6:21 am, September 16, 2023
3,000 jobs at risk at Port Talbot steelworks
The government will pump up to £500m into Britain’s biggest steelworks as part of plans to produce ‘greener’ steel – but as many as 3,000 workers are set to lose their jobs.
Tata, the Indian conglomerate owner of the Port Talbot steelworks in South Wales, will use the funding to help switch the plant’s two coal-fired blast furnaces to electric arc versions which can run on zero-carbon electricity.
The firm, which employs around 8,000 people across the UK, will also invest about £750m in the project.
But the company said on Friday the plans will lead to consultations over a ‘deep potential restructuring’.
Toyota announces 620-mile EV battery
Toyota has announced that a ‘breakthrough’ in electric car battery technology will see significantly longer-range EVs on sale at a cheaper cost by 2027.
The Japanese firm has announced details about its four next-generation batteries as it looks ahead to future electric car development.
Toyota currently just has one electric car on sale, the bZ4X, which has a claimed range of around 270 miles. However, the firm is gearing up to open new electric car factories in 2026 that will introduce the firm’s ‘Performance’ battery, increasing the range to around 500 miles when combined with improved aerodynamics.
Interest rate hike expected but markets predict pause
Markets have been asking themselves whether the Bank of England might stop raising interest rates next week after 14 consecutive hikes.
The Bank is still expected to set rates a little higher before it ends this cycle of what economists call tightening, but some think it might pause the rises next week and restart at the next meeting.
The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee will report its decision at midday on Thursday, with most still expecting another hike to bring the base rate to 5.5 per cent.
Roger Moore’s personal collection up for auction
The personal collection of the late James Bond actor Sir Roger Moore is heading to auction next month.
Offered directly from Moore’s family by Bonhams, the 180-lot sale includes personal items retained by the actor, many of which are linked to the James Bond franchise.
The collection include a dinner suit worn by the actor in the famous Eiffel Tower scene in Moore’s last Bond film A View to a Kill (1985), which is expected to fetch between £20,000 and £30,000.
The white ski suit also worn by 007 in the same film could also go for between £15,000 to £20,000.
Ministers set to work out American XL bully dogs ban
Ministers will soon have to set out details of the Prime Minister’s planned ban on American XL bully dogs.
Rishi Sunak said the dogs will be banned by the end of the year in response to a series of attacks.
The decision was quickly backed by campaign groups, the Labour Party and Baron Baker of Dorking, who put the Dangerous Dogs Act on the statute books more than 30 years ago.
It comes after it emerged a man died after being attacked on Thursday by two dogs – suspected to be bully XLs – in Staffordshire.
UK winner has share of £47m jackpot
A UK ticket-holder has won a share of the £47 million EuroMillions jackpot in Friday’s draw, Camelot said.
They split the top prize with a winner from Austria and both are now £23,631,994.90 richer.
The winning main EuroMillions numbers were 12, 14, 21, 45 and 48 – while the winning EuroMillions Lucky Star numbers were 08 and 11.
FTSE 100 wraps up best week in nine months
Another strong day for the FTSE 100’s mining companies on Friday helped the index record its best week since January as it closed up for the fourth day this week.
The week had largely been one of small gains here and there, apart from Thursday, when it shot up 147 points thanks to a rally in commodity prices.
This continued on Friday as the FTSE 100’s mining companies crowded around the top of the index. It ended the day on 7711.38, up 38.3 points or 0.5 per cent.
The FTSE gained 233 points this week as a result, giving the index its best week since the opening week of the year when it rose 248 points.
Thundery weekend likely
Much of the UK could see thunderstorms this weekend, before autumn weather arrives next week, the Met Office has said.
But some areas, particularly in the South, could get a final blast of summer heat if they avoid the showers as temperatures remain high.
National severe weather warnings are possible as humid air moves northwards, bringing the risk of thunderstorms, the Met Office warned.
