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Healey unveils £100 for energy bills and bank tax in first Budget

Image source, Press AssociationByBrian WheelerPolitical reporterPublished28 October 2026Millions of households will get £100 to help with soaring energy bills to be paid for by a tax on bank profits, John Healey has announced in his first Budget. The chancellor said he wanted to give hard-pressed families "breathing space now" and "hope for the future" as the UK economy is battered by "global economic storms". He also unveiled tax breaks to boost high street businesses - but confirmed that many big decisions, including on defence spending and welfare, will not be made until next year. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Healey's plans were "not bold enough" and the government was "overspent, overborrowed, overtaxed and drowning in an out-of-control welfare system". In an hour-long speech to a packed House of Commons, with Prime Minister Andy Burnham and other frontbench colleagues cheering him on, the chancellor unveiled a string of measures aimed at cutting the cost of living. Gas standing charges in England, Scotland and Wales, to be scrapped during 2027 "or as soon as possible after". These fixed daily fees will be shifted onto the price of each unit of energy, meaning heavy gas users will face higher bills Increasing minimum wage rates by 3.9% in April, although there will be no progress on narrowing the gap between rates for older and younger workers Healey increased the tax on the profits of big banks from 3% to 6%, which will last from January next year to April 2028, and increased taxes on high-stakes gambling machines. As part of a package to help business, Healey increased the point at which High Street shops in England start paying business rates from £12,000 to £18,000, with vape shops and adult gaming centres excluded from the relief. But he had little scope for big giveaways as the public finances remain stretched, with the UK set to spend £14bn more on debt interest payments this year. Income tax thresholds will remain frozen and the tax on income from savings and property rental will rise to 24% for basic rate taxpayers from April 2027, after it had been scheduled to go up to 22%. But a cut to the cash ISA allowance from £20,000 a year to £12,000, announced last year by Healey's predecessor Rachel Reeves, will be axed.

Healey unveils £100 for energy bills and bank tax in first Budget
Europe
BBC Business

Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs

A luxury cruise ship on a years-long voyage around the world said it suspended operations due to extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia. The US-based operator of Villa Vie Odyssey said it was working with passengers on disembarkation plans and "temporary living arrangements". It is unclear how many were on board but the nearly 200m (656ft) vessel can carry up to 650 passengers. It departed Belfast in October 2024 for a "continuous voyage around the world". Global fuel prices have soared since the Iran war started earlier this year. The ship's operator said the monthly fuel cost per cabin in parts of Asia has risen to as much as $8,000 (£6,000) from $1,800. The company said it had taken "significant steps to reduce fuel consumption, including slowing the itinerary and spending more time in port". But those measures turned out to be insufficient to "offset the extraordinary increase in fuel costs". "Passing the full increase on to residents is not a realistic solution," it said. The company would spend the next 60 days on "restructuring and recapitalisation", though "no outcome is assured", it said. The Villa Vie Odyssey's voyage was expected to span 3.5 years and cover nearly 150 countries, according to its website. Its departure had faced delays as the ship underwent repairs, leaving passengers stranded in Belfast for months and costing the company millions of pounds. The ship was more than 750 days into its circumnavigation before announcing its suspension of its journey on Tuesday - which means its passengers would now be stranded in Cambodia. There were around 200 passengers on board when they were ordered to disembark in Cambodia, Bloomberg reported, citing the cruise operator's founder. The Villa Vie Odyssey is equipped with several bars and restaurants, a pool deck and a pickleball court, according to its website.

Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Explainer: Gone in 20 minutes, how the biggest heist in crypto history unfolded

Binance co-chief executive Richard Teng said losses would be covered by its US$1 billion secure asset fund and company resources. SINGAPORE – Hackers stole US$6.3 billion (S$8 billion) from Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, in a record digital asset theft. About US$6.3 billion of cryptocurrencies were drained from wallets that Binance uses to process transactions, according to the exchange and expert analysis of blockchain records. Binance said in a statement on X that it initially thought the attack involved a compromised laptop. “However, our subsequent investigation has uncovered additional points of breach,” it added, without elaborating. The exchange operates a secure asset fund for users, a US$1 billion bitcoin reserve designed to protect customers in the event of a security breach, according to its website. Co-chief executive Richard Teng said losses would be covered by the fund and company resources. According to US blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs, the attackers compromised Binance’s “signing infrastructure”, which authorises transactions, allowing them to issue instructions that emptied the affected wallets. The bulk of the heist unfolded in about 20 minutes, blockchain records show, beginning shortly after 2000 GMT on Oct 29 (4am SGT, Oct 30). Once the funds were moved, the attackers raced to shift them beyond the reach of Binance counterparties and stablecoin issuers, which have frozen roughly half of the stolen assets. An unusual feature of some cryptocurrencies, including major stablecoins such as Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC, is that their issuers can freeze them remotely. “In layman’s terms, the attacker may not have stolen the vault key, they may have hijacked the system that tells the vault to release money,” said Joshua Chu, a Hong Kong lawyer who works on crypto cases.

