BUDGET JOB HIT
Rachel Reeves’ tax raid on business sparks sharp decline in job vacancies
December saw the steepest drop in job vacancies in well over four years
Rachel Reeves’ tax raid on business is already flattening job opportunities, with the sharpest fall in vacancies since the Covid pandemic.
The Chancellor was warned her Budget had made employees more expensive and businesses would have no choice but to cut staff and stop hiring.
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And fresh figures today show bosses have wasted no time in pulling permanent recruitment adverts, with December seeing the steepest drop in job vacancies in well over four years.
A closely watched report by KPMG and REC, compiled by S&P Global, shows the job market is already shrinking, with companies explicitly blaming the rise in employer national insurance contributions.
Some have been making redundancies in December, according to its survey of 400 recruiters.
The figures come a day after stats showed the services industry was shedding jobs at the fastest pace in 15 years, excluding lockdowns.
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It risks making a mockery of Ms Reeves’ claims that her Budget protects the pounds in workers’ pockets — as they only have money if they can get a job.
The REC/KPMG figures are all the more important as the UK’s official stats body has said that it will take another two years to fix its dodgy jobs data.
Economists warn that the Bank of England is having to fly blind because of unreliable labour market information from the Office for National Statistics and it could be keeping rates high for too long when the economy is already in pain.
Neil Carberry, REC chief executive, said that the signs reflected a “weak mood in some businesses.”
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Jon Holt, KPMG boss, said it was the biggest fall in vacancies since August 2020, coupled with hiring intention declining at a pace not seen for 16 months.
It comes a day after Next, Britain’s biggest clothing retailer, announced it would not be replacing staff who left or hiring as many people as it might have as it faced an extra £73million wage bill from the Budget.
Watch Keir refuse to rule out MORE brutal tax hikes despite Reeves’ promise that Budget misery was the end of it
We are railing...with Rod
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Model miniature firm Hornby says it is turning the business around after a boost from new customers in the run-up to Christmas.
The 125-year-old firm counts music legend Rod Stewart, pictured above with his railway set, as a fan.
It said sales rose almost a quarter in December. Overall sales were up 7 per cent in the last three months of 2024. Hornby said almost half of Black Friday sales came from new customers.
Chief Olly Raeburn said: “We are pleased to be able to report growth in revenues, margins and gross profits through the critical quarter.”
Frasers Group boss Mike Ashley owns an almost 9 per cent stake in Hornby.
After struggling with losses last year, Hornby shares rose by almost 10 per cent yesterday, valuing the company at £47.5million.
Tile boss exit amid ‘misstep’
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The boss of Topps Tiles is retiring after 18 years — and just a month after an activist investor renewed calls for a management shake-up.
Rob Parker, 52, who joined the flooring retailer in 2007, had been chief executive since 2019. He will leave once a replacement has been found towards the end of this year.
A spokesman said that his exit was unrelated to calls by Austrian investors MS Galleon, who had accused Topps Tiles of “strategic missteps.”
Topps Tiles suffered slumping like-for-like sales last year but yesterday highlighted an overhaul was already under way with like-for-like sales up 3.5 per cent in the last three months of 2024.
It said online trading helped drive all sales by 12.5 per cent in the festive five-week period.
Chairman Paul Forman said that Mr Parker was leaving the “group well-positioned” and highlighted that he had steered the firm through the pandemic.
Gas flow is halted
Shell is warning profits in its gas business will take a big hit in the fourth quarter.
The energy giant said a slew of hedging contracts it took out in 2022 to protect itself against a supply shortage after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had now expired.
Shell had been accused of profiteering during the energy crisis, when prices of gas and oil soared.
Its shares dropped by 1.3 per cent yesterday to £2,583.
Bookie’s pain over NFL blow
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Paddy Power owner Flutter has warned of a hit to profits as favourites landed the odds in US sports.
The gambling group said it had suffered “very unfavourable” results in the American football season.
In 2024, there were 184 winning favourites out of 256 NFL games, the highest rate in nearly two decades.
The Detroit Lions’ win over the San Francisco 49ers alone cost Flutter £59million.
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce, who is Taylor Swift’s boyfriend, also drove a flurry of bets.
As a result the group, which shifted its listing from London to New York last year to reflect its growing US business, says it expects its revenues to fall by £313million and earnings to be £209million lower.
Meanwhile, football fans have had less luck — with results going in favour of the bookie last year.
Investors pulled £9.56billion from UK funds last year, data shows.
It marked the ninth year in a row of heavy withdrawals, leaving London behind its global peers.
The loss was lower than 2023’s £12.1billion — but £45billion has leached away since 2015.
Royce is on a roll with £300m
Car maker Rolls-Royce is investing £300million expanding its Goodwood factory as super wealthy drivers splash out for its luxury motors.
The BMW-owned company said that some super-rich drivers are willing to spend more than £500,000 on its cars. Bespoke embellishments include LED lights to mimic the night sky and gold bonnet sculptures.
The boost for the West Sussex factory is welcome at a time when mass market car rivals including Vauxhall owner Stellantis and Ford have shut sites and cut jobs in recent years.
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Rolls-Royce has grown from 300 employees to more than 2,500 at Goodwood in the 22 years since BMW’s takeover.
SHARES
- Barclays down 0.70 to 265.00
- BP down 1.60 to 420.40
- Centrica down 1.90 to 136.25
- HSBC down 15.20 to 791.20
- Lloyds down 1.48 to 53.86
- M&S down 4.00 to 376.80
- NatWest down 2.60 to 392.60
- Royal Mail down 0.40 to 363.60
- Sainsbury’s down 0.40 to 272.00
- Shell down 37.50 to 2579.50
- Tesco down 0.60 to 370.00
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