Good morning. Today we're talking about another Bank of England rate rise, Uber's UK expansion, rail company failures and gender barrier breaking.

Big Stories

No surprises

There were no surprises from the Bank of England, which announced it would to raise interest rates by another 0.25% to 4.5%, the highest since 2008. Stubborn double-digit inflation meant that the Bank has increased rates 12 times in a row since last year. What was more unexpected was the updated economic forecasts the Bank also released. It raised its expectations for inflation in the final three months of this year from 3.9% to 5.1%, and for economic growth this year from a 0.5% contraction to a 0.25% expansion. It also predicted the UK would avoid a recession.

Uber targets super app

Uber announced its UK users will be able to book both domestic and international flights in its app by this summer as part of its ambition to create a travel “super app”. Uber’s UK general manager Andrew Brem said in a statement the booking process will take “as little as one minute.” Uber will be partnering with Hopper, a Canadian-based travel agency, to sell flights. The ride-sharing app already has added features to its UK proposition to let users book train and bus tickets, and Brem told the Financial Times that train reservations have gone up 40% month-on-month since they launched in August last year.

Rail company nationalised

Transpennine Express (TPE) will be taken over by the government once its contract ends at the end of the month. It comes after passengers of the rail franchise, which operates in northern England and southern Scotland, have faced months of significant disruption and regular cancellations. TPE is the fourth railway to be brought under government control - following the East Coast Mainline in June 2018, Northern Rail in March 2020 and London and South Eastern Railway in October 2021.

Breaking barriers

Man Group, the world’s largest listed hedge fund, is getting its first female CEO in 240 years, and will also appoint a female board chair later this year. Robyn Grew will lead the UK-based asset manager as CEO, and Anne Wade will take over as board chair. The two appointments mean that Man Group, which manages $144.7bn in assets, mostly for institutional investors, will soon be run by two women—in an industry that remains one of the most male-dominated.

Elsewhere...

Stepping down: Elon Musk says that he has found a new CEO to lead Twitter and that the unnamed woman would start in six weeks.

Problem solved: Adidas plans to sell its stock of unsold Yeezy shoes and will donate the proceeds from the sales to charity.

Tough TV: ITV has reported a 10% drop in advertising revenues in the first three months of this year, and said it expected the situation to get even tougher in the coming months.

End of an era: MTV News will shut after 26 years with owner Paramount announcing job cuts across the wider group.

Workplace harassment: Two out of three young women have experienced sexual harassment, bullying or verbal abuse at work, new research suggests.

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Number Of The Day

£1.2 billion

The estimated amount stolen through financial fraud in the UK last year, according to industry lobbyists UK Finance.

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