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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Poland is discussing ways of clubbing together with the UK and other European nations to drive up defence production while obtaining better value for taxpayers, its finance minister has said, as the continent responds to US pressure to bolster its military power. Andrzej Domański said it was “crystal clear” that European countries had to take more responsibility for their own security by spending “more and more wisely”, adding that he had discussed “new tools” for defence spending with UK chancellor Rachel Reeves…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.UK bond sales are forecast to rise to almost £310bn next year, a near record sum that will provide the latest test of market confidence in Rachel Reeves’ spending plans.Alongside the chancellor’s Spring Statement on public finances on March 26, the UK’s Debt Management Office will announce its intended issuance for the coming fiscal year. City investment banks expect the Treasury to increase its so-called net financing requirement for the year to March 2026 to £308bn, according to an average of 10…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The financial outlook for UK higher education has worsened, increasing the risk of a large provider becoming bankrupt, according to the university regulator.The sector’s finances are “towards the most pessimistic end” of modelling from last May, increasing the risk of a “sudden market exit” by a large provider, according to reports from an Office for Students board meeting in December, which were published on Wednesday.Universities have announced redundancies since the start of the year in an effort to offset the mounting pressure…

Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the Pharmaceuticals sector myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.Drugmakers have warned that a recent rise in the UK’s medicine sales tax has left the country “uninvestable”, as the government prepares for a summit to try to repair relationships with large pharmaceutical companies. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry on Thursday said the voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing, access and growth (Vpag) was leading companies to cut headcount and abandon partnerships with the NHS. Some pharmaceutical companies were delaying launching some new medicines in Britain because of the clawback tax,…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.British employers can find it cheaper to replace workers who fall sick than to invest in their retention, the former boss of John Lewis has said in a report that calls for stronger incentives for businesses to help tackle ill health.Sir Charlie Mayfield, who the government appointed to lead its “Keep Britain Working” review, said “muddled” and “misaligned” financial incentives for both employers and employees were one reason economic inactivity had worsened in the UK in comparison with other countries. In the UK,…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The UK government needs to be “more ambitious” in its negotiations with the EU in order to boost the country’s flagging goods exports, the head of the UK’s largest business organisation has warned.Shevaun Haviland, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said she would keep pushing the government to build on the warm words of recent diplomatic exchanges on resetting UK-EU relations to deliver material improvements for exporters. “We feel like the mood music is moving in the right direction. That’s good,…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Chancellor Rachel Reeves will not raise taxes in next week’s Spring Statement, Labour officials said, as they tried to dismiss Conservative claims that she is preparing an “emergency Budget”.Reeves will instead turn to public spending reductions — a combination of welfare cuts and savings to the planned budgets of Whitehall departments — to rebuild adequate headroom against her fiscal rules.Reeves’ allies said she was determined to reassure financial markets by maintaining a “reasonable” amount of headroom. “The markets are watching us carefully,”…

Sir Keir Starmer’s hopes of avoiding a widespread party rebellion over the government’s £5bn welfare cuts will be tested this weekend as Labour MPs return to face voters in their constituencies.The prime minister on Wednesday said the current welfare system was “broken” and that he would not shrug his shoulders and walk past a million people “trapped on benefits”. The public appears to be with him: pollster YouGov has found 68 per cent of the population supports reform to the welfare system.But Labour MPs expect angry confrontations on Friday when they hold surgeries with their constituents, whether from those directly…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The writer is co-chair of the Invest in Women Taskforce and head of Barclays Business BankThere’s only one thing worse for the UK’s female entrepreneurs than the current dismal level of investment in their businesses: the prospect of that share of equity investment falling even further. Astonishingly, that is precisely what the government-backed Invest in Women Taskforce has uncovered. Investment in female-led start-ups isn’t just stalling; it’s actually reversing, with increasing funds going to male-run start-ups focused on artificial intelligence.Research we commissioned…

Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the Global Economy myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.Central banks around the world are lowering borrowing costs as global inflation eases from the multi-decade highs reached in many countries in recent years.The FT global inflation and interest rates tracker provides a regularly updated visual narrative of consumer price inflation and central bank policy rates around the world.Some content could not load. Check your internet connection or browser settings.This page covers the factors affecting policymakers’ decisions on borrowing costs and whether central banks have increased or decreased interest rates.Some content could…