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Boom! Shares in lenders exposed to the UK car finance scandal have surged at the start of trading in London, as investors react to Friday night\u2019s supreme court ruling.<\/strong><\/p>\n Shares in Close<\/strong> Brothers<\/strong> jumped 27% after the stock market opened, after the court ruled in its favour in a case over car finance. Close<\/strong> Bros<\/strong> are leading the FTSE 250 index of medium-sized companies.<\/p>\n Lloyds<\/strong> Banking<\/strong> Group<\/strong> is leading the larger FTSE 100 share index \u2013 its shares have jumped by almost 6% in early trading.<\/p>\n As flagged earlier, Lloyds<\/strong> had previously set aside \u00a31.2bn to cover compensation claims over car finance commissions paid to car dealers.<\/p>\n These share price moves are a clear sign that the Supreme court ruling is a win for the lenders, even though the FCA is now consulting on a compensation scheme for motorists.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because the FCA estimates the cost of its scheme will be between \u00a39bn and \u00a318bn. Before the supreme court overturned two of the three rulings against the industry, lenders were facing an estimated bill of \u00a344bn.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.17 EDT<\/p>\n <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n <\/span>Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Wall Street has opened higher, recovering from Friday\u2019s losses.<\/p>\n The Dow<\/strong> Jones<\/strong> industrial<\/strong> average<\/strong> has risen by 317 points, or 0.75%, in early trading to 43,906 points. The broader S&P 500<\/strong> share index is 1% higher.<\/p>\n Shares fell last Friday after a surprisingly weak US jobs report, which prompted Donald Trump to fire the federal government official in charge of labor statistics a few hours later.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Shares in Tesla<\/strong> have, as expected, jumped at the start of trading.<\/p>\n They\u2019re up 2.5%, to just over $310 each.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Over in Zurich, Switzerland\u2019s government says it is ready to make a \u201cmore attractive\u201d trade offer to Donald Trump, in the hope of avoiding a 39% tariff on its exports to the US.<\/strong><\/p>\n Following a crisis meeting this morning, the Swiss cabinet says:<\/p>\n \u201cSwitzerland enters this new phase ready to present a more attractive offer, taking U.S. concerns into account and seeking to ease the current tariff situation.\u201d<\/p>\n Switzerland was shocked that Trump announced a 39% tariff on its wares, which prompted the drop on the Swiss stock marked this morning.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.30 EDT<\/p>\n Wedbush<\/strong> analyst Dan<\/strong> Ives<\/strong> has welcomed Tesla\u2019s decision to hand Elon Musk almost $30bn in share options that will vest in two year\u2019s time.<\/p>\n Ives<\/strong> says it\u201cremoves an overhang on the stock\u201d adding:<\/p>\n \u201cMusk remains Tesla\u2019s big asset and this comp [compensation] issue has been a constant concern of shareholders.\u201d<\/p>\n Dan Ives wrote in a client note \u201cMusk remains Tesla\u2019s big asset and this comp issue has been a constant concern of shareholders once the Delaware soap opera began.\u201d @Newsday<\/a> @AP<\/a> \ud83c\udfc6\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udc02\ud83c\udfaf\ud83c\udf7fhttps:\/\/t.co\/rRd2On4qn4<\/p>\n \u2014 Dan Ives (@DivesTech) August 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Today\u2019s $30bn share award won\u2019t be the end of the discussions about Elon Musk\u2019s pay.<\/strong><\/p>\n In their letter to shareholders, Robyn Denholm and Kathleen Wilson-Thompson explain that the Tesla board\u2019s special committee will continue its work on \u201ca longer-term CEO compensation strategy\u201d.<\/p>\n They intent to put this plan to a shareholder vote at Tesla\u2019s annual meeting on 6 November.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Shares in Tesla have risen by over 2% in pre-market trading \u2013 a sign that Wall Street approves of Musk\u2019s new share package.<\/strong><\/p>\n They\u2019ve risen by 2.3% to $309 per share, up from $302 on Friday night, which will lift the value of Musk\u2019s 96m share package closer to $30bn.<\/p>\n Investors may well be reassured that today\u2019s share package will keep Musk at Tesla, as the shares will vest in two year\u2019s time.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Customer loyalty towards Tesla across America has plunged since CEO Elon Musk endorsed President Donald Trump last summer, according to data from research firm S&P Global Mobility.<\/strong><\/p>\n The data shows Tesla\u2019s<\/strong> customer loyalty peaked in June 2024, when 73% of Tesla-owning US households in the market for a new car bought another Tesla, Reuters reports<\/p>\n Brand loyalty rate started to nosedive in July, the month when Musk endorsed Trump.<\/p>\n The rate bottomed out at 49.9% last March, after Musk<\/strong> launched the Department of Government Efficiency in January and started firing thousands of government workers.<\/p>\n S&P<\/strong> analyst Tom Libby called it \u201cunprecedented\u201d to see the runaway leader in customer loyalty fall so quickly to industry-average levels, adding:<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never seen this rapid of a decline in such a short period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n Tesla\u2019s<\/strong> US loyalty rate has since ticked back up to 57.4% in May.