Here are the business stories making the headlines across Aberdeen, Scotland and the UK this morning.
Falling migration ‘costs the NHS £100m a year’
The NHS is losing £100m a year because falling immigration has cut the number of foreigners paying a “health surcharge”, analysis shows.
Foreign citizens applying for a UK visa must pay an annual fee of £1,035 to access free healthcare, and it has become a significant source of income for the NHS.
Revenue from the immigration health surcharge (IHS) peaked at £2.42bn in 2024-25, about 1 per cent of the entire NHS budget.
Read more in The Times.
Business rates reform: The Herald launches Reset the Rates campaign
For many Scottish business owners, the arrival of a new rates bill has become a moment to dread.
Hotels, pubs, restaurants and tourist accommodation providers have reported sharp and unexpected increases in costs following the latest revaluation of non-domestic property in Scotland, leaving many scrambling to find thousands of pounds extra every month to meet their bills.
Read more in The Herald.
Science centre bosses on how they will cash in on multi-million-pound Aberdeen beach revamp
Aberdeen Science Centre bosses are hoping the major transformation of the beach a stone’s throw away will send visitor numbers sky-rocketing.
Chiefs recently launched an ambitious three-year plan to boost takings and secure the centre’s long term future after facing years of challenges.
This includes revamping their outdoor spaces, launching extra programmes for youngsters and holding more corporate events at their venue on Constitution Street.
Read more in The Press and Journal.
Chancellor rejects calls to raise capital gains tax in autumn budget
John Healey has rejected calls to increase capital gains tax in his first budget amid concerns that doing so would damage economic growth and hinder investment.
Senior allies of Andy Burnham, including several cabinet ministers, have been pressing for a rise in capital gains tax on the sale of second homes, shares and other assets to help repair the public finances.
However, the chancellor has ruled this out after warnings that it could ultimately cost the government money if wealthy individuals left the UK or deferred selling assets.
Read more in The Times.
US bans DeepSeek AI from government use as tech tension with China continues
The US has ordered all artificial intelligence (AI) technology from the Chinese firm DeepSeek to be removed from most government systems.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has banned all use of DeepSeek within civilian government agencies, and any technology built with the aid of its AI models.
As a powerful AI model that is open source - meaning it is free to access and less expensive to use - DeepSeek has been seen as a disruptive force in the ongoing AI technology race.
Read the BBC article in full.
More than 300 calls to police after hoax bomb threats at schools
Hundreds of people contacted police after schools across Scotland were targeted by hoax bomb threat emails.
Specialist cyber crime officers have now begun an investigation into the source of the messages, which were sent to both primary and secondary schools.
The warnings were quickly identified as hoaxes and learning was unaffected in schools where pupils had returned from the October break, while other schools were still on holiday.
Find out more on the BBC website.