Lidl has become the latest supermarket to introduce rationing on the amount of fruit and vegetables customers can buy in the wake of poor harvests in Europe and North Africa. The discount retailer has joined Tesco, Asda, Aldi and Morrisons in limiting purchases on items like tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Sainsbury’s is the only one of the six biggest supermarkets in Britain yet to introduce restrictions.
It comes as supermarket bosses are expected to meet farming minister Mark Spencer later to try to find ways to solve the fruit and vegetable shortages. Retail bosses have blamed a poor harvest in Morocco and Spain, although UK farmers said they had also stopped planting in all their greenhouses due to supermarkets not paying enough. British farmers have warned the latest restrictions are the "tip of the iceberg" and risk occurring more regularly.
Last week, Environment Secretary Therese Coffey said the shortages would last for several weeks. Read the latest updates below. US markets are expected to rise after the opening bell after Wall Street's worst weekly performance of 2023 amid fears that the Federal Reserve would keep raising rates this year.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average erased its gains for the year in Friday's selloff and the S&P 500 logged its third straight week of losses on worries that strength in the US economy and elevated inflation will give the Fed more room for rate increases. Stock market futures pointed to a slight recovery in sentiment today as some of the rate-sensitive growth stocks rose in premarket trading. Tesla added 2.
6pc after the electric automaker said its plant in Brandenburg near Berlin is producing 4,000 cars a week, three weeks ahead of schedule according to a recent production plan reviewed by Reuters. However, US Treasury yields continued to rise, with the yield on two-year notes that is sensitive to short-term interest-rate expectations, rising as high as 4. 857pc to its strongest level since November 4.
Oil has steadied as traders weighed the prospects for tighter US monetary policy against optimism for a demand recovery in China and supply disruption in Europe. Brent crude, the international benchmark, edged down 0. 2pc below $83 a barrel.
US-produced West Texas Intermediate held above $76 a barrel despite a 0. 1pc fall, after earlier dropping as much as 1pc. Poland's largest oil company, PKN Orlen SA, unexpectedly stopped receiving crude via the Druzhba pipeline from Russia.
Traders remain anxious that still-elevated US inflation will compel the Fed to go on raising rates. That may aid the dollar, trigger a US recession, and hurt commodities. Sajid Javid has been named as the latest former government minister to move into the world of finance when he stands down after the next election.
The former chancellor is poised to join £33bn investment firm Centricus Asset Management, according to Bloomberg. The company had reportedly tabled a bid for Chelsea worth £3bn when the football club was put up for sale last year. Former Tory leadership contender Mr Javid has already had a career in the industry, having been a banker at JP Morgan and Deutsche Bank before becoming an MP in 2010.
He will follow a well-trodden path after he steps down as the MP for Bromsgrove. Fellow former chancellor George Osborne was employed at BlackRock after stepping down as an MP and now works at mergers and acquisitions firm Robey Warshaw. Former prime minister Tony Blair once served as an adviser to JP Morgan's management team.
Food minister Mark Spencer has summoned supermarket chiefs to explain "what they are doing to get shelves stocked again" amid shortages of fresh fruit and vegetables. The meeting comes as consumers continue to face buying restrictions on certain fresh produce items such as tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers or even bare shelves as retailers grapple with supply problems. Lidl today joined Tesco, Asda, Aldi and Morrisons in limiting purchases.
Mr Spencer said: Elon Musk has claimed the media is "racist against whites" in a defence of a US cartoonist who was dropped by hundreds of newspapers following a "hateful and discriminatory" outburst. Senior technology reporter Matthew Field has the details: Read what Mr Musk said in tweets that have since been deleted . Lidl has become the latest supermarket to begin rationing the number of items its customers can buy of certain fruit and vegetables.
A spokesman said: The yield on Germany's 10-year bond rose to the highest level since 2011 as traders bet that the European Central Bank will sustain a higher level of interest rates for longer. Bund yields rose four basis points to 2. 58pc.
