Bitcoin forecast to plunge 80pc as JP Morgan warns over ‘cascade’ of crypto margin calls

Bitcoin could lose 80pc of its value amid a “cascade of margin calls” in the wake of the crisis at the FTX crypto exchange, JP Morgan has warned.

Analysts at the Wall Street bank said the world’s biggest cryptocurrency could tumble to $13,000 – an 80pc drop from its peak of over $68,000.

It comes as a liquidity crunch at FTX, which was founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, sends shockwaves through the volatile sector.

Rival exchange Binance last night walked away from an emergency bailout, leaving FTX on the brink.

Bitcoin is now down by almost 60pc this year. It has fallen from just under $19,000 per coin last Friday to below $15,000 today.

Read the latest updates below.

01:18 PM

Train drivers announce fresh strike

Train drivers working for 12 British operators will go on strike on November 26 in an ongoing dispute over pay.

PA reported the walkout by the Aslef union, which is the latest in a wave of industrial action hitting Britain’s railways.

01:17 PM

Britain left out of post-Covid jobs recovery as early retirement surges

Britain will next year be the only developed country with fewer people in work than before the Covid crisis after a surge in early retirement and ill health, experts have said.

Eir Nolsoe has more:

Story continues

Read Eir’s full story here

12:26 PM

Ikea hands staff cash and discounts amid cost-of-living crunch

Ikea is launching a €10m (£8.7m) social fund and bigger staff discounts to support employees struggling to cope with higher living costs.

Ingka, the parent company that owns most of the Swedish furniture stores, said the fund would support its “most cash-strapped” staff throughout its financial year to the end of August.

The company said: “Each Ingka Group country will give support to co-workers who may need ‘one-off’ financial assistance to, for example, pay electricity bills or for housing costs.”

Ingka, which employs around 170,000 people across 31 markets, said it would also double staff discounts to 30pc in its in-store food markets and on more than 2,000 energy-saving products such as water saving taps, light bulbs, bedspreads and appliances.

“The cost-of-living crisis is hitting many people hard. Some more than others,” it said. “We want to be able to support co-workers through this time, while balancing the needs of our business, always guided by our values.”

12:10 PM

US futures rise ahead of inflation data

US futures pushed higher this morning as investors remained on the edge ahead of figures expected to show that inflation moderated for a fourth successive month.

Investors are looking for firmer signs of a peak in US inflation that could herald a slowdown in the pace and severity of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate rises.

While economists expected headline inflation to fall to 7.9pc for October, traders remain cautious given the reading has repeatedly overshot projections this year.

Futures tracking the S&P 500 and Dow Jones rose 0.3pc and 0.2pc respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.5pc.

11:23 AM

EU proposes new cyber and army plans amid security fears

The European Commission has proposed two action plans to address the “deteriorating security environment” following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, to bolster cyber defence and to allow armed forces to move faster and better across borders.

The EU executive said: “Cyberspace has no borders. Recent cyber-attacks on energy networks, transport infrastructure and space assets show the risks that they pose to both civilian and military actors.”

It said this called for more action to protect citizens and armed forces, as well as the EU’s civilian and military missions and operations, against cyber threats.

A separate Action Plan on Military Mobility will help European armed forces to respond better, more rapidly and at sufficient scale to crises erupting at the EU’s external borders and beyond, the Commission said.

10:54 AM

Heathrow welcomes Loganair as first new British airline in 28 years

Heathrow airport has welcomed its first new British airline in nearly three decades because of the war in Ukraine, writes Oliver Gill.

Read Ollie’s full story here

10:20 AM

Let more foreign workers into UK, says Next boss

The Government must let more foreign workers into the UK to help ease chronic labour shortages, the boss of Next has said.

Lord Wolfson said the UK’s immigration policy was holding back economic growth.

He told the BBC: “We have got people queuing up to come to this country to pick crops that are rotting in fields, to work in warehouses that otherwise wouldn’t be operable, and we’re not letting them in.

“And we have to take a different approach to economically productive migration.”

Lord Wolfson, who was a vocal supporter of Brexit, said the country should open up its borders to more workers, though he said firms should pay a tax to hire foreign staff to encourage them to recruit from the UK first.

