BUSINESS LIVE: IHG’s first-quarter sales increase; Diageo appoints new finance boss; Trainline doubles profits

Three-quarters of people think their children will be worse off in the future than they are now, research shows.

Trainline has surpassed £5 billion in ticket sales for the first time, as the aggregator saw a recovery in rail travel in Britain and sharp growth across Europe.

The London-listed company’s pre-tax profits more than doubled to £48 million in the year ended February 29, buoyed by a decline in the number of rail strikes, which fell to 25 days from 30 days in the previous 12 months.

Trainline ticket sales grew 22% year-on-year, mainly driven by £3.5 billion of UK tickets. The overall UK rail market recovered during the period under review to an estimated £10.6 billion in passenger revenues, compared to £8.9 billion in the previous year.

The banner year was further boosted by sales in Spain and Italy, which together grew 43%, as Trainline further penetrated both international markets.

Thanks to European growth, Trainline also surpassed £1 billion in international ticket sales for the first time.

Smart Brits are cashing in boom in the gold price by selling the precious metal to the Royal Mint for a profit.

The gold price rose in 2024 and reached a record high in April, reaching peaks of $2,382 (£1,916) per ounce.

The World Bank has never been more important. The resilience of the global economy as it recovers from the twin shocks of Covid and Russia’s war on Ukraine is remarkable.

In particular, the inflationary spiral has come to a halt without major pain in terms of growth and unemployment.

AIM-listed late-night bar group Nightcap is looking to shake up the sector with a bold bid for Revolution Bars.

Revolution met with Nightcap to discuss proposals up to and including a full offer for the troubled company, adding that talks are not part of the formal sale process it unveiled in early April.

City Watchdog boss Nikhil Rathi is under increasing pressure over plans to ‘name and shame’ companies he is investigating – as colleagues demanded answers amid an intensifying row.

Rathi has been summoned to appear before a parliamentary committee that has launched an investigation into the proposals.

Britain was the only one of Europe’s three largest economies to record a rise in foreign direct investment last year – a show of confidence in Brexit Britain.

Figures from EY show the number of foreign-backed projects rose by six percent to 985, while struggling France and Germany saw declines of five percent and 12 percent.

Pharma giant Novo Nordisk has seen growing demand for its weight-loss drugs outstrip supply.

The Danish company’s revenues have soared thanks to an explosion in popularity for its diabetes and obesity drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.