BUSINESS LIVE: Games Workshop agrees Amazon deal; Hollywood Bowl sees record sales; Keywords Studios buys The Multiplayer

Just before close, the FTSE 100 was 0.47% up at 7,611.73.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 was 0.10% lower at 19,189.04.

BT and other telecoms providers have agreed to pause forcing customers onto new digital landlines following a number of ‘serious incidents’ involving the failure of personal ‘telecare’ alarms.

Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan called a meeting with the leading telecoms firms including Sky, BT, Virgin Media 02 and TalkTalk following multiple incidents when the devices failed due to the digital switchover.

Unilever has agreed to sell Elida Beauty to US private equity firm Yellow Wood Partners.

Elida, which is Unilever’s non-core beauty and personal care division, houses more than 20 beauty and personal care brands including Q-Tips, Brut, Caress, Timotei and Tigi.

(PA) – Oil giant BP has paused all of its tanker journeys through the Red Sea due to attacks by militants in Yemen.

It said it has witnessed a “deteriorating security situation” for its shipments.

Iranian-backed Houthi militants have stepped up attacks on vessels in the Red Sea in recent days.

The rebels are understood to be targeting ships using the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, with the pro-Hamas group seeking to disrupt ships set for Israel.

On Monday, BP said: “In our trading & shipping business, as in all BP businesses, the safety and security of our people and those working on our behalf is BP’s priority.

“In light of the deteriorating security situation for shipping in the Red Sea, BP has decided to temporarily pause all transits through the Red Sea.

“We will keep this precautionary pause under ongoing review, subject to circumstances as they evolve in the region.”

A number of shipping firms, such Maersk, had already paused container shipments through the area due to the surge in attacks.

Danish firm Maersk said it would suspend its activity in the region following a near miss involving its Maersk Gibraltar ship on Thursday.

Sales of gift cards are set to rise this Christmas as many opt for a voucher as an easy present that is seen as more thoughtful than cold hard cash.

Britons bought £1.35billion worth of gift cards between January and June this year according to the Gift Card and Voucher Association, up 8.4 per cent on the same period in 2022.

More homes will be able to access cheaper heat pumps as the Government has pledged another £1.5billion for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme gives Government grants of up to £7,500 for fitting air and ground source heat pumps and up to £5,000 for biomass boilers.

Hollywood Bowl Group scored record revenue last financial year as poor summer weather drove families to seek affordable indoor entertainment.

Britain’s largest ten-pin bowling operator, which also owns Puttstars minigolf outlets, revealed turnover increased by 16.2 per cent to £215.1million in the year ending September.

Vodafone shares jumped by nearly 7 per cent on Monday after French telecoms company Iliad proposed a merger of the pair’s Italian businesses.

Iliad, which is owned by French billionaire Xavier Niel, has submitted a proposal that would see the London-listed firm take 50 per cent of the share capital of a newly merged business.

The new boss of Morrisons has delivered a stark warning to his workers that major changes are needed in order for the supermarket chain to survive.

French businessman Rami Baitiéh, 52, went from Paris to Bradford last month as he joined Morrisons from supermarket giant Carrefour.

There has been a big shift in the used car market in 2023.

Post Covid lockdowns, the value of second-hand motors went into overdrive as customers were unable to get their hand on new models as a result of short supply triggered by parts delays and factory closures.

London-listed video game services firm Keywords Studios has acquired UK game developer The Multiplayer Group (MPG).

The Dublin-headquartered group will pay £76.5million in cash to current owner Improbable to take full control of the Nottingham-based game studio.

Games Workshop has struck a deal with Amazon to develop Warhammer 40,000 into films and television series.

In a deal being described by analysts as a ‘game changer’ for Games Workshop, the tabletop game manufacturer said it would work with the tech behemoth for 12 months to ‘agree creative guidelines’ for prospective productions.

Residents associations have had their Barclays accounts closed or restricted with little warning in recent months, This is Money can reveal.

(PA) – Britain is set to charge a carbon levy on imported goods under plans announced by the Treasury to help prevent UK firms being undercut by overseas manufacturers.

The Treasury said the proposed new tax will come into effect in 2027, ensuring that imports of products such as iron, steel, aluminium, ceramics and cement from overseas will face a comparable so-called carbon price to those manufactured in Britain.

