 100 rose slightly yesterday but it has been a mixed week so far.

That’s it for us today – we’ll be back tomorrow morning at 7am as usual.

The FTSE 100 dropped late on and has closed at just 0.01 per cent up – though the 250 finished up 0.97 per cent for a positive day.

US stocks are also up now their market is open, the Nasdaq at +1.35 per cent.

We’ll see all the overnight happenings tomorrow – see you then.

Tax and audit firm RSM UK have analysed HMRC tax receipts and say those for capital gains tax has been declining of 23% in two years.

However, they believe it could turn around this year and show the largest percentage increase of all tax types paid to the Treasury.

The OBR is anticipating £19.7bn in CGT receipts for 2025/26 – an increase of 50 per cent from the prior year and more than 16 per cent higher than the previous record.

Supermarket chain Aldi have announced quicker payments to suppliers and farmers, as both struggle with hotter weather placing strain on growers.

Any fresh produce suppliers with turnover under £5m will be offered the new terms, a release states.

Julie Ashfield, chief commercial officer at Aldi UK, said: “We know smaller growers are under real pressure – from a dry spring to rising input costs – and we want to do what we can to help. These shorter payment terms are a small, practical step to give them quicker access to cash and a bit more flexibility as the season progresses.”

While there’s still some threat over the direction the Middle East unrest may take, Oxford Economics has outlined some potential consequences if Iran partially close the Strait of Hormuz, through which flows 20m barrels of oil a day.

“In our downside scenario, we assume ceasefire negotiations break down and Iran attempts to disrupt trade with mines and attacks on shipping. We estimate this could reduce shipping through the Strait by as much as 70% in the short term,” wrote director of global macro research Ben May and colleagues.

“But retaliatory attacks on Iran, defensive measures to protect ships, measures to underwrite shipping insurance, and rerouting oil shipments could limit the impact on global oil supply to only around 1% below normal.”

The estimated cost of this would be $115 oil later this year, before returning to $75 midway through 2026.

As it stands, Brent is at $68 and remains on course for more than a 4.5 per cent drop today all told.

Jerome Powell has explained the uncertainty over tariff impact on US inflation means the Fed are not intent on lowering interest rates any quicker than they feel they must.

“The effects on inflation could be short lived — reflecting a one-time shift in the price level. It is also possible that the inflationary effects could instead be more persistent. Avoiding that outcome will depend on the size of the tariff effects, on how long it takes for them to pass through fully into prices, and, ultimately, on keeping longer-term inflation expectations well anchored,” he explained.

Donald Trump: unimpressed.

Co-op has taken the decision to ban products from Israel, similar to its stance with Russia.

The retailer said pressure from members is the reason behind the ban, which will see it “stop sourcing relationships with countries where there are internationally recognised community-wide human rights abuses and violations of international law”.

As well as Israel, 16 other countries feature on its list including Russia, Syria and Iran.

Debbie White, Co-op chair, said: “As a business, we have a long-standing legacy of doing the right thing, supporting Fairtrade and championing ethical sourcing and this policy is a natural progression of this.”