He added: “I think in respect of immigration, it’s definitely not the Brexit that I wanted, or indeed, many of the people who voted Brexit, but more importantly, the vast majority of the country.

“Yes, control it, where it’s damaging to society, but let people in who can who can contribute.”

09:51 AM

UK sanctions freeze £18bn in Russian assets

The UK has frozen a total of £18.4bn in Russian assets since it rolled out strict sanctions in the wake of the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

That represents about £6bn more than all other sanctioned regimes, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation said.

Alongside its allies, the UK has penalised over 1,200 people and 120 businesses.

The Treasury has received 236 reports of sanctions breaches since the invasion. Russian billionaire Petr Aven is challenging allegations that he evaded sanctions by using accounts held by his wife and estate management firms to fund his lavish lifestyle.

Andrew Griffith, economic secretary to the Treasury, said:

09:13 AM

Crypto titan on the brink as white knight abandons rescue plan

ICYMI – One of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges is on the verge of collapsing, it emerged on Wednesday night, after talks with its main rival about an emergency bailout fell apart.

Matt Oliver has more:

Read Matt’s full story here

08:49 AM

FTSE risers and fallers

The FTSE 100 has slipped into the red, with markets looking ahead to US inflation figures this afternoon.

The blue-chip index slipped 0.1pc, with oil and energy stocks leading losses.

Oil giants Shell and BP were the biggest drag on the index, tracking prices of oil and metals that were hit by a stronger dollar.

B&M was the biggest faller, down more than 6pc after its first-half results. Auto Trader also lost ground following an update.

But losses were capped by AstraZeneca, which was up 1.5pc after the pharma giant raised its full-year adjusted earnings forecast, helped by sales of its roster of cancer drugs.

British Gas owner Centrica topped gains, jumping more than 8pc as its profits surged.

The domestically-focused FTSE 250 fell 0.4pc.

08:33 AM

Estate agents say buyer interest matches financial crisis lows

The recent jump in borrowing cuts has hit inquiries by potential home buyers for the six straight month and driven sentiment to the lowest since the financial crisis, according to UK estate agents.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ index measuring sentiment from new buyers dropped to minus 55pc in October from minus 36pc the month before.

That matched lows recorded during pandemic lockdowns and the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009.

Simon Rubinsohn, RICS chief economicst, said: “The volume of activity is likely to slip back over the coming months, and realistic pricing is now much more important to complete a sale.

“The settling down in financial markets could provide some relief.”

The findings add to evidence that house prices are falling after Budget measures introduced during Liz Truss’s brief spell as prime minister spooked investors and sent interest rates soaring in financial markets.

While most of those measures have been reversed, mortgage rates remain near the highest in more than a decade.

08:11 AM

AstraZeneca raises profit guidance on cancer and diabetes drugs

AstraZeneca has raised its profit guidance for this year, saying drugs like Farxiga for diabetes and Tagrisso for cancer are fuelling demand.

The pharmaceutical giant said core earnings per share could grow by a percentage in the low thirties – up from the high twenties previous expected – despite the negative impact of currency movements.

Profit surged to $1.67 per share in the third quarter, beating the $1.52 analysts had estimated. The company left its sales guidance unchanged. Shares rose 1.6pc in early trading.

The company benefitted from sales of cancer drugs as diagnoses progressively return to pre-pandemic levels. The rare disease medicine Ultomiris also fuelled gains and its diabetes treatment Farxiga achieved a third quarter of bumper sales.

However, AstraZeneca warned it faced “geopolitical and supply-chain uncertainties” that could still affect its performance.

08:01 AM

FTSE 100 drops at the open

The FTSE 100 has fallen into the red as markets opened, with traders looking ahead to US inflation data due this afternoon.

The blue-chip index tumbled 0.6pc to 7,255 points.

07:50 AM

National Grid profit jumps 50pc on local networks boost

National Grid’s operating profit has jumped 50pc thanks to higher revenues from its new UK distribution network assets.

The company’s earnings per share for the first half rose to 32.4p, with underlying operating profit jumping to £2.1bn.

