Business

Even before Northern Rock collapsed and the financial crisis exploded, Alistair Darling was already wrangling with an unenviable inheritance as chancellor of the exchequer. Not only was he having to follow in the footsteps of the longest-serving chancellor of modern times – a man who presided over an almost unprecedentedly long period of stability and

Castore, the British sportswear brand backed by Sir Andy Murray and which adorns a host of Premier League football kits, has reached a valuation of nearly £1bn after scoring a bumper investment from a host of new backers. Sky News can reveal that Castore has struck a deal to raise £150m from investors including Raine

The National Grid is to pay some households to cut their energy use after activating its blackout prevention scheme during the current cold snap. Eligible properties with smart meters will be offered cash and other rewards in return for cutting their usage between 5pm and 6.30pm on Wednesday evening, it has been announced. It marks

On today’s episode, Ian King discusses the news that Nissan is making a big investment in its Sunderland plant – which the prime minister has hailed as a “massive vote of confidence” in the UK. He also looks at a deal between Boots and Legal & General, and speaks to the boss of lorry maker

Ian King is joined by Economics and Data Editor, Ed Conway, to discuss yesterday’s Autumn Budget and the news that business activity has risen this month. He also speaks with Eamonn O’Hare, one of the founders of Zegona – a UK-listed business set up to invest in telecoms assets – which is buying Vodafone’s Spanish

Nissan is to commit to manufacturing electric versions of two of its bestselling models at its Sunderland plant after months of talks with the government. Sky News can reveal that the giant Japanese car manufacturer will announce on Friday that it will build the electric Qashqai and Juke at the site – a decision that

Ian King looks at the chancellor’s autumn statement. Richard Hughes, chair of the budget watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, or OBR, speaks about the autumn statement and the economic outlook. Dr Sai Shivareddy, chief executive of tech firm Nyobolt, also reacts to the announcements. Ian King is also joined by Steve Hare, chief executive

The electricity, phone and broadband provider arm of Shell has been fined £1.4m by the communications regulator for breaking customer protection rules. Shell Energy was hit with the fine for failing to flag contract ends and the best deals for phone and broadband customers, Ofcom said. More than 70,000 such customers were not properly prompted

A warning from Burberry that sales expectations are at risk from a slump in demand for luxury has sent its shares sharply lower. The company’s stock dived by almost 10% in early trading in London after it admitted that its annual revenue forecast for low double-digit growth was in peril, with profitability suffering too in

Manchester United has confirmed its chief executive of two years, Richard Arnold, “has decided to step down” as part of a “management transition”. The development was revealed shortly after Sky News reported that Mr Arnold would be replaced by the club’s general counsel, Patrick Stewart, on an interim basis. The change is taking place as

In a sense, the headline news today is the least important bit of all. Inflation has dropped to 4.6% which means the chancellor and prime minister can claim victory in one of their five pledges – the one to halve inflation by the end of the year. True, there’s still a few months of data

Our business correspondent, Paul Kelso, joins the show as he takes us through the King’s Speech, which laid out the government’s plans for the coming year. And we hear from the chief executive of department store Fenwick about retail sales. Listen and subscribe to The Ian King Business Podcast here Advertisement

A cloud software giant backed by some of the world’s biggest private investors is in talks about the sale of a multibillion-pound stake to wealthy family offices and state investment funds. Sky News understands that Group Bruxelles Lambert, the vehicle jointly established by the Belgian Frere family, and Mubadala, the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund,

The England footballer Ollie Watkins is among a group of investors ploughing new funds into a fast-growing British online sneaker and streetwear marketplace. Sky News understands that Mr Watkins, who played for Aston Villa on Sunday in the 2-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest, is backing The Edit LDN, which has operated concessions in department stores

Ian King talks to Sky News’s city editor Mark Kleinman about the future of Manchester United. He also speaks to the founder and chief executive of Venrai, Jason Tucker-Feltham, about Sam Bankman-Fried – who’s been found guilty of crypto fraud. Mary Aiken, Professor of Cyberpsychology at Capitol Technology University in Washington, is also interviewed on

Rishi Sunak has said the UK’s AI safety summit will “tip the balance in favour of humanity” after governments reached a “landmark agreement” with tech companies to test their models before their release. The prime minister said while the event at Bletchley Park was “only the beginning of the conversation”, it showed there was a

Elon Musk will head to Downing Street for talks with Rishi Sunak today following the prime minister’s AI safety summit. The billionaire owner of SpaceX and Tesla jetted in for the event at Bletchley Park, which began on Wednesday with attending countries backing an agreement on the need to manage risks posed by the technology.

Oil and gas giant Shell has continued its retreat from renewables as it is set to cut 200 low-carbon jobs and review another 130. Next year 200 roles are to be slashed in the low carbon solution and hydrogen divisions, while a further 130 positions are under review in an effort to reduce headcount and

Bitcoin mining consumes more electricity than most countries, according to a new report on its damaging environmental impact. Mining is the process by which transactions are added to and validated on the blockchain, the public ledger for cryptocurrencies. Competing miners race to use computers to solve complex mathematical puzzles using extremely powerful hardware – receiving

Bitcoin shot up 6% on Tuesday to its highest value in nearly a year-and-a-half. The price rose as high as $35,198 (£28,844) at one point amid speculation US regulators could soon approve an exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on its market price. This would allow investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without owning the cryptocurrency directly