Money markets briefly priced in the ECB's key rate peaking as late as February 2024 at 3. 9pc, in the wake of strong US inflation data Friday that sparked a repricing across global rates markets. Restructuring specialist Begbies Traynor Group said its finances have been boosted by the collapse of Paperchase earlier this year.
Begbies Traynor was appointed as administrator after the struggling stationery chain failed to secure any buyers. The retailer's 106 branches could face closure after Tesco agreed to buy the brand but not its stores or workforce. Begbies said the ongoing administration, which involves keeping the stores open and running the firm in the short term, is a "higher-value" insolvency case which has helped strengthen its financial performance.
The restructuring business said it continued to take an "encouraging level" of new insolvency appointments across all market sectors over the three months to January 31. It also hailed a good pipeline of financial advisory appointments, and said it was confident it would meet market expectations of between £19. 7m and £20.
6m in pre-tax profit and between £117. 7m and £121. 4m in revenue for the year.
Jeremy Hunt will have £40bn in extra headroom for the Budget next month as he spends less than expected on energy bills support, according to forecasts by Morgan Stanley. Lower RPI inflation affecting debt interest payments, an improving interest rate picture and better near-term GDP forecasts have also helped the Chancellor amass £25bn in savings this year compared to OBR forecasts in November. Meanwhile, the energy price guarantee is expected to cost just £200m in the second quarter of this year, compared to £12.
8bn earmarked for the scheme in November. The underspend this financial year and savings next year add up to £40bn. However, the investment bank warned that the Treasury's borrowing and cash needs would likely increase in the medium term as a result of lower potential growth.
Drivers are being charged 20p per litre more for diesel than petrol despite there being little difference in the fuels' wholesale prices, according to new analysis. The RAC urged retailers to cut diesel pump prices to "fairer levels" which reflect costs. It found that diesel's wholesale price - the amount that retailers pay for fuel - was just 6p per litre more than petrol last week.
But a litre of diesel is being sold at an average of around 168p while petrol is just 148p. RAC analysis found that retailers are "subsidising" cheaper petrol by taking a margin of 20p on every litre of diesel they sell. Latest Government figures show 17.
6m vehicles licensed in the UK are diesel-powered, including the vast majority of vans. That represents 43pc of all vehicles on the road. Woodside Energy Group, Australia's biggest oil and gas producer, says it will review potential acquisitions in the Gulf of Mexico after reporting its highest-ever profit.
Underlying earnings more than tripled to US$5. 2bn (£4. 3bn) in 2022 amid soaring energy prices and output that jumped more than 70pc after the purchase of BHP Group's energy unit, the company said.
The result follows a run of bumper profits for global oil and gas producers, including BP, Shell and Australia's Santos. The acquisition of BHP assets increased Woodside's presence in the Gulf of Mexico, and the firm will "continue to be looking for opportunities there," chief executive Meg O'Neill. The location is a "very attractive basin" that has "all the right ingredient for success," she said.
Woodside is focusing on further growth with industry investment in oil needed to meet medium-term demand. Work is taking place this year to prepare options including the Trion oil project in the Gulf of Mexico and a liquid hydrogen project in the US for a final investment decision. The impending rise in household energy bills comes as European natural gas prices fell today toward an 18-month low.
Dutch front-month futures, the European benchmark, dipped as much as 4. 9pc today with temperatures on the continent expected to rise after a brief cold snap, denting demand. Gas prices have slumped about 35pc this year after hitting record highs in August following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Prices are below their level before the war began, although they remain above their historical average. Meg O'Neill, chief executive of Australia's top liquified natural gas exporter Woodside Energy Group, said: A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: Government support will continue to help households with their energy bills. We know this is a difficult time for families, which is why the Government has covered around half of the typical household's energy bill this winter, and by the end of June the Energy Price Guarantee will have saved a typical household in Great Britain around £1,000 since it began in October.
In the meantime, we're committed to helping people with rising costs by reducing inflation and growing the economy. The cost of energy has already been falling and we expect this to drop further over the coming months, which we fully expect suppliers to pass onto their customers. Dr Craig Lowrey, principal consultant at energy consultancy Cornwall Insight said households should be worried about the falling levels of support from the Government from April.