The figures include a full six month of revenues following the takeover of Western Power Distribution – the largest power distribution company in the UK – as well as the sale of a power company in Rhode Island. The company’s US assets were boosted by the stronger dollar.

National Grid plans to increase its spending in the coming years, with plans to fork out £40bn on critical infrastructure by 2026, up from a previous range of £30bn to £35bn.

07:41 AM

WH Smith swings to profit thanks to travel rebound

Retailer WH Smith has swung to an annual profit thanks to a rebound in the global travel market and a resurgent performance on the high street.

The iconic retailer posted headline pre-tax profits of £61m for the year to August 31 against losses of £104m the previous year, when Covid restrictions impacted its high street sites and shops in train stations and airports.

WH Smith said total sales across its travel business rebounded above pre-pandemic levels in the second half to 130pc of 2019 revenue in the second half.

Its high street arm traded at 82pc of 2019 levels in the final six months, or 83pc on a comparable store basis.

WH Smith resumed dividend payouts to investors after the performance turnaround and as it said solid trading had continued into the new year, with total sales at 125pc of 2019 revenues in the 10 weeks to November 5.

Carl Cowling, chief executive of WH Smith, said:

07:29 AM

British Gas forecasts big profits despite warm weather

The owner of British Gas has said its profits will be at the top end of expectations this year despite recent warm weather that’s pushed back demand for heating.

Centrica said adjusted earnings per share for the year will be closer to the 26p forecast by the most optimistic analysts than the lower bound of 15.1p.

That’s despite the group’s retail division selling less energy and making a smaller profit because of unseasonable warm weather in October.

07:21 AM

Leo Varadkar hits out at Twitter over email about Musk’s job cuts

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar has criticised Twitter for sending an email to his department alerting him to hundreds of job cuts in the social media firm’s Irish operations.

Mr Varadkar said Twitter had not broken any laws in how it announced the redundancies but said he was not impressed by how Elon Musk handled the situation.

He told the Indo Daily podcast: “They went about it in an unconventional way by email, but they didn’t actually break any laws – because none of those redundancies have actually been effected.

“The law is that you have to give people 30 days’ notice before the redundancy has taken effect, so they haven’t actually breached any rules. But they went about it in not in the best way, quite frankly.”

The former Taioseach said Stripe and Meta had handled their recent job cuts much better.

07:01 AM

Good morning

The boss of Next has urged the Government to allow more foreign workers to enter the UK amid widespread labour shortages.

Lord Wolfson said immigration rules were holding back economic growth.

He told the BBC: “We have got people queuing up to come to this country to pick crops that are rotting in fields, to work in warehouses that otherwise wouldn’t be operable, and we’re not letting them in.

“And we have to take a different approach to economically productive migration.”

However, Lord Wolfson said companies should have to pay a tax to hire foreign workers as an incentive to hire from the UK first.

5 things to start your day

1) How the rapid fall of a crypto titan wiped out billions in hours FTX has been forced to seek a bailout from rival Binance after a dramatic spike in withdrawals

2) Rolls-Royce seeks to open mini-nuclear reactors across Wales, the North and West Midlands by 2030 Engineering giant aims to build 30 reactors to kick-start nuclear revolution

3) Shell handed £90m by taxpayers under energy price guarantee The payments are one part of a major Government package to shield households

4) Mark Zuckerberg sacks 11,000 Meta staff Facebook founder takes ‘accountability for these decisions and for how we got here’

5) Serious Fraud Office chief to step down after controversial tenure Former FBI lawyer Lisa Osofsky presided over a string of major bribery investigations

What happened overnight

Asian share markets pulled back this morning and the dollar held its overnight gains before the big test of a US consumer inflation report, while market sentiment took a dive as the likely collapse of a major crypto exchange spooked investors.

With no final results available from the US mid-term elections, investors were turning to upcoming inflation data later in the day, which is likely to show a slowing in both the monthly and yearly core numbers for October to 0.5pc and 6.5pc, respectively, according to a Reuters poll.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.2pc, dragged lower by a 1pc drop in China’s blue-chips and a 1.8pc retreat in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index. Japan’s Nikkei lost 1pc.