Liz Truss’s intervention to freeze energy prices for households for two years is expected to cost the government £89bn, according to the first major costing of the policy by the sector’s leading consultancy. The analysis from Cornwall Insight, seen exclusively by the Guardian, shows the prime minister’s plan to tackle the cost of living crisis could cost as much as £140bn in a worst-case scenario. – Guardian
Elon Musk has offered to complete his proposed $44bn (£38bn) acquisition of Twitter in a dramatic U-turn on his decision to walk away from the deal. Lawyers for Musk confirmed in a court filing on Tuesday that the world’s richest man is prepared to push ahead with the transaction on the agreed terms following months of legal drama. – Guardian
Crispin Odey has made returns of almost 200pc so far this year as market turmoil and a slump in the pound boosted gains at his hedge fund. The Tory donor, who was a vocal backer of the Brexit campaign, last week declared that government bonds were “the gift that keeps on giving” after prices plunged. He has previously bet that the pound would slide against the dollar, while also shorting gilts. – Telegraph
The Bank of England chose not to buy any bonds yesterday under its emergency two-week operation to calm gilt markets, turning down offers from traders looking to sell £2.2 billion of debt. Having bought only £22 million of UK government bonds on Monday, the latest lack of intervention suggests that the Bank has so far succeeded in halting a dramatic sell-off without having to spend anywhere near what it had originally set aside. – The Times
Shares in GB Group dropped to a one-month low after the American private equity group GTCR said it would not proceed with a potential takeover bid. The company, one of the world’s biggest providers of fraud prevention software, confirmed that talks with Chicago-based GTCR had ended because an agreement “could not be reached on terms”. – The Times
