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- Today's business and finance round up 26th April 2022
Today's business and finance round up 26th April 2022
Investors rattled over China lockdowns
26th April 2022
Bite-sized business news from the UK and beyond
Good morning Breaking news overnight, after a two-week public tussle Elon Musk has struck a deal to buy Twitter for $44bn. In a statement Musk, the world’s richest man, said he wants to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, which could include a much anticipated 'edit' button.
Today's stories
Beijing jitters – Investors rattled over China lockdowns
Facebook v the UK – Meta fights regulator ruling
STOCK MARKETInvestors rattled over China lockdowns
What’s going on?
Why is this important?
Emmanuel Macron’s presidential victory in France on Sunday was supposed to ease investor concerns and lead to a bounce in the stock market on Monday. But that didn’t happen. The news was overshadowed by the fact that China is battling its worst Covid outbreak since Wuhan more than two years ago at the start of the pandemic. The commercial centre Shanghai has been in strict lockdown for weeks and there are fears that similar restrictions could be imposed on the capital Beijing.China’s zero-Covid approach has caused concern among investors about a global economic slowdownThe FTSE 100 fell by 2% with similar falls in the French and German stock markets. Shares in oil companies and miners bore the brunt of the selling as China is a major consumer of their products.Investors also had to grapple with recent suggestions from the head of the US central bank that interest rates could rise quicker than first thought. Rising interest rates makes investing in the stock market less attractive.Like most Western countries the US is experiencing soaring inflation and the Federal Reserve, like other central banks, is under pressure to ramp up the cost of borrowing to bring prices under control.
Zooming out
Other stories to keep you in the loop
Optimism falls as UK factories hit by fastest rise in costs since 1975
Call for extra bank holiday to be made permanent
Asda and Morrisons cut prices as supermarkets fight for customers
Average house price hits a new record, according to Rightmove
Burger King to open 200 new UK restaurants by 2026
End of the road for Nissan's Datsun brand
TECHMeta fights regulator ruling
Stat of the day
A recent survey has found that 43% of Brits say they would not be able to save money in the next 12 months due to the cost of living crisis
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How homeownership changes you
