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Europe
BBC Business

Why are UK borrowing costs rising and what does it mean for me?

Image source, Getty ImagesByShanaz Musafer, Business reporter and Kevin Peachey, Cost of living correspondentPublished9 January 2025Updated 54 minutes agoUK government borrowing costs have been rising, with some now at their highest level since 1998 as investors around the world worry about inflation. Governments generally spend more than they raise in tax so they borrow money to fill the gap, usually by selling bonds to investors. As well as eventually paying back the value of the bond, governments pay interest at regular intervals so investors receive a stream of future payments. UK government bonds - known as "gilts" - are normally considered very safe, with little risk the money will not be repaid. They are mainly bought by financial institutions, such as pension funds. Interest rates - known as the yield - on government bonds have been going up, with the yield on a 10-year bond at its highest level since 2008, while the yield on a 30-year bond is at its highest since 1998, meaning it costs the government more to borrow over the long term. This comes at a sensitive time for new PM Andy Burnham and Chancellor John Healey as they prepare for their first budget on 28 October. The government's ability to play with the public finances is limited by the so-called fiscal rules it has set for itself. So, if it needs more money to pay back higher borrowing costs, it has less to spend on other things (under its self-imposed rules). The possibility now looms of less support for households struggling with the cost of living, or of tax rises to pay for any support. Importantly, these are choices – not certainties – so the chancellor might free up some money by spending less elsewhere. Some may be wondering about the impact of higher gilt yields on the mortgage market, particularly after what followed Liz Truss's mini-Budget in September 2022. Analysts believe that mortgage rates could go up on new fixed deals, as funding costs for lenders rise. But this is very different to 2022, when they shot up over a couple of days.

Why are UK borrowing costs rising and what does it mean for me?
Europe
The Guardian

Teamsters union leaders support Republicans despite members endorsing Democratic candidates

Sean O'Brien, President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters speaks during the Republican National Convention Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. Photograph: Matt Rourke/APView image in fullscreenSean O'Brien, President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters speaks during the Republican National Convention Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. Photograph: Matt Rourke/APUS unionsTeamsters union leaders support Republicans despite members endorsing Democratic candidatesSean O’Brien, president of the 1.3-million strong union, was also the first to speak at the Republican national convention in 2o24 The powerful Teamsters union is backing Republican candidates in the 2026 election cycle even after members have voted to support their Democrat opponents. The 1.3 million-strong union’s president, Sean O’Brien, angered many members and union leaders in 2024 when he became the first union president to speak at the Republican national convention (RNC). The latest moves by the union’s leadership are further stoking tensions within the union. “The Republicans have done nothing but take a gun to our head at every turn. And why we think that we can somehow change their behavior, I don’t understand it. It’s not a logical argument,” said John Palmer, who was elected on O’Brien’s slate in 2021 as an at-large vice-president on the Teamsters executive board, but who broke ranks in criticizing O’Brien’s RNC appearance in 2024. “I live in Texas. I’m a moderate guy, but I know when somebody’s trying to cut my throat.” The national union declined to make an endorsement in the 2024 presidential election for the first time since 1996, claiming a majority of members supported Trump after they supported Biden in 2020, though Teamsters locals and councils representing 1 million members at the union independently endorsed Harris. So far this election cycle, O’Brien has made two personal contributions – both to Republicans. O’Brien donated $1,000 to the Republican US Senate campaign of Scott Brown in New Hampshire on 19 February 2026. Brown appeared on O’Brien’s podcast, Better Bad Ideas, on 25 February. The only Teamsters’ local in New Hampshire, Teamsters Local 633, endorsed Brown’s Democratic rival Chris Pappas for the Senate race in April 2025. Teamsters Local 633 did not respond to multiple requests for comment. O’Brien also made a $1,000 donation in May 2025 to another Republican, Markwayne Mullin, now Trump’s secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. The two have clashed spectacularly in the past. During a US Senate hearing in November 2023, Mullin challenged O’Brien to a fight while reading aloud social media posts made by O’Brien that were critical of Mullin. After Trump’s 2024 election win, Mullin and O’Brien publicly made amends during Lori Chavez Deremer’s confirmation hearings for secretary of labor in February 2025. Teamsters local members and the Teamsters leadership are differing on endorsements in several key races.

