Heineken has revealed plans to invest more than £44 million into improvements for hundreds of its UK pubs.

The Dutch brewing giant said the cash injection into its Star Pubs operation, which runs 2,350 sites across the UK, will create around 850 jobs.

The major investment plan comes despite a challenging backdrop for the pub sector.

Pubs have come under pressure from rising labour costs and increases to national insurance contributions over the past year, while consumer spending has also come under pressure with concerns over inflation and rising unemployment.

However, pubs received additional business rates support from the Government from last month to help ease their cost pressures.

Lawson Mountstevens, Star Pubs’ managing director, said the company’s investment plan is partly aimed at boosting revenues to help the group cope with the recent “sustained increases in running costs”.

The plans will see the business invest £44.5 million this year into upgrades for 647 of its pubs.

It said 108 of its venues will see particularly significant cash injections, with these all set for transformations costing at least £145,000.

Heineken said the majority of pubs are owned by the group but independently operated by locals, with sports-focused venues an emphasis for investment in the run-up to the 2026 football World Cup.

The pub firm and brewer said it has pumped £328 million into British pubs since 2018.

It has already started work in 52 locations, including eight projects where it is reopening boarded-up pubs which have suffered from lengthy closures.

Mr Mountstevens urged the Government to reduce the tax burden on pubs to help ease the cost burden and support more job creation in the industry.

He said: “We can only do so much; the root-and-branch reform of business rates that the industry has been calling for over many years is urgently required, as well as a lowering of the burden of taxation on pubs, including VAT and beer duty.

“We are calling on the Government to support us in bringing out the best in the Great British pub.”

Oil prices held steady after US president Donald Trump said the US would help ships leave the Strait of Hormuz, starting on Monday.

Iran has rejected the plan, but Mr Trump also said talks with Iran could lead to positive outcomes.

A statement from the US Central Command said support would include guided-missile destroyers, over 100 land- and sea-based aircraft and 15,000 service members. A report from Axios later claimed the Navy would not necessarily escort ships through the strait.

Iran earlier said the US had responded to its 14-point proposal via Pakistan and it was reviewing the response, though Trump said ⁠it was unlikely to be acceptable.

Investors decided to reserve judgement and left ​Brent crude futures ⁠little changed at $108.35 per barrel, having recovered from an initial drop of more than two per cent, while US crude eased 0.1 per cent to $101.85.

Dealers noted a bulk carrier had reported being attacked by multiple small craft while transiting past Sirik in Iran on Sunday, though it was ⁠not clear how many ships would try to run through the Strait of Hormuz even with Navy protection.

A holiday in Japan made ​for thin ⁠trading conditions, leaving Nikkei futures up only modestly at 59,880 ‌versus a cash close of 59,513.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 2.8 per cent, led by tech-heavy South Korean stocks which returned from holiday with a jump of 4.05 per cent. Chinese blue chips were off 0.06 per cent.

Eurotoxx 50 futures and Dax futures each added 0.3 per cent. S&P 500 futures gained 0.1 per cent and ‌Nasdaq futures rose 0.3 per cent, as markets braced for more than 100 earnings reports this week.

Companies ‌reporting include Advanced Micro Devices, Super Micro Computer, Palantir, Walt Disney and McDonald’s.

The S&P 500 EPS growth rate was running at 25 per cent and accounting for one-off gains at a still brisk 16 per cent, said analysts at Goldman Sachs in a note.

“Despite elevated energy prices and geopolitical uncertainty, corporate guidance and analyst estimate revisions have remained strong so far this quarter,” they said. “However, the reward for EPS beats ⁠has been unusually small.”

Concerns remained about the scale of artificial intelligence capex investment which was now at $751bn for 2026, $80bn above estimates at the start of the earnings season and 83 per cent above 2025 spending.

The threat of oil-driven inflation had also lifted bond yields in a challenge to equity valuations, while several major central banks had turned hawkish on policy.

Markets implied just 2 basis points of easing from the Federal Reserve by the end of the year compared with 11 basis points a week ago. Expectations for the European Central Bank had climbed to 76 basis points of hikes, with the Bank of England at 63 basis points.

Australia’s central bank meets on Tuesday and is considered likely to hike ‌its cash rate for a third time running as it battles stubborn inflationary pressures.

The outlook for Fed policy could be budged ​by a raft of data this week which includes the payrolls report for April on Friday. Median forecasts are for a rise ‌of 60,000 in jobs following March’s outsized 178,000 gain, though problems ⁠with seasonal adjustment make for much uncertainty.

Analysts at Citi, for instance, are predicting a 15,000 drop in payrolls and a rise in ⁠unemployment to 4.3 per cent.

In currency markets, the dollar was a shade softer as investors waited for more developments in the Middle East and, crucially, whether the Strait of Hormuz could be opened.

The ‌dollar was steady at 157.21 yen, still smarting ​from last week’s Japanese intervention which analysts thought could have amounted to ‌around $35bn.

The euro was flat at $1.1726, while the pound held at $1.3584 ahead ​of local elections in Britain which could see heavy losses for the ruling Labour Party.

In commodity markets, gold was 0.2 per cent lower at $4,603 an ounce, and well within recent trading ranges.

Gold price prediction today: Gold prices are seeing consolidation, according to Manav Modi, Senior Analyst, Commodity Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.Gold prices extended last week’s decline, hovering near one-month lows as a stronger US dollar and a sharp surge in crude oil continued to pressure sentiment. The rally in oil, which is driven by escalating US-Iran tensions and ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, has heightened fears of an energy-led inflation shock, reinforcing expectations of a prolonged higher interest rate environment.Major central banks, including the Fed, ECB, BOE, and BOJ, signalled a cautious to hawkish stance, weighing bullion. While intermittent optimism around diplomatic talks between the US and Iran offered limited support, uncertainty remains elevated as negotiations stay fragile.Looking ahead, markets will closely track global PMI releases and US labor market data for further direction on inflation and policy outlook.Gold is showing signs of consolidation after a sharp corrective decline, with prices stabilizing near the lower half of the Bollinger Band structure. The recent rebound from the lower band around 138,000–140,000 indicates strong buying interest at lower levels, while inability to reclaim the middle band near 152,200 suggests the broader trend remains neutral to mildly bearish.Bollinger Bands are gradually narrowing, pointing toward a potential range-bound phase before a breakout. Immediate resistance is placed at 152,200–155,000 (mid to upper band zone), with a stronger ceiling near 170,000. On the downside, support is seen at 149,200, followed by a key base around 145,000 and major support near 139,000. A sustained move above the middle band could shift momentum higher, while rejection may keep prices confined within current range this week.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India.)