Justin Emerson

Raspberry Pi and the price of memory

Rising chip costs test the resilience of an unlikely hardware success.

January 13, 2026 at 03:46 pm IST

A calm Christmas for Britain's biggest grocer

Christmas is supposed to be the proving ground for retailers. For Tesco, it instead underlined the limits of success in a slowing grocery market. The supermarket's latest trading update shows a business still growing, but only narrowly ahead of inflation and with little margin for error as competition tightens and food prices fall.

January 08, 2026 at 02:13 pm IST

Silver plunges after its historic surge

The silver market fell sharply on Monday, initially due to a tightening of trading conditions on the futures markets. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) once again increased margin requirements on futures contracts, for the second time in two weeks, forcing the most exposed traders to cut their positions.

December 29, 2025 at 08:47 pm IST

IPF: A modest premium, a longer view

International Personal Finance (IPF), a once-fashionable champion of Britain's consumer-credit boom, is to disappear into private hands. The company has agreed to a £543m ($733m) all-cash takeover by an entity associated with BasePoint Capital, ending months of intermittent courtship and capping a turbulent decade for one of the UK's best-known sub-prime lenders.

December 29, 2025 at 07:38 pm IST

Curry's back in profit mode

Currys' interim results show a retailer in better shape than a year ago, but far from one enjoying an easy recovery. Profits have returned, cash flow has improved and the balance sheet looks more secure. Yet the gains are uneven, heavily reliant on the Nordics, and achieved in a trading environment that remains fragile - especially in the UK.

December 18, 2025 at 03:06 pm IST

UK unemployment rises to 5.1%

Britain's labour market is starting to creak. Unemployment rose to 5.1% in the three months to October, its highest level in over two years, signalling that the post-pandemic jobs boom is well and truly over. The modest rise, confirmed by the Office for National Statistics, matches expectations but underscores a broader shift: hiring has slowed, and employers are growing more cautious.

December 16, 2025 at 03:10 pm IST

The UK economy slips backward

The UK economy contracted again in October, just as policymakers weigh the timing and scale of interest rate cuts. Gross domestic product fell by 0.1% month on month, matching the decline recorded in September and defying expectations for a modest rebound, according to figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

December 12, 2025 at 02:46 pm IST

Grizzly Research targets Ceres Power

Grizzly Research just announced that it is short on Ceres Power. It has published a new report questioning the commercial outlook of the UK solid oxide fuel-cell developer whose shares have surged in recent months. The short-selling firm argues that Ceres has built its reputation on high-profile announcements and ambitious forecasts that have rarely been matched by real-world results.

December 11, 2025 at 02:48 pm IST

BAT faces slow growth as U.S. vape battle intensifies

British American Tobacco (BAT) is promising progress, but its latest trading update shows a company caught between accelerating demand for nicotine alternatives and growing pressure on the fiercely contested U.S. vape market. Despite steady gains in 2025 and a renewed £1.3 billion share buy-back for next year, BAT now expects its 2026 results to hit only the bottom of its mid-term targets: a warning sign that competition and illicit products continue to undermine one of its most important growth engines.

December 09, 2025 at 03:45 pm IST

Salesforce reassures the market

Harassed by activists and pressed by shareholders to justify a frenzy of expensive acquisitions, Salesforce is under scrutiny at every earnings release.

December 05, 2025 at 08:38 pm IST

Thames Water's murky turnaround

Thames Water has unveiled half-year results that tell a story of progress shadowed by peril. Britain's biggest water utility is investing at a pace not seen in a century and claims to be stabilising its creaking network. Yet its finances remain so fragile that the company continues to teeter between rescue and special administration.

December 03, 2025 at 03:15 pm IST

Bank of England: Capital idea or pothole policy?

Britain's banks get a lighter load, but will they speed up the economy or veer off course?

December 02, 2025 at 03:19 pm IST

Pets at Home: retail reset

Pets at Home's latest interim results paint a picture of a company caught between a flourishing veterinary arm and a faltering retail operation.

November 26, 2025 at 03:01 pm IST

EasyJet : Steady as she flies

easyJet has reported another year of steady, unspectacular progress: an outcome that may reassure investors in a sector still wrestling with inflation, geopolitics and lingering operational headaches.

November 25, 2025 at 03:19 pm IST

JD Sports runs to stand still

JD Sports, the trainer titan that once seemed able to outrun any market wobble, is now showing signs of strain. Its latest update paints a picture of a company still performing respectably, but doing so against an economic headwind that is becoming harder to ignore.?

November 20, 2025 at 03:10 pm IST

Britain's Fiscal Two-Step

Markets wobble as Rachel Reeves retreats from an income-tax rise-then steady when the reason emerges.

November 14, 2025 at 02:52 pm IST

BAE Systems' Confident March

A booming order book and resilient demand keep BAE Systems on a steady wartime footing.

November 12, 2025 at 02:23 pm IST

Ralph Lauren back in favor

The ready-to-wear brand continues to enjoy a stellar stock market run and is expected to publish its third-quarter results shortly.

November 11, 2025 at 02:44 pm IST

ITV and Sky: A merger to build Britain's next streaming powerhouse

In an era when television is being redefined by streaming platforms and shrinking ad budgets, Britain's oldest broadcaster may be preparing for its biggest shake-up in decades. ITV confirmed on Friday that it is in preliminary talks with Sky, the Comcast-owned pay-TV operator, over a possible £1.6 billion sale of its Media and Entertainment division: a deal that could reshape the UK's broadcasting landscape.

November 07, 2025 at 03:27 pm IST

ABF faces profit squeeze

Cost pressures, sugar woes and mixed global performance drag down earnings at Associated British Foods. Management discussed the possibility of a break-up between Primark and the Food division.

November 04, 2025 at 03:05 pm IST

Shell's $5.4 billion quarter

Shell has once again demonstrated that fossil fuels remain the backbone of global energy profits.

October 30, 2025 at 03:32 pm IST