The heightened instability in the Middle East continues to influence the global market outlook, particularly through energy‑supply risks and inflation pressures. Our scenario analysis below sets out three potential paths - our base case (what we expect), the bear case and the bull case - each with differing implications for inflation, economic growth and market sentiment.

With the end of the 2025/2026 tax year fast approaching, please find a handy checklist to ensure you have made use of allowances available to you.

The checklist is not only about potentially losing valuable allowances, but also the end of the tax year can be a good time to prompt you to investigate other areas of your finances, such as whether you state pension forecast is on track.

Hope this helps.