Craneware will use Microsoft's Azure platformShares up 38% year-to-dateStrengthens existing relationship with MicrosoftShares in Craneware (CRW:AIM) were up over 2% to £23.65 in morning trading as the Edinburgh-based healthcare software company announced a tie-up with tech giant Microsoft (MSFT:NASDAQ).Craneware provides software solutions that help hospitals and other healthcare providers discov

Stock prices in London opened largely in the green on Thursday, with the FTSE 100 registering a solid gain before an expected Bank of England rate hold in the early afternoon.There was a slew of M&A updates in early UK corporate news, adding some excitement before Threadneedle Street takes centre-stage.The FTSE 100 index traded 22.16 points higher, 0.3%, at 8,227.27. The FTSE 250 was up 65.85 poin

Announcing a new share buyback programme has been one way to trigger a share price boost. The ease at which companies have made such capital allocation decisions has naturally caught the attention of politicians, thus buybacks are increasingly a target for tax collectors.Joe Biden has already pushed through a 1% tax on buybacks in the US and wants to raise that level to 4% if he gets a second term

Stocks in London made a cautious start to the week, with falls in mining stocks pegging back the FTSE 100 after mixed economic data from China.The FTSE 100 index traded down 7.60 points, 0.1%, at 8,139.26. The FTSE 250 edged up just 1.22 points to 20,121.58, and the AIM All-Share lost 0.54 of a point, 0.1%, at 775.50.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.2% at 810.01, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at 17,517.86

Annual sales plunge 18%Cost-cutting drives improved H2 performanceNew CEO sets out recovery and growth strategyMind Gym's (MIND:AIM) shares slumped the best part of 30% to an all-time low of 27.5p after the corporate training specialist reported an 18% plunge in sales for the year to 31 March 2024 driven by constricted customer HR (human resources) budgets and warned the new financial year will be

Stock prices in London opened higher on Tuesday as investors became focused on the upcoming US Federal Reserve's interest rate decision, after shares fell Monday following the EU election.The FTSE 100 index opened up 11.92 points, 0.1%, at 8,240.40. The FTSE 250 was up 65.24 points, 0.3%, at 20,511.28, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.08 of a point at 788.36.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.2% at 821.56, th

The FTSE 100 was up in London at midday, following positive manufacturing data, while Labour reiterated its commitments to defence on the general election campaign trail.The FTSE 100 index was up 17.18 points, or 0.2%, at 8,292.63. The FTSE 250 was up 165.40 points, or 0.8%, at 20,895.27, and the AIM All-Share was up 2.30 points, or 0.3%, at 808.09.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 827.98, the Cboe U

The FTSE 100 was higher in London on Monday morning, amid a slew of manufacturing data, and as Labour leader Keir Starmer made promises over the weekend to bring down migration.The FTSE 100 index opened up 53.95 points, 0.7%, at 8,328.81. The FTSE 250 was up 114.93 points, or 0.6%, at 20,845.32, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.81 points, or 0.1%, at 806.60.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.7% at 831.85, the

Prime minister Rishi Sunak's decision to call an early general election came too late for UK investors to respond, but the 'day after the night before' saw the the FTSE 100 close 30 points or 0.4% lower at 8,339 which is hard to read anything into as far as markets are concerned.A more telling reaction was the bounce in sterling, which continued its month-long advance against the euro as any chanc

AI chip giant knocks the lights out againNet profits surges to $15 billionStock blasts past $1,000 for first timeNvidia (NVDA:NASDAQ) continues to knock the ball out of the park and prove the AI (artificial intelligence) revolution is very real. The $2.3 trillion AI powerhouse worshipped by financial markets and Silicon Valley, has to pass increasingly tough tests of investor's faith with every qu

The persistently high interest rate environment means companies are under pressure to cut costs and jobs are an obvious target. While they can cut their workforce through redundancies or slash the wage bill through shorter or fewer shifts, others might already be operating with a skeleton crew and cannot pare back any further.It is against this scenario that higher wages are adding to companies? p

Lowest profit margins in four years predictedElectric vehicle maker appears to have ditched its low-cost model plansStock has fallen 42% this yearMega tech earnings kick-off this week with Tesla (TSLA:NASDAQ) set to get the ball rolling after the market close Tuesday (23 Apr), and the results and commentary are likely to be bleak.The electric vehicle giant earlier this month reported an 8.5% decli

London stock prices mostly recovered on Thursday from the threat of higher for longer US interest rates, while initial jobless claims remained stable.The FTSE 100 index closed up 29.06 points, 0.4%, at 7,877.05. The FTSE 250 ended up 110.53 points, 0.6%, at 19,450.67, and the AIM All-Share closed up 2.17 points, up 0.3%, at 745.29.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.2% at 786.93, the Cboe UK 250 closed up

iShares Automation & Robotics ETF(RBTX) £10.22Fund size: £2.77 billionIn scenes from the film I, Robot, androids can be seen doing all sorts of household tasks ? running errands, carry heavy shopping, cleaning the home, for example. In the real world most robots do repetitive, heavy-lifting, and dangerous tasks in places like car factories.Yet humans and robots are forming a close friendship lik

In a surprising development for a company which is usually considered fairly staid, Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) circulated an internal memo last month letting staff know it was ?saying goodbye? to a number people in its risk management team after an internal review found the function was hampering its transformation plans.The memo from the bank?s chief risk officer, seen by the Financial Times, cl

Profit from permanent recruitment down 18.6%UK gross profit falls by 19.2%Headcount reduced by 100Shares in PageGroup (PAGE) fell 6% to 456p after the recruitment firm reported a 12.8% fall in group gross profit to £219.7 million for the first quarter of 2024.CEO Nicholas Kirk warned: ?The slower end to the fourth quarter of 2023 continued into the first quarter 2024, particularly within continen

The cruise industry is enjoying an unprecedented boom with around 35.7 million passengers expected to book a trip this year, up from 31.5 million in 2023 and 6% more than the number of passengers who set sail in 2019 according to the CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association).Going on a cruise holiday is slowly become a more popular alternative then jumping on a plane or a high-speed train to E

Stock prices in Europe ended higher on Thursday, with the most convincing gains coming from the blue-chip benchmark in Paris, which topped 8,000 points for the first time.The FTSE 100?s gains were more muted, though it did extend its winning streak to three days.Interest rate optimism helped equities on Thursday. The conviction that the European Central Bank will enact its first of the cycle in Ju

EV fantasy Project Titan ditched after more than a decade of rumourInvestors have been critical over Apple?s slow AI embraceCould this be a trigger for share price performance revival?An Apple (AAPL:NASDAQ) electric car always sounded terribly exciting, capturing the imagination of futurists, but rationality seems to have finally dawned at Cupertino. You can argue that Apple is a device maker, and

London?s FTSE 100 struggled on Monday, as robust US services data strengthened the case for the Federal Reserve to hold off on cutting interest rates for now.The FTSE 100 index slipped just 2.68 points to 7,612.86. The FTSE 250 fell 154.09 points, 0.8%, at 19,018.55, and the AIM All-Share gave back 3.80 points, 0.5%, at 750.37.The Cboe UK 100 closed down 0.1% at 761.09, the Cboe UK 250 slumped 1.0