Alan Milburn to review rise in youth minimum wage Exclusive: Blair-era minister echoes concerns about young people being priced out of jobs, in intervention likely to dismay Labour MPs
Why is Truth Social owner Trump Media merging with a fusion energy firm? What we know about the deal with TAE Technologies so far – from why it is happening to what fusion energy is
FTSE 100 closes near record high as Santa Rally builds, despite weak retail sales – as it happened Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Independent businesses: have your online sales been affected by the rise of AI? We’d like to hear from independent retailers about how changes to online searches has affected them. We’d also like to find out from customers about how easy it is to track down independent retailers
Former Yodel owner probably forged mother’s signature in takeover bid, judge rules ‘Extraordinary’ high court ruling covers Jacob Corlett’s attempt to seize back control of parcel delivery firm
UK politics: ‘Not clear’ who was behind FCDO hack, says minister, amid reports of China link – as it happened Chris Bryant confirms October cyber-attack as the Sun names Storm 1849, a Chinese hacker group, as being responsible
WH Smith tries to recover bonuses from ex-bosses as watchdog investigates accounting error Retailer targets £7m in bonuses as FCA examines scandal in North American arm
Sony collars Snoopy in £340m deal to take control of Peanuts franchise Japanese conglomerate raises to 80% its stake in firm that owns the intellectual property created by Charles Schulz
Rail accident investigators issue warning over sensors on landslide monitors Inquiry into recent Avanti West Coast train derailment in Cumbria finds sensors may not work if landslips happen quickly
TikTok signs Trump-backed deal to avoid US ban Joint venture will take over part of app’s US operations, including data protection, algorithm security and content moderation
UK contactless card limit of £100 to be scrapped from 19 March Under changes revealed by regulator, banks and card providers encouraged to set their own maximums
Retail sales unexpectedly fall in Great Britain in run-up to Christmas Shoppers held back on Black Friday spending in November and budget uncertainty hit consumer confidence
UK borrowed more than expected in November amid pre-budget pressure ONS figures show public sector net borrowing was £11.7bn – £1.9bn less than in same month last year
Young people will suffer most from UK’s ageing population, Lords say House of Lords report says tools such as raising pension age and increasing immigration will not be adequate
UK’s roads and airports brace for busiest Christmas getaway on record Transport groups warn of unprecedented congestion as commuters, shoppers and holidaymakers travel at once