Hargreaves Lansdown's Derren Nathan: Companies best placed to absorb NI cost pressures

Following Rachel Reeves' Budget

Just as the monster that is inflation starts to look a little less threatening, UK businesses have been hit by a 6.7% increase in the National Minimum Wage for 2025 and an increase in employers' National Insurance (NI) contributions in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ maiden Budget.

That has not helped sentiment towards shares for UK retailers and some parts of the leisure sector. Autumn Budget 24: Labour hikes employers' National Insurance by 1.2 percentage points But canny operators in these markets have weathered worse storms and could take more market share as less robust businesses struggle with the additional burden. Below are three companies I think are among the best in their fields. JD Wetherspoon JD Wetherspoon's founder and chair, Tim Marten, does not mince his words when it comes to government policy. He has warned that the latest tax rises...