The fallout from last year's West Coast mainline fiasco was the �final straw� that forced FirstGroup to launch a heavily discounted rights issue on Monday, according to its chief executive.

Mon May 20, 2013 2:08pm BST. (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said it is acquiring blogging service Tumblr for $1.1 billion (723.5 million pounds) cash, a bold bet by Chief Executive Marissa Mayer to revitalize the struggling Internet pioneer by co-opting a Web property ...

By Sudip Kar-Gupta. LONDON | Mon May 20, 2013 12:03pm BST. LONDON (Reuters) - The FTSE 100 steadied near its highest level in five-and-a-half years on Monday, helped by a rise in bank stocks, and most analysts expected further near-term gains.

LONDON | Mon May 20, 2013 12:50pm BST. LONDON (Reuters) - British retailer Marks & Spencer is expected to report its lowest annual profit in four years on Tuesday as a struggling general merchandise division drags on the growth in food sales.

Retail sales increased at their fastest pace since December 2009 in a surprisingly upbeat set of data from the British Retail Consortium helped by sales of electronic items.

The Ernst & Young Item Club, which makes economic forecasts using the Treasury's own methods, says inflation has cost the UK �10bn over the last three years alone.

LONDON�Budget carrier Ryanair Holdings PLC is targeting expansion in Northern Europe as it pursues an ambitious growth strategy with plans to increase traffic by 25% over the next five years.

Rising pig prices posed the biggest challenge for Cranswick (CRK) last year - although the food producer offset much of this pressure through pricing, operational efficiencies, increased capacity and new business.

The price of a new home in London soared by almost 7 per cent in April as first-time buyers fought to get on to the property ladder.

David Cameron has refused to say whether he will question Google's chairman over allegations that the internet giant is exploiting tax loopholes at a meeting on Monday that will discuss tightening up international tax rules.