Teamsters union leaders support Republicans despite members endorsing Democratic candidates
Europe
BBC Business

'I don't even like them': How much should you give to office gift collections?

Love them, hate them or barely know them, it's a colleague's birthday, wedding or leaving do and there's a collection to mark the occasion. So how much should you give? And if you're the person organising the collection, how do you chase without feeling like a loan shark or exposing unspoken team dynamics? The politics of the office whip-round are so sensitive that everyone the BBC spoke to asked us not to use their real name. For those on a tight budget, the rule is simple: only give to colleagues you've worked with directly. Lucy, a senior therapist in healthcare, says: "If we haven't worked together, my purse is staying shut." There's a blunter unspoken truth beneath the surface. "It also depends on if I like you," she admits. "One colleague's whole demeanor annoyed me, so when she moved roles, I wanted to celebrate with my own drink - not give her money." Former music journalist Layla is similar, only contributing if she "really likes" the person. Yet she often avoids office collections on principle, not personality, disliking how impersonal they can feel. "I'd rather buy my own gift for someone I care about. I hate having to be forced to contribute to a joint collection out of some rubbish sense of obligation," she says. Barker has a decade's worth of experience organising and contributing to various collections at a large multi-national company, where he works in research and production. He says it's normally the same half a dozen people that contribute generously, irrespective of the person or the occasion.

'I don't even like them': How much should you give to office gift collections?
Europe
BBC Business

How Victoria Beckham turned her fashion firm around and made it profitable

For almost two decades, Lady Victoria Beckham has been trying to prove that she is more than simply Posh Spice. Now, her fashion and beauty business has reached a milestone many doubted it would achieve: profitability. Victoria Beckham Holdings announced an operating profit of £7.3m for 2025 on sales up 15% to £129.8m. The company described it as "a significant milestone", adding that growth has continued into this year with another double-digit rise in revenues. It has taken Lady Beckham 18 years to shift her business - where she is creative director - into the black. The former popstar admitted in a Netflix documentary that the company had once been "tens of millions into the red", with "mind-blowing" waste including a flower budget of £70,000 a year. "It's been a hell of a journey. I almost lost everything and that was a dark, dark time," she said. "I used to cry before I went to work every day, because I just felt like a firefighter." David Belhassen, founder of private equity firm Neo Investment Partners, recalled having to deliver some hard truths when he decided in 2017 to get involved with the business. "I said 'we have to change everything, restructure the business and that's going to be painful'." Fashion brands can be notoriously slow to turn a profit. Stacia Bedford, a course leader at the London College of Fashion, said establishing a label can take between three and five years. "Brands that do make money follow the lean startup method and keep their collections minimal. You need a lot of traction to get the attention of an investor." Unlike many new designers, Lady Beckham entered the industry with an international profile and substantial personal resources. She has spoken publicly about asking husband, David Beckham, for financial help as the label struggled.

How Victoria Beckham turned her fashion firm around and made it profitable
Europe
BBC Business

B&Q and Five Guys among firms that paid staff below minimum wage

Image source, Getty ImagesByEmer MoreauBusiness reporterPublished4 hours agoDIY store B&Q and the fast food chain Five Guys are among hundreds of UK businesses named by the government for paying staff below the minimum wage. More than 600 employers were ordered to pay affected workers the outstanding wages, with £4m returned to workers, according to the Department for Business and Trade. B&Q said the underpayments were unintentional and the result of calculations involving geographical allowances, while Five Guys blamed "technical differences in how payroll regulations were applied". The list of 658 businesses includes shops, restaurants, nurseries, social care providers and a handful of NHS trusts. The government did not say over what time period the underpayments spanned. Minimum wage is £12.71 for staff aged 21 and over. For 18 to 20 year olds the rate is £10.85, and for under 18s and apprentices it is £8. B&Q underpaid 4,530 workers a total of more than £456,000, according to the government. B&Q said in response: "The shortfalls in payments were unintentional. They relate to calculations involving geographical allowances which are paid in addition to minimum hourly rates. All affected colleagues were quickly paid in full in July 2025." Five Guys, named in the list as owing over £54,000 to 3,699 staff, said "technical differences in how payroll regulations were applied" led to its underpayments, which were identified in a review by the HMRC, the UK's revenue and tax authority. "We worked closely and transparently with HMRC throughout the process and have made all required payments to affected current and former employees," the company said. St George's, Epsom and St Helier Hospital Group failed to pay over £123,000 to 75 workers, according to the list, which also says St George's University Hospitals in Wandsworth, London, underpaid 55 workers. A spokesman for the two hospital trusts said that "no colleagues were underpaid". "This relates to a technical compliance issue where part of their salary for a non tax-deductable 'salary sacrifice' (for example, towards childcare) was not counted towards the national minimum wage, even though their gross salary was above the national minimum wage," he said.