A carbon price is used by governments to help reduce emissions by charging a fee on carbon pollution to encourage industries to cut their greenhouse gases.

There have been mounting calls for the UK Government to tackle “carbon leakage” over concerns that UK companies are being undercut by cheaper, but higher carbon, imports from countries where they charge a lower or no carbon price.

The Treasury said the plans will help level the playing field and boost UK industry investment in cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “This levy will make sure carbon intensive products from overseas – like steel and ceramics – face a comparable carbon price to those produced in the UK, so that our decarbonisation efforts translate into reductions in global emissions.

“This should give UK industry the confidence to invest in decarbonisation as the world transitions to net zero.”

The FTSE 100 has opened flat as investors await more global economic data this week, while Vodafone’s shares top the index after telecom firm Iliad submitted a proposal to create a joint venture in Italy.

Precious metal miners are among the top decliners, falling 1.2 per cent as Fresnillo loses 5 per cent after Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating to “underweight” from “equal-weight”.

Data due this week includes UK, euro zone, and U.S. inflation readings, along with GDP estimates from Britain and the United States.

Among individual stocks, Vodafone has jumped 4.3 per cent after Iliad said it had submitted a proposal to the telecom company to merge their Italian businesses, adding this project had the unanimous support of its board of directors.

Entain has gained 3.5% after Jefferies upgraded the sports betting firm’s rating to “buy” from “hold”.

Industry regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), said it was an ‘era defining moment’ for the £17.5bn UK space sector.

SaxaVord would be the first fully licensed spaceport in Western Europe to be able to launch vertically into orbit. The site – a former RAF radar station – would be permitted to launch 30 rockets per year to take satellites into space.

Much has been made of the failure of 60/40 in 2022. And rightly so.

Many investors have put faith in the strategy. It follows a common philosophy in finance, diversifying your assets by putting 60 per cent in equities and the remainder in bonds.

National Grid has dropped a Beijing-backed supplier as concerns mount over China’s involvement in critical infrastructure.

The FTSE 100 firm that runs Britain’s power network took advice from the National Cyber Security Centre – a branch of GCHQ – on the decision.

It terminated contracts with the UK arm of Nari Technology, backed by the Chinese government, in April, and has begun removing its components.

Hollywood Bowl Group enjoyed record revenues of £215.1million, with the firm crediting ‘significant customer demand’ and ‘the success of our customer focused strategy’.

Revenue growth of 16.2 per cent gelped to drive earnings before nasties of £64.9million, up from £60.6million last year.

‘This is another excellent performance for the Group, achieved against an exceptionally strong prior year. It reflects significant customer demand, as well as the success of our customer focused strategy.

‘Innovation of our offer has led to growth across all our revenue lines while keeping our prices low, with a family of four able to bowl for £25. We have continued to invest in and grow our estate, opening new centres in the UK and Canada where we see significant potential.

‘The strength of our balance sheet and our highly cash generative business model supports our profitable growth strategy in the UK and Canada. This includes continued investment in our estate, technology and enhancing our customer proposition, and the Board’s decision to increase the pay-out ratio for our ordinary dividend to 55% from 50% of adjusted profit after tax. Longer term, we see the opportunity to grow our estate to at least 130 centres.

‘We have had an encouraging start to the year with people looking for ways to enjoy activities with families, friends and colleagues demonstrating the continued strong demand for high quality, great value leisure experiences.’

The world’s biggest unicorn companies have suffered an £8billion slump in value this year, with retailers seeing the biggest drops as households struggled with the cost-of-living crisis.

Research showed the total value of the top 100 unicorn firms – which are private companies with a valuation of at least $1billion (£800m) – dropped 1 per cent in the 12 months to September 2023. There was a 30 per cent increase in value in the previous year.

Games Workshop will work with Amazon to develop films and TV series set within the UK’s firm’s Warhammer 40,000 universe, as part of a 12-month deal agreed with the tech giant.

The agreement also includes an option for Amazon to license equivalent rights in the Warhammer Fantasy universe following the release of the initial Warhammer 40,000 production.

‘The agreement will only proceed once the creative guidelines are mutually agreed between Games Workshop and Amazon.’ the group said.