88 minutes ago Why is Germany shooting its own stagnating economy in the foot? | Simon Nixon

A proposed Italian-German bank merger makes sense for Europe, but Berlin is opting for domestic protectionismA potential merger between a German bank and an Italian rival would not normally elicit much interest beyond the business pages. But these are not normal times. The Italian bank UniCredit recently provoked a political backlash in Germany by acquiring a 21% stake in the German lender Commerzbank. Even chancellor Olaf Scholz weighed in, calling the Italian move “an unfriendly attack”. The significance of this row runs far beyond the worlds of Italian and German finance.News of the acquisition came just weeks after the publication of a report by Mario Draghi, the former president of the European Central Bank, on how to address the EU’s declining competitiveness against the US and Ch...

Events

2 hours ago Georgia measure would cap increases in homes' taxable value to curb higher property taxes

Georgia voters unhappy about rising property tax bills could limit how much of a home’s increasing value can be taxed

Society

2 hours ago Stock market today: Asian shares are mostly higher after strong earnings boost stocks on Wall St

Shares are mostly higher in Asia after U.S. stocks rose following better-than-expected profit reports from Morgan Stanley, United Airlines and other big companies

Politics

2 hours ago Texas man set to be first in US executed over shaken baby syndrome makes last appeals

A Texas man who could be the first person in the U.S. executed for a murder conviction tied to the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome is facing a lethal injection

Politics

2 hours ago Six reasons why taking a builder on a house viewing could help save you stress... and money

Home buyers are being urged to take a builder with them on second or third viewings before purchasing a property to avoid nasty surprises.

Politics

2 hours ago Labour must avoid killing off 'green shoots' of economic recovery with high business taxes

As inflation hits lowest level for more than three years, an interest rate cut that would boost investment looms

Economics

3 hours ago The new enemies list: Don Jr reportedly leading charge to create list of people banned from second Trump White House

‘Clearly people working on Project 2025 are blacklisted,’ former Trump official says

Events

3 hours ago Here’s a rabbit for the chancellor’s hat: scrap stamp duty on shares | Nils Pratley

Getting rid of SDRT would pay for itself over time because other receipts would rise, abolitionists sayRachel Reeves is looking for taxes to raise, rather than ones to abolish. Never mind: here is a tax that ought to be scrapped by a government that calls itself pro-growth, pro-business and pro-investment, which was the pitch at this week’s big summit. What’s more, the enticing claim from abolitionists is that getting rid of the tax could – with a few qualifications – pay for itself over time because other Treasury receipts would rise.The tax is stamp duty on shares – or, in full, stamp duty reserve tax, or SDRT. It is the 0.5% levy on purchases of shares in UK companies that brought £3.8bn into the Treasury in the 2022-23 tax year. Ireland has a higher rate, 1%, but nobody else does. T...

Politics

4 hours ago OVO Energy reveals how to save £410 a year on bills by making one big change

A new report has revealed that almost half of the UK's housing stock is eligible for solar panels, but doesn't currently have them - here's how much you could save by making the switch

Economics