B&Q and Five Guys among firms that paid staff below minimum wage
North America
CNBC Economy

K, C or E? Why economists can’t agree on the shape of today’s economy

Those aren't initials or Greek life letters. They're some of the terms that economists, corporate leaders and politicians are using as they attempt to define the U.S. current economic moment. Since the recovery from the pandemic, economists have largely viewed the economy as acting in a "K"-shape, displaying an unequal expansion across groups and the arms of the "K" heading in opposite directions. Now there's a debate over whether the K-shaped recovery still exists, or if the economy instead resembles the letter "C" or "E." "This is some of the alphabet soup," said Joel Mokyr, a Nobel Prize-winning economic historian at Northwestern University. The race to label the structure of today's economy involves more than semantics or bragging rights. In recent years, the divergence among low- and high-income consumers, expressed in a K-shaped economy, has been top of mind for politicians, monetary policymakers, and executives of consumer companies. For decades, letter shapes have been used to sum up the economy, especially following major downturns. The list of those used throughout history includes "V-," "L-" and "W-shaped." But it's unusual for this type of description to have staying power among everyday Americans several years after a recession, as it does today, according to Don Rissmiller, chief economist at research firm Baird Strategas. Mounting concerns around wealth inequality may be driving heightened awareness, he said. "During recessions and recoveries, the letters are really popular," Rissmiller said. "To use a letter in the middle of a business cycle, I guess we could say that's a little new." Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made waves earlier this month when he declared that the K-shaped economy was in the rearview mirror. In its place, the former hedge fund manager said a C-shaped economy was forming, meaning the bottom class of consumers were gaining ground. Bessent cited wage gains among lower-earners and larger tax cuts this year, pointing to President Donald Trump's "no tax on tips" and "no tax on overtime" policies as boosting the worst-off. "I got sick of hearing about this K-shaped economy," Bessent, one of Trump's top economic lieutenants, told CNBC this month. "I can say here definitively, the K-shaped economy is over." Bessent isn't the only one giving the "C" letter air time. Hilton Worldwide CEO Christopher Nassetta told analysts late last month that his hotel company is "definitely seeing" a C-shaped economy.

K, C or E? Why economists can’t agree on the shape of today’s economy
Europe
BBC Business

Shein shares slide in long-awaited stock market debut

Shares in fast-fashion giant Shein fell sharply in their highly anticipated stock market debut on Tuesday as the firm listed in Hong Kong after a long quest to go public. It comes after failed attempts to list in the US and UK, as concerns were raised over issues including Shein's labour practices and its environmental impact. Once estimated to be worth nearly $100bn (£74bn), Shein is now valued at around a quarter of that figure, as the firm faces other challenges like heated competition and trade tensions. Shein became hugely popular, especially among younger people, due to its ability to source the very latest fashions at ultra-low prices through a vast network of factories in China. At a ceremony to celebrate the listing, chief financial officer Leigh Gui said the company's model of selling large numbers of small orders with rapid payment options now reaches about 160 markets worldwide. On Monday, Shein priced its shares at HK$48.56 each, raising ‌13.6 billion Hong Kong dollars ($1.7bn; £1.3bn) from the listing. Shein's shares were trading 8.7% lower at 44.4 Hong Kong dollars each on Tuesday morning. The disappointing debut suggests the market is not convinced that Shein's growth can make a "comeback", said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at investment bank Saxo. Shein has more than 273 million active customers who placed a total of more than a billion orders in the year to the end of March 2026, the firm said in a filing ahead of the listing. But Shein now faces higher costs, regulatory scrutiny and more competition, while investors are increasingly drawn towards technology companies, Chanana said. For customers, the slump in Shein's shares is a sign that the firm's cheap prices are "becoming harder to sustain", which may lead to higher prices, she added. The listing marks the largest new share sale in Hong Kong so far this year, which is being seen as a test of investor appetite for the fast fashion industry.

