Pound plunges to all-time low against dollar – live updates

5 things to start your day 

1) Tumbling gas prices on track to slash £60bn cost of energy bailout Britain’s energy bills freeze could prove much less costly than feared by early next year, as City forecasters predict that gas prices will plunge this winter following a successful scramble across Europe to fill reserves.

2) North Sea licenses to be sped up in race for more oil and gas Regulators are preparing to slash red tape in the North Sea in a bid to speed up the development of oil and gas wells, as part of Liz Truss’ dash for new energy supplies.

3)  Reversing Britain’s post-pandemic worker crisis would boost economy by £23bn Reversing Britain’s post-pandemic worker crisis would boost the economy by £23bn and hand the Exchequer an extra £8bn in tax, new research has revealed, as Kwasi Kwarteng seeks to get more people back to work.

4) NatWest’s male bankers to get a year off for fatherhood NatWest has told its male bankers that they can take a full year off when they become a father, as it races to reinvent itself as more family friendly.

5) Traders bet against sterling as parity with the dollar looms closer Hedge funds have ramped up their bets against the pound to their highest level since the Brexit turmoil in 2019, as market confidence is rocked by Kwasi Kwarteng unleashing a borrowing binge.

What happened overnight

Hong Kong stocks opened down on Monday after another tough week across world markets fuelled by recession fears as central banks ramp up interest rates to battle inflation.

The Hang Seng Index plummeted 0.6pc, the Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.8pc, while the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange lost 0.6pc.

Tokyo stocks also opened lower following a long weekend. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index sank 1.4pc, while the broader Topix index lost 1.3pc.

Coming up

Corporate: Finsbury Food (full-year results_

Economics: Chicago Fed National Activity Index (US)