Here are the business stories making the headlines across Scotland and the UK this morning.
Energy price cap: Average annual bill to rise by £94 from January, Ofgem announces
The energy price cap is to rise to an average annual £1,928 from January, the sector's regulator has announced.
Ofgem said a typical household paying by direct debit for gas and electricity faces forking out 5% more when compared to the annual cap figure covering September to December, which equates to £94 more over the course of a year.
The new average figure largely reflects higher wholesale costs heading in to the cold winter months and also includes a shift in Ofgem's cap calculation based on average domestic energy use.
Instability and global events, particularly the war in Ukraine, are behind the rise, Ofgem said.
Fallout between Opec+ members sends price of crude tumbling
Oil prices slumped by as much as 5% yesterday after the Opec+ alliance of big producer nations postponed a planned meeting amid an apparent disagreement over the extent of continued output curbs.
Brent crude dipped as low as $78.41 at one stage before recovering some of its losses to trade down 1% at about $81.58 a barrel last night.
The Opec cartel and allied producers led by Russia, together known as Opec+, had been scheduled to meet on Sunday, but this was unexpectedly pushed back to next Thursday, with no reason given.
The meeting had been expected to result in extended or even deepened production cuts, providing support to oil prices, which have fallen back from about $90 a barrel a month ago.
B&Q owner Kingfisher issues second profit warning as demand falls overseas
B&Q owner Kingfisher has issued its second profit warning in as many months after it was hit by falling sales in France.
The DIY retailer, which also owns Screwfix in the UK and France’s Castorama and Brico Dépôt, cut its profit forecasts for the year by another £30m, saying it now expects adjusted earnings to come in at £560m.
It followed a previous downgrade in September when Kingfisher forecast adjusted profits of £634m for the year to the end of January.
The update sent shares in Kingfisher down more than 6pc on Wednesday morning, making it the biggest faller on the FTSE 100. The company is now worth more than a quarter less than in February.
‘Extremely disrespectful’: Sausage and cider music festival to change dates after clash with Piper Alpha anniversary ceremony
Grieving relatives have stopped a “sausage and cider” music festival from disrupting a ceremony honouring lives lost in the Piper Alpha disaster.
The boozy bash had originally been arranged for Saturday, July 6, at Aberdeen’s Hazlehead Park.
But the loved ones of those who died in Piper Alpha will be gathering elsewhere in the park on that day to mark 36 years since the major fatality.
A ceremony takes place every year on July 6, with crowds gathering around the memorial statue in the park’s rose garden.
The Press and Journal has seen an email sent to the council from concerned relatives, in advance of the change of date.