UK Business News

Soaring rates dash hopes of cheap home loans

Homebuyers braced for worsening of mortgage terms after Libor reacts to Bank of England message on base rates

Regent Inns talks go on as sales slide

The Walkabout and Jongleurs pub group has been hit by the smoking ban and a decline in consumer confidence

• Buyout group stalks Regent Inns

• Regent profit up in smoke amid tough trading

Cenkos takeover talks with Arden collapse

Arden said it had received preliminary approaches from other parties that could result in an offer for the company

Grade says sorry for phone-in scandal

Ant & Dec were among the stars who received an apology from the chairman as he told shareholders that ITV is now on track

World Business News

Rice prices dive as grain pact set to unwind

Traders sell as Japan and US on verge of scrapping a WTO rule that would release 1.5m tons of rice onto the market

Icahn wants Yahoo! bid back on the table

Activist investor seeks to double search engine stake and says the board is 'irrational' for rejecting Microsoft offer

• Yahoo! plunges on abandoned Microsoft bid

• Microsoft poised to take Yahoo! bid hostile

Carlsberg launches £3bn rights issue for S&N

The proceeds will repay the loan that funded Carlsberg's side of the £10 billion deal for the Newcastle brewer

• Price of a pint will have to rise says SABMiller

• Dunsmore approach as M&B looks at Spirit deal

Russia shows political clout with Bric summit

Meeting of foreign ministers in Russia is seen by observers as a rebuff to the US which opposes Russian G8 membership

Analysis

Tempus: A time to get picky

It is rare to call the precise top and trough of markets, but there are a few pointers that can help you spot a turn in sentiment

Verwaayen waves goodbye to BT

For his last set of results, BT's chief pulled some better than expected numbers out of the hat, but it was still a lukewarm send-off

• DSG faces formidable high street challenges

• Stakes heading higher for Jerry Yang of Yahoo!

Why no phone-ins investigation?

The recent scandals amount to nothing less than fraud and there is public amazement that the SFO appears so uninterested

Money  

Exclusive: City watchdog condemns pension funds

In a damning report seen by Times Online, the Financial Services Authority accuses the insurance industry of offering misleading advice to retirees

• Women losing out on state pensions

• Pension boost for stay-at-home mums

Buy the kids a house

The benefits of helping your children on to the property ladder - and how to do it

• How to help the boomerang kids

• Lenders call time on parental help

Do not follow the investment fads

How chasing short-term returns can prove a costly mistake for fund investors

Law 

Hunter plans fresh talks in Tesco garden fight

After a judge refuses Sir Tom Hunter's request, the billionaire says he will start new discussions over Dobbies

• Dobbies to raise £150m after profits slump

• Tesco unfazed by warning from Dobbies on profits

Commons ordered to release MP expenses

Speaker Michael Martin to decide whether to appeal against High Court's decision to force release of expenses

Yorkshire Ripper launches freedom bid

Peter Sutcliffe is likely to be told that he will never be freed when he is given the minimum term to serve for 13 murders