-
Europe’s AI progress is accelerating, but adoption remains unevenly distributed. Accenture’s AI Progress Barometer shows large companies closing the gap with North America while smaller European businesses fall further behind.
-
Consumers are wary of AI shopping agents handling money online. ACI Worldwide research found 60% of UK consumers would stop using an AI shopping agent after one mistake.
-
CBI warns private sector momentum is weakening across sectors again. The latest Growth Indicator shows expectations at their weakest since September 2022, with services, distribution, and manufacturing all under pressure.
-
Employers gain new incentives for hiring long-term unemployed young people. The Youth Jobs Grant offers £3,000 for eligible hires aged 18 to 24 who have been on Universal Credit and looking for work for six months.
-
BAT cuts jobs as AI reshapes global tobacco operating model. The Fit2Win transformation programme is expected to reduce about 5,500 roles globally and move a further 3,500 roles to strategic partners.
-
Volkswagen’s restructuring pressure is now a test of industrial governance. Management has told employee representatives current job cuts are insufficient, sharpening tensions around factories, labour power, and Europe’s automotive transition.
-
Burnham’s devolution pitch has drawn cautious support from business leaders. Entrepreneurs and technology executives welcomed his focus on business rates, skills, and regional growth, but warned that delivery will depend on practical policy, local capacity, and digital infrastructure.
-
Business travel planning is becoming a resilience issue for employers. Sophie Fleming, Global Head of Trainline Business, argues that rail should be embedded into everyday decision-making, not kept as a fallback when disruption hits.
-
France has turned fast fashion into a regulatory test case. New restrictions on advertising, influencer promotion, and product-level penalties will test ecommerce models built on speed, scale, and low-cost consumer acquisition.
-
Imperial Brands faces scrutiny over football-linked marketing before tighter regulation. A Rizla fashion collaboration has placed regulated-product adjacency, youth culture, and tournament marketing risk back in focus.