Business news live: FTSE 100 near record, latest gold and oil prices

Rachel Reeves’s plan to encourage savers to move their cash into investments has sparked a lively reader response, especially among older people who say they have neither the time nor appetite for risk.

Many commenters questioned the wisdom of urging people into the stock market, arguing that fixed-rate savings accounts and tax-free ISAs already offer attractive returns of 4–5 per cent, with none of the potential losses.

The results and comments show there is still lots more to be done in terms of encouraging and educating the wider population as to why investing works and who it is right for.

The UK’s benchmark index, the FTSE 100, pushed past the 9,000 points level for the first time ever last week – but despite doing so a couple of times, didn’t quite manage to stabilise above it.

This week more earnings reports will be a test of whether UK plc can breach the barrier more permanently.

There were one-off impacts last week to big businesses too, such as Diageo’s chief executive departing, GSK being hit by the FDA rejecting a new drug’s approval and WPP’s profit warning.

Good morning and welcome to the start of another week of business news coverage here on The Independent.

We’ll keep you abreast of the latest stories regarding the UK’s biggest firms, political moves impacting SMEs, personal finance, the stock markets and more.