Wages have risen while unemployment unexpectedly saw no change, official figures show. Average weekly earnings rose 6%, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed, while wages - excluding bonuses - grew 5.9%, despite economists expecting a 5.8% rise. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.4%. A rise was anticipated by economists who were

The business secretary will this week hold a fresh round of talks with British Steel's Chinese owner amid protracted talks about a state bailout of the Scunthorpe-based company. Sky News has learnt that Jonathan Reynolds will discuss the future of the industrial group with Jingye Group's boss, Li Huiming, in the latest chapter of a

Donald Trump is demanding that European allies spend more on defence, and the prime minister is nodding along. At a summit in Paris, Sir Keir Starmer will urge his counterparts to take the new president seriously and to make concrete spending commitments before the NATO summit in June. Starmer is taking a leading role at

The UK competition regulator has warned Topp Tiles' purchase of 30 rival shops could make prices more expensive and services worse. On Monday the competition regulator the Competition and Market Authority (CMA) said the acquisition of CTD Tiles stores could lead to competition issues. Money blog: Nearly 300 pubs permanently closed last year Those competition

A waiting game on tariffs is beginning to play out between the UK and the United States on tariffs, amid warnings that Donald Trump's latest strategy could hit the UK especially hard. The US president on Thursday revealed he has asked his government to consider what tariffs should be applied to other nations - and

The private equity backer of Motor Fuel Group (MFG), one of Britain's biggest petrol forecourt empires, is exploring the sale of a stake in a deal that could value it at about £7bn. Sky News has learnt that Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CDR), which has built MFG from a mid-sized industry player over the course

Valentine's Day might be a gift-giving occasion your wallet could do without, but it's thousands of pounds cheaper than being alone. Being single costs £2,533 more a year, Sky News can reveal. Suddenly, that box of chocolates doesn't seem so expensive. Single people are forced to spend 22% more on rent or mortgages, council tax

In what sounds like a plot straight out of Succession, there is a rise in parents leaving more in their will for one child than another. That's according to Scott Taylor, who heads the private wealth disputes team at legal firm Moore Barlow. It may seem unfair to leave different amounts - and Taylor has

Crisis-hit Thames Water has launched a bid to charge its customers more over the next five years than the industry regulator will allow, arguing it has been unfairly treated. Britain's biggest household supplier, which is in a battle for survival as it grapples a £19bn debt pile, had sought a 53% hike to bills from

Regulators have proposed sweeping changes for the baby formula industry, saying high prices and branding are leading to "poor outcomes" for parents. In its final report on surging prices in recent years, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said parents could be saving £300 annually by switching to lower-priced brands that offered the same nutritional