Podcasts

The appeal of Black Friday and Cyber Monday discounts saw retail sales volumes rise by almost 6% in November, compared with the same time last year. However, higher fuel costs meant the rise was not as strong as in October, when annual retail sales growth hit a 14-year high of 7.2%. Monthly sales in November increased 0.2%, compared to October's increase of 1.8%. Olivia Demetriades spoke to Craig Skelton, retail & consumer partner at PwC. She began by asking about last month's growth.

Time now for our weekly catch up with the team at Moneyweek magazine. This week, Ed Bowsher was joined by Merryn Somerset Webb, editor in chief at MoneyWeek. They discuss: the European Central Bank's monetary policy, and the gift that has the use of a pension - but is much nicer to look at.

The insurance market Lloyd's of London is now the first major city business to announce it is preparing plans to set up a subsidiary on mainland europe. This will allow Lloyds to continue operating in the EU even if UK firms lose their so-called 'passport' rights after Brexit. For more on this, Share Radio's Ed Bowsher was joined on the line by Philip Alexander, Regulation Editor at Risk.net

Plenty of interest rate decisions to tuck in to today: whilst the Fed has raised rates citing the strength of the US economy, the Bank of England has been more pessimistic. Base rates have been kept on hold, with Carney warning that signs of slowdown in economic activity have been detected. Is Brexit finally taking its toll? Share Radio's Ed Bowsher was joined by Jasper Lawler, Senior Market Analyst at London Capital Group to discuss the top stories shaping markets today.

Businesses across the euro zone ended the year on an upbeat note. This is according to data that showed they achieved solid growth and raised prices at the steepest rate since the middle of 2011. IHS Markit's Euro Zone Flash Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, seen as a good overall growth indicator, matched November's 53.9, which was the highest reading this year and comfortably above the 50-point level that indicates growth. To discuss the findings in more detail, Simon was joined by Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit.

Carl Reader AKA The Startup Coach joined Share’s Georgie Frost in the studio with his top tips to start your own business and where to firstly start. Also joining him was Freddie St George is the owner of Raring2Go, a chain of magazines that are aimed at parents of children, and is wanting to expand his business by offering franchise opportunities.

The average Brit will consume over 60 units of alcohol over the festive period - a unit is approximately half a pint of beer or lager or 125ml glass of wine. What is the secret to surviving a hangover and what product or foods actually work to cure it? Share's Melanie Wray asked Rob Hobson, Healthspan registered nutritionist and author of The Detox Ktichen Bible and medical nutritionist, Dr Sarah Brewer.

Christmas can be a stressful time for couples due to the pressure to make it special and spend money on gifts. It's not surprising that January has historically been the busiest time of year for divorce lawyers. But what can people do to prevent money ruining their relationship? Our reporter Mary Newman spoke to Peter Saddington, relationship councillor at Relate.

Well today is International Tea Day. It's aimed at draws public attention to the problems of tea production and the impact of the global tea trade on workers of the tea plantations, small growers and consumers. Expert Bill Gorman from UK tea Infusions Association told Georgie Frost about how the modern tea trade works and how it impacts the economy for growers and traders.

With little or no access to toiletries and sanitary products, homeless women have to deal with all sorts of unimaginable unpleasantness and discomfort and probably never feel clean. Georgie was joined in the studio with Ebun Ali, Director of The Beauty Therapy Project, a new campaign 'The Beauty Therapy Project' that aims to raise awareness and to help homeless women with their personal hygiene.