UK inflation slowed sharply in November to 3.9%, triggering a slide in the pound, a stock market rally and increased expectations of an interest-rate cut early next year (The Financial Times £).
The Bank of England is poised to open the door to interest rate cuts as soon as February after new figures revealed that inflation fell much faster than expected last month to its lowest level in over two years (The Times £).
The ONS said food prices were also rising more slowly than a year ago, singling out bread and cakes, which fell in price compared with the previous month (The Guardian).
The Guardian also takes a look at which goods and services have changed most in price, with sugar and olive oil leading the way in terms of increases, while milk and butter are down.
The price of turkey and mince pies still rising, with a supermarket frozen bird up by 1.2% in a year, while the mince pie has risen is 25% higher (BBC News).
Drinks giant Diageo is under pressure from investors over its handling of last month’s thumping profits warning (The Mail).
Business confidence has dipped this month amid growing caution among companies about the economy and their own trading prospects (The Times £).
The UK government’s decision to set catch limits for fish populations above those recommended by scientific advice is to be challenged in the courts by marine conservationists who accuse ministers of breaking their own post-Brexit rules (The Guardian).
An advertisement for British cosmetics brand Rimmel London, which is owned by Coty UK, has been banned by the watchdog after it implied that girls needed to wear make-up at school in order to succeed (The Times £).
Shares in Tortilla Mexican Grill slumped on Wednesday after the restaurant group declared a profit warning (The Mail).
Tortilla Mexican Grill, which has nearly 70 stores in the UK and several franchised outlets in the United Arab Emirates, said that on a like-for-like basis its sales were set to grow by 3.7% year-on-year, down on previous estimates (The Times £).
More than 100 container ships have been rerouted around southern Africa to avoid the Suez canal, in a sign of the disruption to global trade caused by Houthi rebels attacking vessels on the western coast of Yemen (The Guardian).
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