Business

The Range, the value retail chain, has struck a deal to buy the Wilko brand from its collapsed rival’s administrators. Sky News has learnt that The Range, founded and owned by Chris Dawson, has agreed to pay in the region of £5m for the Wilko name. The deal is expected to be announced later on

The head of BP has suddenly resigned following allegations over “personal relationships with colleagues”. Bernard Looney’s departure as chief executive of the British energy giant comes less than four years after he was appointed to the role. The 53-year-old, who was paid more than £10m in wages, bonuses and other benefits last year, is said

A deal has been struck for the owners of Poundland to take over the leases of 71 Wilko stores. The Pepco Group will rebrand the branches under the Poundland name. It is unclear if Wilko staff at the outlets will be kept on or rehired, but administrators PwC said it was hoped the deal would

A boost in household spending power has been revealed as basic wage growth in July outstripped the rate of inflation for the first time in more than 18 months, according to official figures. The latest employment data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that wages, excluding the effects of bonuses, were up 7.8%

A further 9,100 Wilko employees will be made redundant by early October, administrators have said. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) failed to reach a deal to save any significant part of the retailer after it went into administration. “It is anticipated that all stores will be closed by early October, resulting in the redundancies of a further 9,100

Parents of babies and toddlers say mounting costs and cuts to local services are preventing them from giving their children the best start in life, a survey has revealed. Children’s charity UNICEF UK has warned that expensive childcare, fewer support services and the cost of housing are contributing to parents worrying about their children’s development.

A British-based sleep technology business is being put up for sale by its London-listed owner in a deal that could fetch tens of millions of pounds. Sky News has learnt that Cambridge Sleep Sciences (CSS), which develops and licenses sound technology to help users get better sleep, is to gauge interest from prospective buyers. City

Insolvency firms face being formally regulated for the first time under reforms to be announced next week that will nevertheless fall short of a pledge to establish a new watchdog. Sky News has learnt that the Insolvency Service, which is part of the Department for Business and Trade, will unveil plans that will mean firms

The owner of Cafe Rouge is in talks to buy Chiquito’s and Frankie and Benny’s, two of Britain’s best-known restaurant chains. Sky News has learnt that The Big Table, which is backed by the private equity firm Epiris, is negotiating the acquisition of the two brands from The Restaurant Group (TRG), the London-listed owner of

The supermarket chain Wm Morrison is in talks about a £2bn deal to offload one of Britain’s biggest petrol forecourts empires. Sky News has learnt that the grocer has opened discussions with Motor Fuel Group (MFG) about a deal, with an agreement possible during the autumn. Both Morrisons and MFG are controlled by the private equity

The CBI, once Britain’s most influential business organisation, is facing an urgent cash crunch as it races to cut costs and seal a potential tie-up with a fellow lobbying group. Sky News has learnt that the CBI could be within weeks of running out of cash, spurring it to hold detailed talks about a tie-up

The CBI, the embattled employers’ lobbying group, is in talks with Make UK, the manufacturers’ body, about areas of potential collaboration in what some observers believe may be the prelude to a full-blown merger. Sky News has learnt that two of Britain’s most influential business organisations have been holding preliminary talks about forging a closer

About 80% of mortgage holders and renters are now worried about rising housing costs, according to a poll. Which? said the figure was the highest in the 10-year history of its monthly Consumer Insight Tracker. It comes as rents continue to rise and mortgage payments remain high after the Bank of England hiked interest rates

The competition watchdog is to launch a review into the UK’s £2bn veterinary industry following concerns that pet owners are not getting value for money. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it would examine if the takeover of smaller practices by big chains had reduced choice and made the sector more expensive for consumers.

The governor of the Bank of England has told MPs that interest rates may not rise much further amid expectations that inflation is set to fall “markedly” by the end of the year. Andrew Bailey said rates were “much nearer now to the top of the cycle” following a 14th consecutive hike – to 5.25%

The price of petrol in the UK could soon rise further after the cost of oil jumped to its highest level this year. Brent crude climbed to more than $91 (£72) a barrel on Tuesday afternoon, a price not seen in the market since November 2022. It later fell back slightly by the evening to

Another 1,332 redundancies at collapsed retailer Wilko have been confirmed despite a deal to snap up more than 50 branches, the GMB union has said. It comes after administrators PwC offloaded 51 of the chain’s 400 stores to budget retailer B&M. The job cuts are in addition to the loss of 269 roles at the

The Bank of England “regrettably” made mistakes that have fuelled inflation in the UK, its former chief economist has told Sky News. Andy Haldane said the Bank had printed money through its programme of quantitative easing “longer than it needed to” as it tried to help the economy recover from COVID – and also suggested

It’s been a crazy few years for the cost of many services and essentials, with fuel prices among the bills enduring something of a roller-coaster ride. Pump prices during the COVID pandemic sank as low as £1.07 a litre for petrol and £1.11 for diesel as demand fell off a cliff due to lockdowns. As

The boss of Universal Music Group and the fashion designer Anya Hindmarch are among a coterie of British business leaders being lined up to join a revamped government Board of Trade. Sky News has learnt that Ms Hindmarch, the UMG chairman and chief executive Sir Lucian Grainge and Tim Bevan, the co-founder of film producer