Shein shares slide in long-awaited stock market debut
Europe
BBC Business

UK long-term borrowing costs highest since 1998 ahead of October Budget

Image source, Getty ImagesByFaisal Islam, Economics editor and Emer Moreau, Business reporterPublished1 September 2026Updated 2 hours agoLong-term government borrowing costs have risen to a 28-year high, putting further pressure on Prime Minister Andy Burnham ahead of his first Budget next month. The yield on a 30-year gilt — a loan to the British government — rose to 5.89% on Tuesday, the highest since 1998. Borrowing costs in the US, Japan and Europe have hit similar highs in recent days, reflecting investors' concerns about inflation, state borrowing levels and spending levels by large tech companies on AI. Burnham told the House of Commons his government's "bedrock", as it seeks to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, would be "fiscal responsibility". All of those factors will make the Budget process trickier for Burnham, who on Tuesday addressed MPs for the first time as prime minister, and his Chancellor, John Healey. Burnham told the House of Commons the economy and the cost of living were "the biggest issues facing the country". Higher borrowing costs will reduce the amount of headroom the government has against its self-imposed fiscal rules, limiting the amount Healey can spend on consumer-friendly measures to ease the cost of living. Despite the squeezed public finances, Burnham said he would bring about "more substantial change" to ease living costs. "His diagnosis is completely wrong," she told the House of Commons. "His theory of growth is completely wrong. He thinks that if Government spends more money, we will all get richer. The chancellor has previously said he will stick to a set of fiscal rules imposed by his predecessor, Rachel Reeves, that restrict borrowing. These rules are designed to help markets have clarity about the path of borrowing. The more that is forecast to be spent on interest payments, the more likely that there will be a squeeze on spending or some form of tax rise to meet these rules. On top of that, higher government rates can feed through to higher business and household borrowing costs, and so weigh on the economy.

UK long-term borrowing costs highest since 1998 ahead of October Budget
North America
CNBC Finance

Goodyear burning rubber and cash as turnaround plan continues

DETROIT — Goodyear Tire & Rubber CEO Mark Stewart sits in the vehicle bay of a tire shop where the company is launching a new retail experience for customers. There's a freshly painted black facade on the revamped Detroit store, with the words "Motor City" added in white flanking Goodyear's winged foot logo. It's dressed up for a private event tied to a nearby annual car festival called the Woodward Dream Cruise. But despite the stylish touches, it's still a tire shop. The smell of rubber and oil remains in the air, and the sound of workers changing tires combines with music from a DJ inside the shop's waiting room. The scene symbolizes Stewart's ongoing "Goodyear Forward" turnaround plan. He's trying to make tires — a historically dirty business — more attractive to investors and friendlier for consumers. "We have made so much progress, and when you think about it from the standpoint of the Goodyear Forward program, it was really to get our feet back on the ground towards being the iconic company that we always were," Stewart, wearing an unbuttoned navy blue Goodyear technician shirt, told CNBC during an interview at the shop. But while Goodyear is well known for burning rubber, it's also burning cash as it restructures, tries to refinance, and pays down years of debt. The company's capital expenditures were roughly $2 billion combined in 2024 and 2025, with expectations of $725 million this year. Its debt remained above $7 billion at the end of the second quarter. Goodyear's net loss was $453 million through the first half of the year, while its operating income was $131 million, or a 1.6% margin. Under the turnaround plan, Stewart wanted Goodyear to reach a 10% operating margin by the end of last year. Instead, that came in at 8.5% in the fourth quarter, and it's still an outstanding goal for the company to hit that mark. "We're working on getting to that double-digit margin, and we're working on meaningfully generating cash flow," Stewart said. "It's been a long time since Goodyear's done that. That we absolutely must do." The automotive veteran was named CEO of Goodyear after leaving Chrysler parent Stellantis in January 2024. Since then, shares of the company have fallen more than 50% despite Goodyear achieving many of the milestones he's set out to accomplish with the plan. Stewart doesn't make excuses for missing the targets, even though Goodyear's business, like many, has been impacted by tariffs, inflated raw material costs, and the expansion of cheaper Chinese products.

Goodyear burning rubber and cash as turnaround plan continues