Closing summary
The UK’s stock market is soaring as the week draws to a close, on hopes that central banks may not hike interest rates as rapidly as feared.
Perhaps ironically, signs that economic growth is cooling appears to be giving nervous investors some reassurance.
Commodity prices have dropped this week, business surveys have shown slower growth, and cash-strapped consumers are cutting back as confidence craters in the UK and the US.
That cocktail may ease inflationary pressures, and mean central banks don’t need to slam the brakes on quite so hard.
So with traders looking ahead, the FTSE 100 index is now up 2.5% or 172 points at 7194, its highest in around a week.
Speciality chemicals group Croda (+5.5%), veterinary medicine group Dechra Pharmaceuticals and equipment rental business Ashtead (+5.2%) are leading the risers.
Here’s today’s main stories:
Have a lovely weekend, we’ll be back on Monday. GW
Campaign calls for 1m UK consumers to stop paying energy bills
A campaign is urging 1 million UK consumers to stop paying their energy bills from October in protest at record price hikes.
Run by a group of activists who are operating anonymously for fear of repercussions from energy firms, the Don’t Pay campaign launched last Saturday and has already gathered 4,000 social media followers. They say they are hoping for a rerun of the poll tax protests that helped bring down Margaret Thatcher’s government when 17 million people refused to pay.
The manifesto, emblazoned in black and yellow on the group’s website, says:
“Millions of us won’t be able to afford food and bills this winter. We cannot afford to let that happen. We demand a reduction of bills to an affordable level. We will cancel our direct debits from 1 October if we are ignored.”
