Brits reject American-style tipping

📍Top line: Britain is experiencing a surge in the adoption of US-style tipping practices, with more hospitality and service businesses introducing gratuity prompts on card payment machines, according to The Times. However, new data shows that UK customers remain steadfast in their traditional tipping habits, with the average tip staying at around 10% despite these changes.

Key Points:

• Increase in Tipping Prompts: A 78% rise in cafes and restaurants using tipping prompts since 2022, though average tips remain around 10%.

• Wider Adoption Across Sectors: Pubs and clubs saw a 12% increase in tipping prompts, while hotels and B&Bs experienced a 112% rise, primarily for bulky or labour-intensive services.

• Cultural Resistance: UK tipping practices contrast with US norms, where tipping is ingrained; many Britons view prompts as awkward or unnecessary.

• Legislation on Tipping: New laws ensure that all tips, including digital ones, go directly to staff, addressing previous concerns over venue owners taking a share.

Temu expands footprint in UK

📍Top line: Chinese online shopping app Temu is recruiting UK-based suppliers to sell goods on its platform, aiming to deliver products within one to two days. This marks a shift from its previous model of sourcing solely from Chinese suppliers and could intensify competition with high street retailers.

Key Points:

• Local Supplier Recruitment: Temu is adding UK-based suppliers to its platform, offering faster delivery for items such as furniture and winter coats.

• Rapid Growth: Temu has more than doubled Amazon and eBay's app user base in the UK within just 19 months.

• High Street Impact: High street retailers face increasing competition as Temu leverages tax advantages to offer low prices.

• Regulatory Loopholes: Temu benefits from shipping low-value items directly to customers, avoiding import duties—a policy under review in the EU and US but not yet addressed in the UK.

• Expanding Presence: The retailer is hiring staff and planning a London office to support its "local" business.

• Legal Scrutiny in the US: Temu faces a lawsuit in Arkansas over alleged data misuse, accusations it strongly denies.

Elsewhere in business:

📈 Games Workshop, the UK-based creator of Warhammer and other miniature wargames, is set to join the FTSE 100, the index of the UK's 100 most valuable companies. With a current valuation of £4.6 billion, the company is expected to enter the prestigious index during this week's quarterly reshuffle. The company has seen significant growth driven by the popularity of its Warhammer franchise, lucrative licensing deals, and a surge in interest during Covid-19 lockdowns.

🍅 Some "Italian" tomato purées sold in UK supermarkets may contain tomatoes grown and picked in China under conditions linked to forced labour, according to the BBC. Products like Tesco’s “Italian Tomato Purée,” Asda’s double concentrate labelled as containing “Puréeed Italian grown tomatoes,” and Waitrose’s “Essential Tomato Purée,” described as “Italian tomato purée,” are among 17 items tested that likely include Chinese tomatoes.

Business confidence plummets to pandemic levels

📍 Top line: Business confidence in the UK has plummeted to its lowest level since the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, as companies voice concerns about the impact of government policies and rising costs. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) reported that growth expectations have turned negative for the first time this year, with private sector activity declining across services, manufacturing, and retail.

Key Points:

• Negative Growth Expectations: The CBI reported that a majority of UK companies expect declining activity in the next three months, particularly in services and consumer sectors.

• Policy Concerns: Businesses cite the October budget's £40bn tax rises, including higher national insurance contributions, as a significant burden.

• Employment Impact: Almost 80% of surveyed firms say increased national insurance will negatively affect them, leading to hiring freezes and lower pay.

• Inheritance Tax Concerns: Family businesses fear changes to inheritance tax will force closures, with the CBI estimating over 125,000 job losses and a £9.4bn economic impact.

Elsewhere in the economy:

🏎️ Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone is selling his prized collection of 69 historic grand prix and Formula One cars, valued at approximately £500 million. The cars include iconic models driven by champions such as Niki Lauda, Michael Schumacher, and Nelson Piquet. The decision follows his guilty plea last year to fraud for failing to declare £400 million in overseas assets, leading to a record £652 million payment to HMRC.

☀️ Vlad Yatsenko, co-founder of the digital bank Revolut, has warned about a growing trend of young professionals leaving Britain for Southern Europe, drawn by lower taxes, sunnier climates, and attractive financial incentives. Countries like Portugal and Italy are introducing tax breaks for under-35s, fostering startup hubs and drawing international talent.

Lotus Cars has opened applications to its 2025 Finance Internship in London. Successful applicants will support the firm’s Head of Accounting and finance team in various key tasks during the year-end closing process. Applicants to the program, which runs until the end of March 2025, must have acquired or be studying a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field and proficient in both English and Chinese. Apply now here.

OpenAI Targets 1 Billion Users with Bold Expansion Plans

📍Top line: OpenAI aims to hit 1 billion users over the next year through new AI-powered products, partnerships, and a significant expansion in infrastructure. The company is developing “AI agents” for everyday tasks and integrating ChatGPT across Apple devices to propel growth. 

Key Points:

• User Growth Goal: OpenAI plans to reach 1 billion users by launching AI agents and partnering with Apple to integrate ChatGPT into billions of devices worldwide.

• Financial Expansion: OpenAI raised over $6 billion and plans to secure additional funding to support its rapid growth and expensive AI model development.

• Infrastructure Push: The company is building new data centres in the US to compete with tech giants like Google and Amazon in the AI race.

• Revenue Challenges: OpenAI faces high operational costs, with expenditures exceeding $5 billion annually, and is focusing on developing profitable products to offset these.

• Geopolitical Role: OpenAI is working closely with US policymakers to promote democratic AI development, contrasting with China’s AI approach.

• Political Tensions: OpenAI is managing conflicts with Elon Musk, who filed a lawsuit alleging deceptive practices, while aligning with the Trump administration on AI’s strategic importance.

Elsewhere in tech:

📱 Mobile phone thefts surged by 153% last year, with an estimated 78,000 victims, according to the Crime Survey for England and Wales. Masked thieves often strike on motorbikes or ebikes. In London’s Oxford Circus area alone, 10,000 thefts went mostly unsolved.

🤖 Elon Musk has asked a federal court to block OpenAI’s shift to a for-profit model, calling it “illegal” and a threat to fair competition. Musk claims the move endangers his own AI ventures and the public, escalating his feud with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, despite their shared nonprofit origins in launching OpenAI nine years ago.

🇧🇪 Belgium has become the first country in the world to grant sex workers full employment rights under a new law, treating the profession like any other job. Workers will now have access to official employment contracts, health insurance, pensions, maternity leave, and sick pay. This groundbreaking legislation builds on the decriminalisation of sex work in Belgium in 2022.

🧑‍🍳 Two of Gregg Wallace’s accusers have condemned his response to allegations of historical misconduct, after the TV presenter described them as coming from a “handful of middle-class women of a certain age.” One accuser said the remarks suggested Wallace “clearly hasn’t learnt his lesson.” Wallace stepped down from MasterChef earlier this week after claims emerged of inappropriate sexual comments and behaviour from 13 individuals who worked across five different shows.

🚨A 34-year-old man from Hertfordshire has been arrested on suspicion of raping a woman at The Groucho Club, a private members' venue in Soho, London. The alleged incident occurred on 13 November. The Metropolitan Police detained the suspect on Saturday; he remains in custody. Following the allegation, Westminster City Council suspended the club's licence for up to 28 days at the request of the police, leading to its temporary closure.