Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsSavings and investment firm M&G has warned this morning that it faces uncertain times.In its full year results for 2024, M&G points out that:Increased geopolitical uncertainty and market volatility continue to weigh on client sentiment and pose a significant challenge to financial institutions across the globe.The Company has traded well in the first half and delivered strong profit growth. Like other operators in the sector, we face many cost headwinds that will impact us in the second half, following the recent Budget, notably the increase in national living wage and national insurance from April. We estimate that the annualised impact of these two items is £2.6m, with the incremental costs commencing in April and impacting the final quarter of the 2025 financial year.We plan to mitigate the majority of these costs over the next 18 months through price increases and cost efficiencies. Continue reading...
Brussels is taking action against Google and Apple under the Digital Markets Act. The UK National Wealth Fund will focus on energy and defence projects. Eurozone inflation fell to 2.3% in February. Santander is closing 95 UK branches in the UK.