<\/p>\n But even so, this does raise the question about whether Musk<\/strong> really deserves $30bn of shares\u2026.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Gwyn Topham<\/span><\/span>A Eurostar e320 high-speed train.<\/span> Photograph: Gareth Fuller\/PA<\/p>\n Eurostar passengers travelling and from Paris face long delays and cancellations after a power failure on the high-speed rail line north of the French capital.<\/strong><\/p>\n The cross-Channel train operator warned that trains between London and Paris and Brussels and Paris would be disrupted throughout Monday.<\/p>\n It said trains were still running but had been rerouted via slower rail lines, adding up to two hours to departures on Monday morning. A number of afternoon services have been cancelled.<\/p>\n The latest disruption comes during peak holiday season, on the main rail route from Britain to the continent.<\/p>\n Eurostar said it advised passengers to postpone their journey if possible, and exchange their ticket free of charge or request a full refund. It said extra staff had been deployed in the stations to assist passengers.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Just in: Tesla has awarded Elon Musk stock options worth almost $30bn, in its latest attempt to pump up the billionaire\u2019s pay packet, and keep him at the company.<\/strong><\/p>\n Tesla<\/strong> had announced that is has approved an award of 96 million shares of restricted stock to CEO Musk<\/strong>, under its 2019 Equity Incentive Plan.<\/p>\n At Tesla\u2019s<\/strong> latest share price, $302, the shares would be worth $29bn. Musk would have to pay just $23.34 per share to get them, which would cost him around $2bn, when they vest in two year\u2019s time.<\/p>\n This follows the blocking off Musk\u2019s massive, $56bn, pay packet by a Delaware judge.<\/p>\n If the Delaware pay deal is reinstated (there\u2019s an appeal to Delaware\u2019s Supreme Court), these new share options will by immediately forfeited, Tesla<\/strong> add (a sign that it is an attempt to get Musk at least part of that offer).<\/p>\n Robyn Denholm <\/strong>and Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, <\/strong>members of the special committee of the Tesla\u2019s board of directors, told shareholders that it was \u201cimperative to retain and motivate our extraordinary talent, beginning with Elon\u201d.<\/p>\n In a letter to shareholders, they added:<\/p>\n We would also like to stress that prior to recommending this award, we reviewed your letters, read your X posts, and considered the direct feedback we have received from many of you in order to align our recommendation with your expressed views. From those communications, we know that one of your top concerns is keeping Elon\u2019s energies focused on Tesla.<\/p>\n This award is a critical first step toward achieving that goal, although it is limited by the capacity of our current equity incentive plan. As such, we are also working on next steps to address that issue. Still, while our work remains ongoing, we feel it is important to communicate directly and transparently with you all, our shareholders and Tesla\u2019s owners.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.19 EDT<\/p>\n The Swiss franc has weakened again this morning, adding to Friday\u2019s losses, as traders anticipate steep tariffs on Switzerland\u2019s goods at the US border<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The euro has climbed by almost 0.5% against the swiss franc, to 0.9355CHF.<\/p>\n Raffi<\/strong> Boyadjian<\/strong>, lead market analyst at Trading<\/strong> Point<\/strong>, says:<\/p>\n Many investors remain hopeful that some of the steep tariffs announced last week will be renegotiated and reduced. For example, reports suggest that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will meet with Trump later this week to potentially reach a deal that would bring down the 35% levy on Canadian imports into the US.<\/p>\n The Canadian dollar is unchanged versus the greenback today, but the Swiss franc is tumbling following the White House\u2019s decision to slap 39% tariffs on Switzerland \u2013 something not expected by the Swiss government.<\/p>\n The yen, meanwhile, enjoyed a revival in its safe-haven status during Friday\u2019s risk-off trading, although it is paring those gains today, with the dollar rebounding to just below 148 yen.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Jean-Philippe Bertschy,<\/strong> an analyst at Vontobel<\/strong>, has warned that 39% tariffs on Swiss exports to the US would be \u201cdevastating for numerous brands in Switzerland.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Eurozone August Sentix -3.7 (est +6.9, last +4.5)<\/p>\n A bit of surprise from Sentix who is, however, just a survey of analysts.<\/p>\n The index’s setback suggests still a sub-50 Composite PMI and while I don’t read too much into today’s data, it confirms that recovery remains fragile. pic.twitter.com\/MacXwOZq0o<\/a><\/p>\nSwiss government says it’s ready to make Trump ‘more attractive offer’ on tariffs<\/h2>\n
Tesla shares higher in pre-market trading<\/h2>\n
Reuters: Tesla’s brand loyalty collapsed after Musk backed Trump<\/h2>\n
Delays on the Eurostar<\/h2>\n
Tesla approves $30bn share award to Elon Musk<\/h2>\n