terling remains near its weakest level since November after the head of the Federal Reserve signalled more big hikes in US interest rates may be needed to combat inflation. Jerome Powell’s testimony in Congress led to heavy selling of Wall Street shares and put upward pressure on the value of the dollar, leaving the pound at $1. 18. London’s FTSE 100 index opened 0. 2% lower during another busy session for corporate results, with Legal & General, Hiscox and Admiral among those in the blue-chip spotlight. SIR NIGEL Wilson set the scene for a distinguished exit from the City today as he unveiled record results at Legal & General – and fired a broadside to politicians he thinks are failing the financial sector and the wider public He leaves L&G soon after ten years as CEO, during which he has tried to overhaul the regulations he believes have held Britain back. The UK is a “low wage, low growth, low productivity” economy he told the Standard, something he blamed partly on “political infighting. ” The 66-year-old once canvassed for Labour as an 11-year-old, but insists he won’t be moving into politics once he leaves the City. He cited sport as one area of interest. For 2022 L&G made profits of £2. 5 billion, up 12%. It manages funds of £1. 2 trillion, which Wilson has always wanted to invest in a wider range of schemes such as infrastructure and housing. He told the Standard: “Planning is really difficult. Planning in London in particular for housing is about as difficult as anywhere in the world. It takes about eight years from a getting a site to putting a spade in the ground. ” The boss of Headlam Group, a floor coverings distributor, said revenue performance so far this year is slightly ahead of 12 months earlier, despite a weak residential sector. The company is used by retailers, housebuilders and building contractors, and recorded sales of £663. 6 million in 2022, down 0. 5% from a year earlier. Chief executive Chris Payne said: “Despite very challenging industry headwinds in the year, most notably the UK cost of living crisis and significant operational cost inflation, revenue was maintained and profit improved against 2021. ” Headland said several new larger customers were won during the period, “with considerable potential for scalability”. Some housebuilders plan to reduce the number of homes they sell amid factors that could hurt demand, such as the cost-of-living crisis and higher mortgage bills. Admiral shares have fallen 6% after the car insurer disappointed the City with its profits haul from a year navigating “stormy waters”. The FTSE 100-listed stock slid 132p to 1956p, with the 2022 surplus of £469 million some 5% short of hopes as the company grappled with everything from FCA pricing reforms to increased claims frequency, adverse weather and inflation pressures. Chief executive Milena Mondini de Focatiis said: “At times, over the last 12 months it has felt similar to sailing in the middle of a storm. ” Other factors spooking the City today included the company’s loss-making US-facing arm Elephant and a bigger-than-expected 40% cut in dividend to 112p a share, which dealt a blow to staff as well as income investors. Under the employee share scheme, about 10,000 staff are due to receive free shares worth up to £3,600 based on the 2022 annual results. Today's slide in Admiral’s valuation put the insurer at the top of the blue-chip fallers board during a risk averse session for investors after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell signalled the potential for more aggressive US interest rate rises. London’s top flight lost 17. 10 points to 7902. 38, with technology stocks Ocado and Rightmove among those 2% lower. A weaker pound and results-day falls of 2% for Tullow Oil and road infrastructure firm Hill & Smith meant the FTSE 250 index dropped 0. 6% or 120. 13 points to 19,836. 48. In the FTSE All-Share, Restaurant Group shares slid 12% or 5. 5p to 39. 8p as the Wagamama owner recorded deeper losses but cheered “very encouraging” recent trading. The casual dining operator, which is under pressure from an activist investor, recorded a pre-tax loss of £86. 8 million for 2022, partly due to one-off adjustments around property. A Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member has said that “further tightening is a bigger risk” than not raising interest rates enough, and that aspects of inflation may be overestimated. In a speech for think tank the Resolution Foundation, Swati Dhingra - one of the nine economists who set UK interest rates - said she believed the Bank should keep interest rates at 4%, arguing that the effects of recent rate hikes have not been fully passed through the economy yet. Her comments follow more hawkish remarks from fellow Monetary Policy Committee member Catherine L Mann before the same think tank last month. Mann said she believed high inflation could persist into 2024, and that the longer it persists, the higher interest rates must rise to tackle it. Ibstock’s profits and sales for 2022 are materially ahead of pre-pandemic levels, the clay bricks manufacturer has said. Chief executive Joe Hudson cheered an “outstanding year” for the company. It recorded a 26% jump in revenue to £513 million and saw pre-tax profits rise to £105 million from £65 million. The firm, which has 36 manufacturing sites across the UK, said market conditions were buoyant for most of the year, with strong demand from the new build residential sector and infrastructure customers. However, Ibstock, cautioned that activity in the early weeks of 2023 has continued to reflect the more cautious demand environment seen in the final quarter of last year. Housebuilders have been grappling with a number of headwinds that could impact sales since the September mini-Budget, including a sharp rise in mortgage costs. The shares decreased 1. 9p tp 160. 4p. Big four auditing firm PwC has been fined £5. 