Explainer: Gone in 20 minutes, how the biggest heist in crypto history unfolded
North America
CNBC Finance

Restaurant earnings will test whether owning more brands pays off

Restaurant stocks have split sharply this year. And it could be tied to how many brands they own. Shares of Brinker International, Darden Restaurants and Restaurant Brands International are up roughly 32%, 18% and 12%, respectively, year to date. Those companies all own more than one restaurant chain, with brands collectively ranging from Chili's to Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Burger King and Tim Hortons. Meanwhile, stocks like McDonald's, Chipotle, Cava, Wendy's, Shake Shack and Domino's have all dropped this year, with several down double-digit percentages. Those companies all have one core chain to their names. Those share moves underscore what some analysts see as the benefits of a diversified restaurant business, especially at a time when any misstep can make cash-strapped consumers go elsewhere when they dine out. Investors will get another look at how operating multiple chains — or not — is affecting performance when major restaurant companies report quarterly results starting next week. One company that could be watching is Inspire Brands, the owner of chains like Dunkin', Buffalo Wild Wings and Jimmy John's, which is moving toward going public. A business built around one main restaurant concept depends more heavily on that brand holding consumers' attention, whereas a company with a portfolio has other potential sources of sales if one brand loses momentum. That cushion can be critical, but only if another chain is strong enough to pick up the slack, according to some Wall Street analysts. "Darden is probably the best case of the scale and size and diversity of business," said Nick Setyan, a restaurant analyst at Mizuho Securities. "If one business isn't doing well, the other ones are." Setyan said that dynamic has played out between Darden's key brands — Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse — over recent quarters. LongHorn's growth has outpaced Olive Garden's for months, and in the latest reported quarter, LongHorn's comparable sales rose 6.2% compared with Olive Garden's 1.1%. KeyBanc Capital Markets also cited the range of Darden's portfolio as a positive in an October research note, saying it gives the company "exposure to a broad range of consumers." The company's fine dining and casual offerings can be beneficial in a K-shaped economy where consumer spending can vary by income. The firm has a buy-equivalent rating on Darden and a $237 price target, compared with a price of around $215 as of Thursday. Restaurant Brands International, similarly, offers exposure to different categories and markets through Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes. But its portfolio does not fully insulate the company from a weak brand.

Restaurant earnings will test whether owning more brands pays off
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Binance in talks for Malaysia licence after five-year absence

Regulatory approval would provide Binance a route to formally re-enter a market where it has faced restrictions for more than five years. Binance said it is in discussions with Malaysian regulators for a licensed business in the country, as the cryptocurrency exchange seeks a route back into a market where the authorities have blocked its website and applications. “We have been jointly engaging the Securities Commission Malaysia and Bank Negara Malaysia over the last ten months, on a licenced pathway to offering our products and services into Malaysia,” a Binance spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg on Oct 31. The world’s largest crypto exchange is in talks on the “viability and structure of licenced business model in Malaysia,” the spokesperson added, declining to give further details on the type of license it was seeking. Regulatory approval would provide Binance a route to formally re-enter a market where it has faced restrictions for more than five years. The Securities Commission ordered Binance in July 2021 to cease operating in Malaysia after the regulator found it was then illegally running a digital asset exchange. The orders included stopping all media and marketing activities, and restricting Malaysian investors from accessing Binance’s Telegram group. While the Securities Commission had removed Binance from its Investor Alert List in 2024, it added the exchange back to the list earlierin October without providing a reason. Binance this week suffered a security breach involving as much as US$6.3 billion (S$8 billion), the largest known crypto hack. It suspended withdrawals and pledged to cover all losses. While the full details of the Binance breach have yet to emerge, the incident comes amid growing concern about the risks posed by hackers in the age of artificial intelligence. Malaysian lawmaker Lim Guan Eng wrote to the Securities Commission in September, asking the regulator to probe if Binance’s peer-to-peer platform was facilitating ringgit transactions through advertisements listed under another currency denomination. His office distributed the letter on Oct 31 “in light of the recent Binance security incident”.

