UK house prices tipped to rise by up to 4% in 2026 as affordability improves – as it happened

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.With the year almost over, thoughts are lightly turning to what might happen in 2026.And lender Nationwide is predicting that UK house prices will climb by up to 4% next year, as getting onto the housing ladder becomes slightly less difficult.In their Outlook for 2026, Nationwide’s chief economist Robert Gardner predicts that lower borrowing costs could help the market in the 12 months ahead, saying:“Looking ahead, we expect housing market activity to strengthen a little further as affordability improves gradually (as it has been in recent quarters) via income growth outpacing house price growth and a further modest decline in interest rates.We expect annual house price growth to remain broadly in the 2 to 4% range next year

Brighton’s struggling independent stores: ‘The nation of shopkeepers will go on the dole’

City’s small shops are reaching tipping point amid higher business rates, staff costs and big chains eager to move inIt’s lunchtime at Dormitory, an independent bedlinen store on Gloucester Road in Brighton, and proprietors Sue Graham and Cathy Marriott are peering across the street at the Brighton Sausage Co. They can tell when shoppers have stayed indoors by the number of sausage rolls left in the window. It’s a Tuesday before Christmas – supposedly the busiest time of the year. But there’s still a big pile remaining.“In 10 years’ time, we’re all going to be going, ‘We need shops

Google AI summaries are ruining the livelihoods of recipe writers: ‘It’s an extinction event’

This past March, when Google began rolling out its AI Mode search capability, it began offering AI-generated recipes. The recipes were not all that intelligent. The AI had taken elements of similar recipes from multiple creators and Frankensteined them into something barely recognizable. In one memorable case, the Google AI failed to distinguish the satirical website the Onion from legitimate recipe sites and advised users to cook with non-toxic glue.Over the past few years, bloggers who have not secured their sites behind a paywall have seen their carefully developed and tested recipes show up, often without attribution and in a bastardized form, in ChatGPT replies

UK Treasury drawing up new rules to police cryptocurrency markets

Cryptocurrencies will be regulated in a similar way to other financial products under legislation coming into force in 2027.The Treasury is drawing up rules that will require crypto companies to meet a set of standards overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).Ministers have sought to overhaul the crypto market, which has ballooned in popularity as a way of investing money and making payments.Cryptocurrencies have not been subject to the same regulation as traditional financial products such as stocks and shares, which means that in many cases consumers do not enjoy the same level of protection.The government said the new rules would make the crypto industry more transparent, boost consumer confidence and make it easier to detect suspicious activity, impose sanctions and hold companies accountable

If Harry Brook is truly a generational talent, that promise needs to be delivered now | Barney Ronay

“They were shocking shots. I’ll admit that every day of the week. Especially the one in Perth. It was nearly a bouncer and I’ve tried to drive it. It was just bad batting

Ben Stokes calls on England to show some ‘dog’ in Adelaide and keep Ashes hopes alive

Ben Stokes has called on his England players to summon up the rage witnessed against India in the summer and show some “dog” as they look to keep their slim Ashes hopes alive in Adelaide.After going 2-0 down in Brisbane, Stokes spoke of Australia being “no country for weak men” and stressed the same went for the England dressing room under his captaincy. Looking ahead to the third Test that gets under way on Wednesday, that comment was seemingly no slip of the tongue.Instead, having allowed it to initially sit with his players during their mid-series break in Noosa, Stokes has since doubled down on it internally. This included a reminder of the time-wasting row with India at Lord’s back in July that triggered a spate of running verbals and, in the end, a 22-run win