62 million by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) after the regulator identified “numerous, serious breaches” in its audit of the 2017 and 2018 accounts of the defence group Babcock. Two former audit partners were also sanctioned. The fine follows an investigation concerning long-term contracts that made up around 25% of Babcock’s revenue. The FRC said PwC failed to challenge Babcock’s management in auditing these accounts and showed “a lack of competence, care or diligence”. As an example of the failings, it said that there was “no evidence” PwC had read a contract that was worth £3 billion over the course of its 30-year term. FRC deputy executive counsel Claudia Mortimore said: “The quality of these audits fell far short of the standards expected of statutory auditors. Of particular concern is the lack of scepticism applied and the failures to follow some basic audit requirements. ” The FRC said it is still investigating PwC’s audits of Babcock’s 2019 and 2020 accounts. Builders Galliford Try said inflation and materials shortages are beginning to ease after reporting profit growth for the first half of its financial year despite “delays in public sector decision making” slowing new contracts. The business reported a 14. 3% revenue increase to £679 million in the six months to 31 December. Builders Galliford Try said inflation and materials shortages are beginning to ease Almost all the revenue growth came from its infrastructure arm, with building revenue flat year-on-year. This, it said, was partly due to “delays in public sector decision-making” leading to later starts than expected for some new contracts. Profit, though, was up by 56. 5% to £10. 8 million. Looking ahead, Galliford Try said that inflation and materials shortages, which impacted the business last year, “are now beginning to ease”. The FTSE 100 index is 16. 96 points lower at 7902. 52 as pressure on global markets continues after the Federal Reserve’s warning over the potential for higher US interest rates. Big fallers in London included the grocery technology business Ocado, which fell another 2% or 9. 3p to 495. 7p. Annual results also failed to boost shares in Legal & General, which dropped 3. 7p to 262. 1p, and car insurer Admiral tumbled 130. 8p to 1957. 2p after it reported a 39% drop in profits for 2022. The FTSE 250 index weakened 0. 5% or 105. 31 points to 19,851. 30, with cyber security business Darktrace among the biggest fallers after its interim results. The shares dropped 5. 7p to 258. 2p. Insurer Admiral is “evaluating the options” for its US arm which disappointed in 2022, but said its strategy to hike prices instead of “chasing unprofitable volumes” will pay off in the long-term elsewhere. Pre-tax profit for the group fell by 39% to £469 million, which CEO Milena Mondini de Focatiis said was down to “FCA’s pricing reforms, increased claims frequency post Covid, supply chain challenges, adverse weather and high levels of inflation”. Mondini de Focatiis said Admiral was quicker than rivals to react to changing market conditions, raising premiums for customers. “Although the premium increases impacted our rate of growth in the short term, we continued prioritising sustainable growth over chasing unprofitable volumes,” she said. Performance was worse in the US, where the business lost £49 million, which the Admiral CEO said was “disappointingly high” as the business hiked premiums by 25% and cut ad spend. As a result, Admiral will said it is “continuing to assess the options” for its US-facing arm Elephant, but a spokesperson said Admiral could not comment on whether it was up for sale. In the UK, Admiral made a £616 million profit, despite severe weather increasing the number of claims. Admiral shares are down 6. 7% to 1,949p so far today. Frankie & Benny’s and Wagamama owner The Restaurant Group today revealed a full-year sales leap, but losses widened and it cautioned that challenges persist including inflationary pressures. The casual dining operator which is under pressure from an activist investor, said sales rose to £883 million in 2022 from £636 million. The group, also behind brands such as Chiquito, added that current trading is “encouraging”. In the eight weeks to February 26 of this year Wagamama comparable sales have improved 2%, helped by a 9% rise in dine-in sales and offsetting declines in takeaway and delivery demand. But The Restaurant Group recorded a pre-tax loss of £86. 8 million for 2022, which was wider than the £35. 2 million loss a year earlier and largely due to one-off non-cash balance sheet adjustments around property. Adjusted pre-tax profits were £20. 3 million and ahead of the £17. 7 million the City had been expecting. Andy Hornby, the former HBOS boss who now leads TRG said: “We’ve delivered a strong operating performance for the year in a market which has continued to pose a number of headwinds for casual dining operators. ” The hospitality industry was battered by lockdowns during the pandemic forcing a number of restaurant firms to permanently close some sites and undertake capital raises. Post-pandemic challenges have included soaring energy bills and labour shortages. The Restaurant Group is also facing pressure from Hong Kong-based investor Oasis Capital Management which has a 6. 5% stake in the business. The shareholder last month said TRG had “one of the worst performing share prices of any UK leisure company” and added that it has raised equity capital three times in the last five years “whilst markedly underperforming sector peers”. Oasis called on TRG to “communicate to the market the strategic direction of the company and means of value creation”. The Financial Times this week reported that the investor has threatened to push for the removal of Hornby unless he delivers a shake-up of the firm. TRG plans to improve margins through a mixture of measures such as more Wagamama openings, not renewing certain leases when they come up. .