Binance in talks for Malaysia licence after five-year absence
North America
Yahoo Finance

S&P 500, Dow Drop As Elevated Oil Prices Stoke Inflation Fears Ahead Of Fed Meeting Next Week — AAPL, AXP, CART, UBER In Focus

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones index ended lower on Friday as oil prices spiked amid resurfacing geopolitical concerns, which in turn raised inflation and rate hike worries ahead of the Federal Reserve’s October rate-setting meeting due next week. The S&P 500 ended Friday 0.5% lower, the Nasdaq 100 was flat, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.2%. The Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, eased 0.3%. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for SPY, DIA and QQQ was ‘bearish’ with ‘high’ message volumes. A number of tech equities retreated as market participants weighed how surging corporate debt and elevated interest rates might impact AI-focused companies, particularly following Meta’s expanded capital expenditure forecast. Nevertheless, strong performances from SpaceX and Microsoft (MSFT) provided crucial support to the broader technology sector. PhillipCapital completely reversed its bearish position, upgrading SpaceX shares from ‘sell’ to ‘buy,’ lauding the company’s advancements in AI or superintelligence. “For the last two weeks, investors have been sprinting from tech stocks and data center beneficiary stocks to safe stuff, and eventually, you run out of people willing to do that sprint, and that’s what today looks like and feels like,” Jed Ellerbroek, portfolio manager at Argent Capital Management, told CNBC. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate futures surged 3.8% to close at $103.27 per barrel. Similarly, Brent crude gained 3.1% to finish at $116.72 a barrel, marking its highest settlement since April amid reports the U.S. and Israel could be preparing fresh strikes against Iran. The United States Oil Fund (USO) ended its second week higher. That spooked investors ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting due later next week. Market participants are currently betting on a 91% probability of the Fed leaving rates unchanged next week. Instacart (CART) is actively exploring a potential sale, engaging financial advisers and holding preliminary discussions with prospective buyers, including rivals DoorDash (DASH) and Uber (UBER). Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit Friday against ChatGPT maker OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, alleging the organization engaged in deceptive trade practices, exposing consumers, including children. Apple Inc. hit record highs on Friday after the firm quickly sold out of its limited in-store inventory for the new iPhone Duo. Shares of Bloom Energy (BE) extended their post-earnings selloff in morning trade on Friday, but Morgan Stanley remained bullish on the fuel-cell maker’s growth prospects, citing growing confidence in its ability to ramp up production and convert customer demand into sales.

S&P 500, Dow Drop As Elevated Oil Prices Stoke Inflation Fears Ahead Of Fed Meeting Next Week — AAPL, AXP, CART, UBER In Focus
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

As Iran war drags on, airlines pull back on fuel hedges and warn on rising fares

AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes says the Malaysian budget carrier was mostly done with hedging and was budgeting for 12 months of high oil prices. LONDON/HONG KONG – With jet fuel prices at roughly double their levels before the Iran war, airlines are growing increasingly reluctant to lock in future fuel costs through new hedges, warning instead of steep fare increases to offset higher fuel bills. Hedging allows airlines to lock in future fuel prices, helping shield them from increases and providing greater certainty over costs. But some programmes require premiums, collateral or other costs, while airlines that hedge at current elevated prices risk being locked into expensive fuel if geopolitical tensions ease and prices retreat. As the conflict in the Middle East enters its ninth month, the strategy shift means fliers globally will likely pay far higher air fares as carriers lose their hedging protection, testing consumer willingness to shell out more for travel. “Most hedging is finishing,” AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes told Reuters on Oct 9, adding that the Malaysian airline was budgeting for 12 months of high oil prices and had “given up trying to predict” how geopolitical tensions would evolve. “So everyone’s going to be exposed. There’s only one way or two ways of dealing with that: cut costs or raise fares.” Finland’s Finnair, which said earlier in October that high fuel costs had fed through to ticket prices, has stopped adding new hedges as fuel costs surged in 2026. It has an average hedging ratio of 34% for 2027. “With such high prices, how do you then lock in low prices again?“ finance chief Pia Aaltonen-Forsell said on Oct 27. “If we add right now, it’s more expensive.” Jet fuel accounts for between 30% and 40% of airlines’ costs, with European and Asian carriers historically hedging more of their fuel needs than US rivals, which largely abandoned the practice after costly bets on oil prices backfired. “You have stability of cost when you hedge,” said Jeffrey Goh, managing director at Alton Aviation, adding that it remained a bet on prices rising – and could backfire. “You have to look at the forward curve and predict how fast it might go down.” The pressure could intensify next year as hedges put in place before the war expire, exposing airlines more fully to current fuel prices. “None of the European airlines, including Ryanair, are well-hedged until summer of 2027, so I think you’re going to have to see air fares rise by 15% to 20%,” Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary told reporters earlier this month.

