Share Radio Breakfast

Champagne drinkers in Britain face higher prices in the next year as the impact of the Brexit vote on the pound takes its toll.

That's according to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association.

A triple whammy of Brexit, inflation and possible rising alcohol duty is forecast to push up the prices of champagne and prosecco in the UK by £1 and 59p per bottle respectively.

Share Radio's James Brydges has been speaking to Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association.

Yesterday brought the latest UK inflation figures, which came in at 1.8% - the highest for two and half years. Right on cue a report has been released by GfK, a market research institute, looked into consumer attitudes to prices. They asked about views of how prices have developed over the last 12 months, and expectations for the next 12 months. Joining Nigel in the studio is Joe Staton, Head of Market Dynamics at GfK to give his analysis.

Rolls-Royce has recorded a £4.6bn loss as the aero-engine firm absorbs the effect of its £671m settlement with regulators for past bribery and corruption. It is also battling a weaker pound. Alongside this Rolls-Royce reported plans to launch its first fleet of crewless ships by 2020. The move has been criticised by workers' unions and analysts, who have voiced concerns over the impact on jobs and the reduction in protection from privacy. Joining Nigel Cassidy to discuss the trials and tribulations of Rolls-Royce is Gaurav Sharma, Business Editor with the International Business Times.

Major supermarkets in the UK have introduced rationing on certain fresh vegetables.

Tesco is limiting shoppers to three iceberg lettuces, Morrisons to two.

Last month, we heard about the courgettes, but snowy conditions in Spain, Italy, and Greece are affecting the growth and availability of other leafy produce as well.

Share radio's James Brydges spoke to Duncan Brewer, Partner of Retail practice at management consultants Oliver Wyman.

It seems consumers tightened their purse strings at the start of this year. According to the latest figures, January sales failed to stop spending on clothing falling at the fastest pace in nearly five years. Visa's UK Consumer Index says face-to-face spending on the high street recorded an annual fall of 3.1 per cent last month. Nigel Cassidy was joined by Diane Wehrle, Marketing and Insights Director at Springboard to discuss further.

UK plc has posted positive results in turbulent times, as revenues climb to new records and profitability improves. That's according to new research from the Share Centre. Revenues climbed by 5.5% to £116bn, a fourth quarter record for companies, helped by the weak pound. Gavin Oldham, founder of the Share Centre sat down with Share Radio's Ed Bowsher to discuss more.

Germany’s Bundesbank is set to unite half of the country’s gold reserves in its Frankfurt vaults by the end of 2017 - three years ahead of schedule. The central bank transferred 216 tons of the precious metal to Frankfurt in 2016, including 111 tons from New York and 105 tons from Paris. Share Radio's James Brydges spoke to Craig Erlam, Senior Market Analyst at Oanda to find out more about this move.

Supermarkets, everyone has their favourite. However some new players in the market have definitely shaken things up. We've seen the rise of 'budget' supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl becoming the new popular way to shop, Aldi recently overtook Co-op to become the UK's fifth largest grocer. So where does this leave the more 'high-end' supermarkets such as Waitrose? It was reported yesterday that Waitrose is planning to close some of it's stores, so could this mean the beginning of the end of the 'middle-class' supermarket? Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar Worldpanel gave Share Radio his analysis.

Despite innovations in finance, banks are still the primary source of funds for business. But for the crucial high-growth sector, equity finance can be a better choice - the question is, how do you get your hands on it if you're in the regions? A report from the Institute for Public Policy Research has looked at how to make equity more equitable. Share Radio's Peta Fuller reports.

After much delay, the government launched its housing white paper on Tuesday. It has clearly hit a nerve within the house-building industry, MPs and would-be homeowners. So is the government's plan feasible and are we going to see a real change of direction by the government? Joining Nigel in the studio was Jeremy Blackburn, Head of Policy at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, to discuss further along with analysis from RICS' latest residential market survey.