Business news live: FTSE 100 rises and Warren Buffett’s new $1bn investment

A report has suggested more than 100 large supermarkets across the UK could be forced to close due to rising rates.

Government plans to put up the amounts businesses must pay for big retail stores will make 50 Sainsbury’s stores, “tens” of Tescos and others for the likes of Asda and Morrisons unprofitable, the FT reported.

The larger supermarkets operate with thin profit margins, relying on huge bulk selling to generate cash.

They are reportedly displeased that the plans would also not hit discount rivals Lidl and Aldi, as they run smaller stores which would be unaffected by the plans.

A senior figure in the hospitality sector has sent a stark warning to Rachel Reeves ahead of the autumn Budget: “Your taxes are curtailing growth”.

Baton Berisha, chief executive of Rare Restaurants – the company which owns Gaucho and M restaurant brands – has called for National Insurance Contributions (NICs) to be restored to the level they were before April’s increase and said he had the backing of others in the industry wanting the same.

Pointing to Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures, Mr Berisha highlighted 84,000 jobs have been lost in the hospitality sector since the NICs hike took effect in April 2025 – equating to roughly 13,000 jobs disappearing per month since then.

Warren Buffett is heading for retirement after announcing he’ll hand over the reigns at Berkshire Hathaway.

Despite that his moves in the stock market still carry serious weight – as shown by the fact UnitedHealth shares rose 10 per cent once it became known Buffett’s firm had taken a stake worth $1.6bn (£1.1bn).

Buffett used to own a large holding in the organisation before selling in 2010; now he’s back with a far bigger stake after the share price had fallen by more than half this year.

Berkshire also continued to sell Apple shares, while also buying Chevron, Domino’s Pizza and Constellation Brands.

Fast fashion giant Shein has revealed its UK sales surged by almost a third last year ahead of plans to float the company.

Fresh accounts filed on Companies House also showed higher profits as its low-price products continued to attract growing popularity, particularly among younger shoppers.

It comes as the online retail group, which was founded in China and headquartered in Singapore, continues with efforts to secure a stock market IPO (initial public offering).

A first look at the markets this morning and we can see the FTSE 100 has shot upwards early on, a 0.3 per cent rise led by four miners up between 2 and 3.1% each: Antofagasta is the biggest climber, followed by Glencore, Anglo American, Rio Tinto.

In both Germany and France the main index is up by about 0.45 per cent as investors look to finish the week on a high.

Last night, US trading was totally flat, with the Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 all within 0.03 per cent either side of the zero line.

Good morning all – one final day this week for our business and live financial news coverage for you.

As usual, Friday is somewhat quieter in terms of company reports and the like – so we’ll delve more into the news which matters to your wallet, look ahead to next week and bring you everything that matters around UK firms.