As Iran war drags on, airlines pull back on fuel hedges and warn on rising fares
North America
CNBC Economy

Jobless claims near the lowest since the 1960s as low-fire trend continues

Employers continue to hold onto workers even as hiring remains weak, sending weekly jobless claims to around their lowest levels in records that stretch back nearly six decades. Initial filings for unemployment insurance slipped to a seasonally adjusted 194,000 for the week ended Oct. 17, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That marked another leg lower in the low-fire trend, with the total just off the 189,000 reported for the week of July 18 that was the lowest since September 1969. Claims have averaged 212,000 over the past year, and the four-week moving average is down to 197,750. Nonfarm payrolls rose by just 29,000 in September and have averaged a gain of just 69,000 a month in 2026. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2%, an increase largely due to a sharp spike in labor force participation. Layoffs have remained modest, declining by 61,000 in August, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Sept. 29. Over the prior 12 months, the layoff rate measured as a share of the total workforce fell to 1%, down 0.2 percentage point during the period. Job openings were relatively flat during the period. "Despite extremely pessimistic views expressed in consumer confidence surveys regarding the economy overall, countless headlines describing job cuts from a variety of businesses, and the phantom job-stealing power of AI, the claims data suggests that labor market conditions are stable," Thomas Simons, chief U.S. economist at Jefferies, said in a client note. The data comes during the reference week that the BLS uses to calculate the payrolls growth number. The October jobs report will be released Nov. 6. Federal Reserve officials gather next week to issue their latest decision on interest rates. Policymakers in recent days have characterized the labor market as a source of general strength and focused more of their attention on the nettlesome inflation problem that has kept the pace of price increases well above the central bank's 2% target. Markets expect the Fed to hold off on a rate hike in October but then to institute another quarter percentage point increase in December. Correction: The October jobs report will be released Nov. 6. An earlier version misstated the month and date. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Jobless claims near the lowest since the 1960s as low-fire trend continues
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Unilever flags price hikes as Iran war costs stack up

Chief executive Fernando Fernandez expects prices in 2027 to be higher than in 2026. LONDON – Unilever expects price rises to increase in the fourth quarter and in 2027, it said on Oct 28 as it aligns with other consumer goods makers that have said they will pass on to customers a surge in costs linked to the war with Iran. Major companies – including Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Nestle and Reckitt – have flagged the risk of further price hikes in 2027 to offset the impact of the US-Israeli war with Iran, which began at the end of February. Each of these companies raised prices sharply during the Covid-19 pandemic and in the initial months of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. They have since spent years trying to win back alienated shoppers who turned to cheaper private label goods. Now, they face the reality of having to hike prices again to protect shareholder margins. Chief executive Fernando Fernandez said he expects prices in 2027 to be higher than in 2026. “Now that we have more clarity about it (the cost environment), we are accelerating pricing. “We will ensure that we have a good balance between volume and pricing in whatever we do in the short and in the medium term,” he added. Unilever, whose innovations and focus on marketing helped it recover demand post-pandemic, has in 2026 managed to pass some of its increased commodities costs onto shoppers without hurting sales volumes. “Given the mix we saw between pricing and volumes, increases in pricing do not concern me,” Jack Martin, a portfolio manager at Unilever shareholder Oberon Investments, said. “The ability to pass inflationary costs through to customers without unduly affecting volumes is what you hope to see from a well-run consumer company selling staple goods.” Shares fell 3.4% on Oct 28 as Unilever also reported slower third-quarter sales volume growth than in the second quarter, weighed down by its food business.

Unilever flags price hikes as Iran war costs stack up