Image source: Getty Images Arbuthnot Banking Group (LSE:ARBB) has quietly become one of the most interesting banking stocks in the UK market. Despite short-term challenges from falling interest rates, the stock has pushed up in recent months on the back of operational resilience, underpinned by growth in customer deposits, specialist lending, and funds under management. Earnings dip, but don’t worry Profit before tax halved to £10.9m for the first half of 2025 — down from £20.8m last year — with earnings per share dropping to 42.5p from 94.6p. However, these weaker earnings were widely expected following a series of UK…
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Image source: Getty Images Rolls-Royce (LSE: RR) shares have been the talk of the town — or at least the City — for quite some time now. And it’s easy to see why, with the FTSE 100 engine maker serving up a mind-blowing 1,250% return in just three years. Recently, the stock hit 1,100p for the first time. But is anyone really surprised at this point? Probably not. Ambitious talk CEO Tufan Erginbilgic set tongues wagging earlier this week by saying that Rolls-Royce has the potential to become the London Stock Exchange‘s largest company. Speaking to the BBC, he said…
Australia’s Tasman Environmental Markets (TEM) has announced that its improved cookstove project in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has become the world’s first to issue Verified Carbon Units (VCUs) under Verra’s VM0050 methodology.VM0050, introduced in October 2024, sets a new benchmark for energy efficiency and fuel-switch projects involving cookstoves.Its alignment with the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market’s (ICVCM) Core Carbon Principles signals robust environmental and social standards.The milestone issuance follows a successful third-party audit by SustainCERT and is seen as a breakthrough for scalable, community-based climate solutions.Relevant: ICVCM Gives Green Light For Three Stricter Cookstove Methodologies“We’re proud to lead…
Image source: Getty Images Since 2019-20, the average Stocks and Shares ISA has generated an annual return of 6.19%. That’s according to Moneyfacts.co.uk. Investing £100 a month at that rate over five years would result in an investment worth £7,117. That might not sound like much, but things look very different from a long-term perspective. Long-term investing Over the last five years, keeping money in cash has generated a return of around 2% a year. That’s enough to turn £100 a month in savings into £6,412. That’s not a huge amount less than the average Stocks and Shares ISA. And…
Image source: Rolls-Royce plc On Wednesday (13 August), the Rolls-Royce (LSE:RR.) share price fell 1.8% despite Tufan Erginbilgiç, the aerospace and defence group’s chief executive, telling the BBC that artificial intelligence (AI) powered by small modular reactors (SMRs) could make it the UK’s most valuable listed company. But SMRs – factory-built nuclear power stations – are still being developed. Therefore, Erginbilgiç’s looking many years ahead. That’s probably why investors didn’t seem that excited. However, based on current (15 August) valuations, for Rolls-Royce to become the FTSE’s biggest company today, its market-cap would need to be 93% higher. Is this possible?…
The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage fell this week to its lowest level in nearly 10 months, giving prospective homebuyers a sorely needed boost in purchasing power that could help inject life into a stagnant housing market.The long-term rate fell from 6.63% last week to 6.58%, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation mortgage buyer, or Freddie Mac, said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.49%.Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also fell. The average rate dropped from 5.75% to 5.71%. A year ago, it was 5.66%, Freddie said.Elevated mortgage rates…
Have you ever bought something marked with a carbon label? The chances are slim, given that very few food or drink brands disclose them. Quorn, which produces alternatives to meat, and dairy-free brand Oatly, are two exceptions. This isn’t how it was supposed to be. Around 17 years ago, Tesco promised to put a carbon footprint on all its products. Walkers crisps also bought into the concept, as did Boots, the high street chemist. I recall reporting on the news for The Grocer and there was undoubtedly a buzz around these labels – an acceptance at least that our food consumption patterns matter when…
On August 4, 2025, the Bombay High Court provided relief to a wife who was accused of potential tax evasion by the income tax department after her husband made her a joint owner of a Rs 6.75-crore property in Mumbai. He added her as a joint holder for convenience, but he was the one who paid the entire Rs 6.75 crore using his own funds from HDFC Bank. The husband’s bank statements and the property documents confirmed that he was the actual buyer, so the wife contended that the tax evasion notice should not be directed at her. However, the…
Image source: Getty Images The conversation in global markets often circles back to US tech. The Magnificent Seven still dominate headlines and investor portfolios, with names like Apple, Microsoft and Nvidia setting the pace. But while American stocks grab the limelight, a few homegrown FTSE shares are quietly proving that British technology companies can hold their own. Two that stand out to me are Sage Group (LSE: SGE) and Computacenter (LSE: CCC). They might lack the trillion-dollar valuations of their Silicon Valley counterparts, but both have carved out profitable niches and continue to deliver for shareholders. Sage Group: Britain’s software…
A recent Washington Post opinion piece resurrected the tired myth that the vast majority of car crashes are caused by human error rather than systemic failures, and pushed a dangerously unsubstantiated narrative that a lack of good driver’s education is the primary driving force behind our national traffic violence epidemic.In the article, 25-year veteran auto journalist Josh Max urged America to “address the main cause” of the 845,000 people who have been killed on U.S. roads since he started writing about cars, arguing that “better driver training … can fix bad driving” and help stem the tide of traffic violence.Max…