Business

McDonald’s has been forced to pull milkshakes and bottled drinks from its menu due to supply chain issues, it said in a statement on Monday night. The fast food chain, which operates some 1,300 restaurants across the UK, has become the latest victim of supply chain disruptions that are currently roiling England, Scotland, and Wales.

The government has given UK firms an extra year to comply with post-Brexit product safety marking rules after pressure from business groups. Companies had faced a 1 January 2022 deadline to switch from Europe’s CE mark to the new UK conformity assessed (UKCA) standard for most products but this will be pushed back to 2023.

Shares in supermarket giant Sainsbury’s surged on Monday morning following reports that US private equity firm Apollo was considering a bid of more than £7bn for the chain. The supermarket’s stock jumped more than 10% in early trading as the market digested the news, first reported in The Sunday Times. Private equity firms are currently

An online marketplace which counts one of Britain’s most prominent retail executives among its backers is to join rush of technology companies listing on the London Stock Exchange. Sky News has learnt that Fruugo, which was founded in 2006, is preparing to launch an initial public offering (IPO) as soon as this autumn. Bankers from

The $40bn takeover of UK chip designer Arm Holdings by US tech giant Nvidia faces an in-depth probe after regulators found the deal could weaken rivals and stifle innovation. Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it could ultimately mean more expensive or lower quality products in cutting edge technologies. These include fields such as

During the last 17 months we have become almost inured to the terrifying increases in government borrowing incurred in grappling with the pandemic. The government borrowed £303bn during the 2020-21 financial year, a peacetime record, equivalent to 14.5% of UK GDP. Yet something interesting has been happening during the current financial year. Please use Chrome

Shares in Marks & Spencer have surged after it bumped up its profit outlook following “encouraging” sales – but admitted stores are still struggling to recover after lockdowns. The retailer pointed to clothing and home sales – increasingly made online – bouncing back to just below pre-pandemic levels as well as a big boost to

Retail suffered a washout last month as the end of the Euro 2020 tournament combined with wet weather were blamed for a sharp fall in sales. Experts also pointed to the likely impact of rising COVID-19 case numbers prompting people to self-isolate as well as the global chip shortages holding back computer and phone supply.

Elon Musk has claimed Tesla will likely launch a humanoid robot prototype as early as next year, designed to do “boring, repetitious and dangerous” work. The billionaire said the “Tesla Bot,” which stands around 5ft 8in tall and weighs 125lbs, would be able to handle a range of jobs – from attaching bolts to cars

A £7bn bid for the supermarket chain Morrisons by US private equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice has been backed by the supermarket’s board, edging the company towards a takeover of the Bradford-based grocer. The offer by CD&R tops a rival bid by a private equity-backed consortium of £6.7bn, and is the latest development in

A leading cleaning products maker has warned of a profits slump as it counts the cost of higher raw material costs and HGV driver shortages. UK-based McBride, which makes own-label goods from detergents to dishwasher tablets on behalf of retailers, said it was starting to see “distribution challenges” – particularly in the UK and Germany.

The UK government has ordered regulators to investigate the acquisition of British defence firm Ultra Electronics by a US private equity firm on the grounds of national security. Ultra, which sells radars and other hi-tech electrical systems to the British military among others, is being bought by rival Cobham, which was acquired last year by

The July inflation measure normally used to set the following year’s rail fare increases has been recorded at 3.8% – the highest for ten years. Figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation slipped back compared to June’s 3.9%. But it was the highest reading

Nando’s has been forced to temporarily close around 50 restaurants after suffering chicken shortages due to supply chain disruptions across England, Wales, and Scotland. The peri-peri chicken maker, which operates some 400 sites around the country, also said it would lend some of its staff to its suppliers to help “get things moving” again after its business

The number of job vacancies has topped 1 million for the first time ever as the economy recovers from the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. Figures published by the ONS also showed the number of employees on payrolls rose by 182,000 last month – though was still 201,000 below pre-crisis levels. Meanwhile

Britain’s biggest private sector retirement scheme has won a tussle over the value of its remaining stake in Hermes, the prominent City asset manager. Sky News has learnt that Federated Hermes, the Pittsburgh-based group which bought 60% of Hermes in 2018, has agreed to pay the BT Pensions Scheme about £115m for a further 29.5%

Ticket re-sale sites such as viagogo and Stubhub should face a tough new licensing regime which could see companies that break the rules shut down, the UK competition watchdog has said. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it had taken strong action in recent years to protect customers but there was a limit to

The way “green” electricity tariffs are sold to millions of households is to be reviewed by the government amid concerns that their environmental benefits could be overstated. Energy companies are able to market deals in this way even if some of the energy they supply comes from fossil fuels – because they offset this by

Asda and National Express are among a number of firms set to offer rewards to young people getting a COVID jab. Free Now taxis, lastminute.com and Better leisure centres will also offer incentives for those booking in for a vaccine. Uber, Bolt and Deliveroo have already said they will offer discounted rides and meals for

India is set to spend 100trn rupees (£972bn) on a national infrastructure plan to boost economic growth and help the country meet its climate goals. Speaking as part of Independence Day celebrations in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the programme will “create job opportunities for hundreds of thousands of young people”. “It will help