Your commercial news round-up: Halloween, Virgin Trains, Renters Rights, AI investment

Reading time: four minutes

Have you been keeping up with the latest commercial news? Data shows that consumers are buying Halloween related items earlier this year and Virgin Trains is set to operate services through the Channel tunnel route by 2030. Meanwhile, the new Renter’s Rights Bill has received royal assent and figures show that technology firms are investing considerably in AI.

• Halloween spending started earlier this year, with shoppers splashing out over £100 million on supermarket sugar confectionery in the four weeks leading up to 5 October –  a 5% increase compared to the same period last year, according to consumer insights firm Worldpanel by Numerator. Meanwhile, figures show that more than one million shoppers had bought pumpkins by the start of October, with sales hitting £1.4 million in the four weeks prior, which is double the amount spent over the same period in 2023. Senior retail analyst at consumer insights company Kantar, Vikash Kaansili, stated: "Despite cost-of-living pressures, Halloween continues to prove resilient.” Looking at 2024 data, Kaansili stated: “Shoppers made more trips in the two weeks leading up to Halloween and spent 16% more than they usually do, suggesting it's a ‘must-do’ occasion that people are unwilling to cut back on.”
   
• Virgin Trains is set to run services through the Channel Tunnel from 2030, following the approval of its application to share a depot with Eurostar. The decision by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is set to break Eurostar’s monopoly on passenger services for the first time since the tunnel was opened in 1994. While a number of firms made applications, such as Evolyn, Gemini and Trenitalia, only Virgin’s request was approved. The ORR stated that the decision could create around £700 million of investment and could create 400 new jobs. It said that decision is "a win for passengers, customer choice and economic growth". In order for Virgin to operate, it’ll need to enter into a commercial agreement with Eurostar, secure finance, access to the track and stations, and get safety approval from UK and EU authorities. Founder of the Virgin Group, Sir Richard Branson, said: "The ORR's decision is the right one for consumers – it's time to end this 30-year monopoly and bring some Virgin magic to the cross-Channel route." Meanwhile, a Eurostar spokesperson commented that Eurostar is "considering [its] next steps to ensure we can continue to grow". They also added: “Our priority is to deliver for passengers the benefits of the investments in a new fleet, jobs and depot facilities that we recently announced.”
   
• The Renters’ Rights Bill received royal assent yesterday. The act aims to improve the private rental sector by abolishing ‘no fault’ evictions, and ensuring both renters and landlords have clear rights.  President of the Law Society of England and Wales, Mark Evans, commented: “We welcome the Renters’ Rights Bill that became law as it helps level the playing field between tenants and landlords. We’re pleased that the Law Society’s calls to stop landlords asking for more than one month’s rent upfront have been accepted. This helps make renting fairer and more accessible for prospective tenants, making a real difference to their lives.” However, Evans also called for the government to invest in the court system to ensure they can handle the expected increase in contested hearings.  
   
• On Wednesday 29 October, earning reports from Meta, Alphabet and Microsoft’s showed that firms are heavily investing in AI development. Meta’s capital expenditures for 2025 will be between $70 billion and $72 billion, which is an increase from an earlier estimate of $66bn to $72bn. Meanwhile, Google and YouTube owner Alphabet also raised its spending forecast from $91 billion to $93 billion, up from its summer forecast of $85 billion. This estimate is nearly double its 2024 capital expenditures. In a similar vein, Microsoft's spending in the quarter to 30 September was $34.9 billion, up from $24 billion in the previous quarter. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said: "We continue to increase our investments in AI across both capital and talent to meet the massive opportunity ahead.” All three of these firms have outperformed the broader S&P 500 index, which is a stock market index that measures 500 leading US companies listed on the stock market.

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