Author: SKYNEWS

TSB is planning to close branches and cut jobs as it battles to reduce costs.The high street bank says it will be speaking to staff before any details are announced. News of the plans was disclosed in its full-year financial results, which showed a 30% rise in pre-tax profits to £237m.The increase of more than £50m was partly driven by higher interest rates.TSB spends a higher percentage of its income on running the business than rivals including Santander UK and Virgin Money. Executives are trying to reduce this by simplifying operations and boosting efficiency.Read more on Sky News:Shares in Meta…

Tony Blair and Elton John joined other famous mourners at the funeral of Derek Draper, the husband of television presenter Kate Garraway, in London today.Draper, a former political adviser and psychotherapist, died last month. Image: Derek Draper in 2009. Pic: PA He was said to be one of the UK’s longest-suffering COVID patients after catching the disease in March 2020 and spending 13 months in hospital.Garraway followed behind the coffin while the procession walked to the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Primrose Hill – where the Good Morning Britain presenter and Draper married in September 2005. Image: Kate…

Nvidia’s market value surged by £232.6bn in January – the biggest monthly increase in history.The world’s largest chipmaker has become a darling of the stock market because its processors are widely used for artificial intelligence. Nvidia’s stock has risen by 31% since the year began, and 190% over the past 12 months – breaching all-time highs on a regular basis. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:39 How AI is being used in the workplace Last month’s unprecedented surge leaves Nvidia with a market cap of £1.22trn as investor enthusiasm surrounding AI shows no sign of…

An asteroid the size of a skyscraper will pass close to the Earth today – cosmically speaking.The hulk of space rock is expected to soar within 1.7 million miles of our planet, but there’s no chance of it hitting us, NASA says. The space agency’s Centre for Near Earth Object Studies estimates the asteroid is between 210 metres and 480 metres across.This means it could be a similar size to New York City’s Empire State Building or London’s The Shard.Discovered in 2008, the asteroid won’t be back our way again until 2032 – Friday is when it’s expected to be…

Britney Spears appears to have hit out at ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake after apologising for things she wrote about him in her autobiography.The 42-year-old singer initially shared a post on Instagram on Sunday, saying she was sorry if she had “offended any of the people I genuinely care about” in her memoir, The Woman In Me. The book, published in October, revealed she had an abortion while dating the former NSYNC star.Spears posted the apology along with a clip of Justin Timberlake singing on Saturday Night Live, and added: “I also wanted to say I am in love with Justin Timberlake’s…

Apple shares slumped in after-hours trading – driven by disappointing iPhone sales in China and a warning that future revenues will fall well short of expectations on Wall Street.The gloomy market reaction overshadowed an otherwise strong financial performance in Apple’s first fiscal quarter. In the three months to 30 December, the tech giant reported sales of $120bn (£94bn) and profit per share of $2.18 (£1.71) – comfortably beating targets set by analysts.However, Apple’s chief financial officer has warned that revenue in this current quarter will be at least £5bn (£3.9bn) less than the same period a year ago.Sales of iPhones…

Shares in Facebook’s parent company Meta have soared after it was announced that dividends will be paid to investors for the first time.Stock in the tech giant surged by more than 15% – adding more than £110bn to its valuation. To put this into context, that rise alone is five times higher than the whole value of its rival Snap. Meta has been on a winning streak in recent weeks, hitting record highs for the first time in over two years, with its financial performance beating expectations in its latest results. Image: Reuters file pic Analysts say the company has…

Russell Brand has described the “appalling” allegations against him as “very, very hurtful” – as he again denied all wrongdoing.In September, the actor and comedian was accused of rape, assault and emotional abuse between 2006 and 2013, following a joint investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches, The Times and The Sunday Times. A documentary about the claims also included allegations of controlling, abusive and predatory behaviour. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:30 Brand says he’s ‘the victim of a conspiracy’ One of Brand’s accusers claimed she was 16 and still at school when they began a…

The conversation about rate cuts has now officially begun.For months, even as the market began to bet that the Bank of England would soon begin reducing the cost of borrowing, those in Threadneedle Street were adamant that the time for such conversations had not yet come. In the minutes alongside each of its decisions, the Bank dropped heavy hints that it was just as, if not more, likely that the next move in interest rates would be up rather than down.Follow live: Reaction to Bank of England decisionNow, everything has changed. Today we learnt that one of the nine members…

Meta Platforms and Amazon.com added a combined $280bn in stock market value after the tech giants reported impressive quarterly results.It wasn’t such good news for Apple whose value shrank by $70bn after its results. Meta’s stock surged over 14% to a record high $451 elevating its overall value by $148bn to $1.16trn after the Facebook owner declared its first-ever dividend.The figures come after a year that saw a boost in digital advertising as well cost-cutting and layoffs in what chief executive Mark Zuckerberg called the “year of efficiency”.”This was a pivotal year for our company. We increased our operating discipline,…