State Pension

Business

Navigating the Maze: A Self-Employed Guide to Tax and National Insurance as Digital Overhaul Looms

With the annual self-assessment deadline a perennial source of stress for freelancers and sole traders, this guide breaks down the essentials of income tax and National Insurance. The landscape is set for a significant shift with the incoming Making Tax Digital regime, making this a crucial year to get to grips with the current rules.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Gold's Meteoric Rise: Safe Haven or Speculative Frenzy?

Gold prices have surged past $5,500, driven by geopolitical tensions and fiscal fears. Yet, analysts caution that its reputation as a stable store of value may be overstated, pointing to inherent volatility and shifting market dynamics.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Institutional Investors Hold Sway: British Land's 88% Stake Highlights Market Confidence and Risks

British Land Company PLC (LON:BLND) finds itself firmly in the hands of institutional investors, who control 88% of its shares. While this signals strong professional backing, it also raises questions about stock volatility and boardroom influence in the UK's property sector.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Lockheed Martin Posts Record Backlog, Unveils Major Investment Push Amid Global Defense Demand Surge

Lockheed Martin capped a year of robust sales growth with a historic $194 billion order backlog, driven by soaring demand for its advanced defense systems. The aerospace giant announced plans for a significant 'step function' increase in capital investment for 2026 to ramp up production of missiles and next-generation capabilities.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Vizsla Silver Shares Plunge 14.9% Following Abduction of 10 Employees in Mexico

Vizsla Silver Corp. (VZLA) shares tumbled sharply Thursday after reports that 10 of its employees were abducted from company housing in Mexico, forcing a temporary halt to operations and rattling investor confidence amid broader weakness in silver prices.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Trump Poised to Name Kevin Warsh as Next Fed Chair, Setting Stage for Monetary Policy Shift

President Trump is expected to nominate former Fed governor Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve Chair, a move that could signal a pivot toward aggressive rate cuts paired with a reduction of the central bank's balance sheet, reshaping the landscape for markets and cryptocurrencies.

Jan 30, 2026

World

Lake Maracaibo's Rusting Legacy: Can a U.S.-Led Oil Revival Rescue Venezuela's Heartland?

Once the engine of Venezuela's wealth, the communities around Lake Maracaibo now stand as decaying monuments to the nation's oil collapse. As a controversial U.S. plan promises a $100 billion investment, residents of the ghostly 'oil camps' are caught between desperate hope and deep-seated skepticism.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

UK Watchdog Probes Boots and Superdrug Over 'Misleading' Loyalty Pricing Tactics

A major consumer group has filed a complaint with the Competition and Markets Authority, alleging the pharmacy chains used inflated reference prices to make member discounts appear more substantial than they truly were.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

Green Aviation Dream Grounded: Ecojet Becomes Latest Regional Airline to Liquidate

The new year brings a fresh wave of airline failures as Ecojet, a UK-based startup aiming to be the world's first zero-emission carrier, enters voluntary liquidation. Its collapse follows recent shutdowns in the Philippines and India, highlighting persistent turbulence in the regional aviation sector.

Jan 30, 2026

Business

SanDisk Soars 143% in January as AI Boom Fuels Memory Supply Crunch

The NAND flash memory specialist's stock skyrocketed last month, propelled by surging prices and blockbuster earnings that smashed Wall Street estimates, highlighting its pivotal role in the AI infrastructure build-out.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Beyond the Headlines: Why L3Harris Technologies Is the Unseen Engine of Modern Defense

While flashy jets and missiles capture public attention, L3Harris Technologies operates in the critical, unseen layers of connectivity and electronic warfare. As global tensions and technological threats evolve, its role as a foundational enabler of next-generation defense systems is driving a compelling investment thesis centered on resilience and information dominance.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Lockheed Martin's Strategic Moat: Why Defense Giant's Integration Expertise Fuels Bullish Outlook

Amid rising global tensions and sustained U.S. defense spending, Lockheed Martin's unique role in stitching together America's missile and space defense architecture presents a compelling investment case, analysts argue.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary Champions 'Trump Accounts' as Antidote to National Financial Literacy Crisis

Investor and TV personality Kevin O'Leary has thrown his weight behind a proposed national child investment account policy, framing it as a bipartisan solution to America's widespread financial illiteracy and a foundational tool for building generational wealth.

Feb 3, 2026

World

Behind the Handshake: Vietnam's Military Sees U.S. as 'Belligerent' Threat Despite Strategic Partnership

A year after Hanoi and Washington elevated ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, an internal Vietnamese military document reveals deep-seated fears of U.S. aggression and 'color revolutions,' highlighting the complex duality at the heart of Vietnam's foreign policy.

Feb 3, 2026

US

Internal Clash Over Immigration Tactics Preceded Fatal Border Patrol Shootings

Newly obtained emails reveal former Border Patrol operations chief Gregory Bovino resisted calls for more targeted enforcement months before agents under his command were involved in two deadly shootings in Minneapolis, exposing internal divisions within DHS.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Gold Rebounds Sharply After Historic Plunge, Chinese Buyers Step In

Gold prices staged a significant recovery on Tuesday, regaining some ground after a historic two-day sell-off. The focus now shifts to Chinese retail investors, whose appetite for bargain-hunting ahead of the Lunar New Year could be pivotal for the market's near-term direction.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

APA Slashes U.S. Gas Output Amid Price Slump, Doubles Down on Shareholder Returns

Facing persistently weak natural gas prices, APA Corporation announces significant production cuts across its U.S. operations while reaffirming its commitment to a multi-billion dollar share repurchase program, signaling a strategic pivot towards capital discipline over volume growth.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Berkshire's New Chief Signals Strategic Shift with Potential Kraft Heinz Exit

Greg Abel's first major move as Berkshire Hathaway CEO involves reviewing a full exit from the Kraft Heinz stake, marking a potential departure from Warren Buffett's famed 'buy and hold' philosophy and testing investor confidence in the new leadership era.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Musk Merges xAI with SpaceX, Pivots AI Ambitions to Orbit Amid Earth's Infrastructure Limits

Elon Musk announces the integration of his AI startup xAI into SpaceX, citing terrestrial power and cooling constraints as a catalyst for moving advanced computing into space, with the Starship program central to the ambitious orbital data center vision.

Feb 3, 2026

Business

Disney's U.S. Parks Feel the Pinch as International Travel to America Slumps

Walt Disney Company reports 'headwinds' in foreign visitor numbers at its American resorts, mirroring a broader downturn in U.S. international tourism driven by geopolitical perceptions and shifting travel preferences.

Feb 3, 2026