Remember when lockdown tanked business sentiment? We’re nearly back there. Rachel Reeves’ Budget has left UK business leaders feeling worse about their prospects than at any point since April 2020, and the numbers are brutal.

The Institute of Directors (IoD) just released its monthly survey, and it’s not a pretty read. Business confidence in their own organisations plummeted from -5 to -20 immediately after the Budget. Directors aren’t just worried, they’re bracing for impact. Why? The Budget delivered tax hikes without the growth policies businesses were hoping for.

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Picture this: two heavyweight FTSE-listed funds announce they’re merging to create Britain’s largest infrastructure investment firm. Sounds brilliant, right? Well, not if you’re an HICL shareholder.

The proposed merger between HICL Infrastructure and The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG) has been scrapped after investors made their feelings crystal clear. HICL’s board admitted it couldn’t push through the deal “without a substantial majority of support from its own investors.” Translation? The numbers just weren’t there.

Despite both boards insisting the strategic rationale was solid, sometimes conviction isn’t enough when your shareholders aren’t buying what you’re selling.

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Last week’s top story

UK manufacturing just did something it hasn’t managed since September 2023: it grew. After 14 months of contraction, the sector’s finally crossed into positive territory with a PMI reading of 50.2 in November. It’s modest progress, but it’s progress nonetheless, and it comes at a crucial moment, landing just a day before Rachel Reeves unveiled her Autumn Budget. The question now? Whether this fragile uptick can survive the pressures piling up on Britain’s makers.

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