Business news live: Pound and bonds recovering after Reeves gets backing, NS&I issue new Junior ISA rate

Good day in the green for investors on both sides of the Atlantic.

Approaching the close of play, the FTSE 100 is up 0.5 per cent today, with Natwest the biggest riser, 3.17 per cent to the good.

Pharma firms AstraZeneca and GSK are the laggards, 2.33 and 1.77 per cent down respectively.

Stateside, the S&P 500 is up 0.78 per cent and the Nasdaq is above that at 0.91 per cent.

Solar panel maker First Solar is leading the way there, almost 8.5 per cent up, with big-name risers including Expedia (+4pc), Intel (+2.5pc) and Boeing (+2pc).

More NS&I detail now as their 24/25 annual report has been released.

They show a total of more than 70 million prizes being paid out through Premium Bonds, totalling more than £5bn to savers.

The government received a net total of £9.75bn from NS&I – above the £9bn target.

Do you have Premium Bonds? Let us know in the comments – along with your best win from this year!

Those NS&I bond issues may be of interest to some if they want to get a guaranteed amount over the coming years…but there are definitely better rates on the market at the moment.

Here’s our roundup of savings rates – we cover easy access and Cash ISA rates in here too but there are fixed-rate deals to consider further down.

They start at 4.43 per cent and above, so it’s definitely worth looking around rather than diving straight into the NS&I ones.

NS&I, the owner of Premium Bonds, have announced a new Junior ISA rate which comes into effect from 18 July.

JISAs allow up to £9,000 to be put into an account annually to accrue tax-free savings for children, who can access and use them from age 18.

Their new interest rate for the product is 3.55 per cent.

Additionally a range of new 2, 3 and 5-year bonds have been confirmed, available immediately.

They each have an income rate of 3.85 per cent to 3.88 per cent AER.

Andrew Westhead, NS&I Retail Director, said: “[These products are] in response to changes in the wider market and will ensure we continue to offer a range of fixed-term options while balancing the interests of savers, taxpayers and the broader financial services sector.

“This is the first change to our Junior ISA interest rate in nearly two years, reflecting our ongoing commitment to helping young people save for their future.”

Hours earlier, the PM had effectively tied his fate to that of his chancellor, declaring that “we work together, we think together” and that Ms Reeves will be in place until the next general election and – optimistically – beyond.

Archie Mitchell on what’s next for the chancellor:

The UK’s services sector is growing at the fastest rate in ten months, a new report shows.

The S&P Global UK services PMI survey scored 52.8 for the month of June, up from 50.9 in May. A reading above 50 means the sector is growing; below it means it is contracting.

Some companies still highlighted economic conditions were limiting growth prospects, while the data also shows easing inflation and lowered hiring.

Donald Trump hasn’t been shy about letting the world know he wants the Fed to cut interest rates – but they’ve been standing firm.

With the next opportunity for change approaching, a continued slowdown in jobs might have increased pressure to do exactly that…but a surprise drop in unemployment has instead emerged.

Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter, said:

“The US economy continues to confound expectations, with the labour market adding 147,000 jobs in June, well above consensus expectations and recent averages. Furthermore, the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, suggesting that the US economy remains in robust shape. Nervousness has begun to creep into the US jobs market and with the end of the 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs ending next week, it was thought that the slowdown was under way.

“However, for now this seems to be far from the case. These job numbers will get far more attention than usual too because investors are watching for any sign that the labour market is beginning to weaken sufficiently to trigger an interest rate cut in July.

“Ultimately, this gives Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve the cover it will want to hold rates at the next meeting.”

One of the first studies into the impact of Trump tariffs has been produced and The Independent has exclusively seen the data on how it’s affecting small and medium-sized businesses in the UK.

It’s not a pretty picture for importers and exporters – who are naturally not all equipped to deal with the added challenges such volatility in financial markets that these trade deal sagas have led to.

The average cost to them is expected to be around £17,000 – and two per cent of SME’s think the impact will run past £1m.

“There’s a lot of hidden activity – SME businesses are constantly dealing with change,” Jonathan Andrew, chief executive at Bibby Financial Services, told The Independent. “Firms are making constant operational changes and even small businesses are having to assess how things impact on your own business.

“Doing nothing isn’t an option – that’s the reality of tariffs which is dawning now.”

Read the full report here:

Millie Cooke, our political correspondent, has looked at the upcoming budget to predict where taxes are coming:

In the wake of the U-turn, there are now growing questions over how the government will raise the money to fill the black hole in the public finances.

Ministers have already squeezed significant savings out of their departments in cuts that were unveiled at last month’s spending review, meaning there is now a mounting expectation that the chancellor will be forced to raise taxes instead.

Now into the afternoon after a positive morning session, it’s worth a look at how all the major markets are faring following the Rachel Reeves-related fallout of yesterday.

The pound is a little lower against the dollar than mid-morning but remains up 0.06 per cent for the day: £1 is $1.3658.

Much-watched 10-year bond yields are inching their way up and down across the day but in a downtrend – the yield movement is down 1.67 per cent today, which leaves the actual yield at 4.544 per cent.

And the FTSE 100 is having a fairly decent day, up 0.47 per cent to push close to a full 1 per cent gain for this week so far.