He said: Dame Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: Richard Neudegg, director of regulation at Uswitch. com, said: Although the household energy bills will rise by an annual average of £500 from April 1, it is unlikely that bill payers will have to fork out that much. Ofgem calculates its energy price cap quarterly, meaning that in three months' time it will put out a fresh limit on the amount suppliers can charge from July 1.
Investec predicts that the price cap will fall to £2,165 in July and £2,190 in October, potentially giving households an £800 saving on the average annual energy bill compared to what is charged from April. It will also be well below the £3,000 price guarantee - meaning the Treasury would no longer need to pay to support households with taxpayer money. After reducing the energy price cap by nearly £1,000, Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley said: The new Ofgem energy price cap will be £3,280 from April 1 - but typical households will pay £500 a year more as the Government reduces its support on bills from the same date.
The cap will be reduced by £999 from its current level of £4,279 after a fall in wholesale energy prices, which surged after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The £3,280 figure indicates how much consumers on their energy suppliers' basic tariff would pay if the Government's Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) were not in place. At the moment, this limits typical annual household energy bills to £2,500 but this will rise to £3,000 from April.
It means households will pay on average £500 a year more from that date, with the Government paying the difference of £280 to suppliers. We are minutes away from Ofgem announcing its next energy price cap and there are concerns about what households can pay. The number of people who cannot afford their energy bills will double, Citizens Advice chief executive Dame Clare Moriarty said.
She told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: Nissan is speeding up its shift toward electric vehicles, especially in the UK and Europe where emissions regulations are most stringent. Nissan, which was an early electric vehicle pioneer with its Leaf, which went on sale in 2010, said in a statement that it will make practically all its offerings in Europe electric or series-hybrids by fiscal 2026, at 98pc. That is up from the previous target of 75pc.
In Japan, the company aims to make 58pc of its model offerings, up from an earlier target of 55pc. Hybrids have both a gasoline engine and electric motor, but a series hybrid uses the motor to power the vehicle's wheels, or powertrain. The engine powers a generator for the motor.
Parallel hybrids, like Toyota's Prius, switch back and forth between a gas engine and electric motor. The FTSE 100 has risen in a rebound from last week's battering over worries about high US interest rates, and getting a boost from upbeat earnings reports from Associated British Foods and Bunzl. The blue-chip index has gained 0.
8pc in early trading while the more domestically-inclined FTSE 250 midcap index rose 0. 3pc. Last week was the FTSE 100's worst performance so far this year after hotter-than-expected US consumer spending data on Friday sparked a selloff on both sides of the Atlantic.
Bunzl gained 2. 5pc after the business supplies distributor raised its annual dividend and reported a higher full-year profit. Primark owner Associated British Foods gained 2pc after raising its financial guidance for the full year 2022-23 for the clothing retailer.
Energy majors were also among the top gainers on the day, with Shell and BP up more than 1pc each. Jet engine major Rolls-Royce continued its recent strong run, rising 4. 4pc after Jefferies raised it price target on the stock.
Thames Water's chief executive has said "absolutely unacceptable" sewage spills are the result of underinvestment. The firm plans to spend £1. 6bn on upgrading sewage treatment works and sewers, Sarah Bentley said.
She told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: It is a huge day in Westminster, where Rishi Sunak appears to be on the verge of agreeing a Brexit deal aimed at easing trade friction in Northern Ireland as he enters into "final talks" with the European Union. The Prime Minister will meet European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen in Windsor on Monday to discuss a "range of complex challenges" around the Northern Ireland Protocol, Downing Street said. However, Jacob Rees-Mogg has suggested Mr Sunak's new Brexit deal may not go far enough to win the support of the Democratic Unionist Party.
We will have the business impact here once any deal is announced and you can follow all the twists and turns before and after in our politics live blog . Markets opened higher this morning as Primark owner Associated British Foods said consumer spending remains "resilient". The FTSE 100 gained 0.
6pc to 7,927. 14 even as investors ratcheted up forecasts for US interest rates following hot i
