Stock Market 7 January 2026

Italy’s state-owned Trenitalia said it is still aiming to launch high-speed services between Paris and London by 2029. It plans a new maintenance base near Paris after failing to win access to London’s Temple Mills International depot, a key servicing site for Channel Tunnel trains. Rail Magazine The push matters because a long-closed door on cross-Channel competition has started to shift. Britain’s rail regulator approved Virgin Trains’ application in October for access to Temple Mills — while rejecting bids from Trenitalia, Evolyn and Gemini — and said it was a first step toward new international services on High Speed 1, the London line that connects to the Channel Tunnel. “With this decision we are backing customer choice and competition in international rail,” said Martin Jones, the Office of Rail and Road’s deputy director for access and international. Office of Rail and Road

Britain’s Great British Rail Sale has opened with discounts of up to 50% on more than 3 million selected train tickets, with cut-price fares available to buy until Jan. 12 for travel between Jan. 13 and March 25, according to National Rail. https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/great-british-rail-sale/ The promotion targets winter and early spring travel as ministers try to blunt household cost pressures. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the sale brings “further discounts for passengers”, while Rail Delivery Group chief Jacqueline Starr called it “even more reasons to choose rail”, Rail Business Daily reported. https://news.railbusinessdaily.com/great-british-rail-sale-gets-underway/

Rail services on London’s Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express were disrupted on Wednesday after overnight engineering works overran between London Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 5/Reading, National Rail said. Trains may be cancelled or delayed by up to 60 minutes, it said, with disruption expected until 07:45 GMT. https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service-disruptions/london-paddington-20260106/ The corridor is the main rail link from central London to Heathrow Airport and a key commuter artery into Paddington. It is also part of the route used by Great Western Railway services heading west towards Reading and beyond.

Train operators launched the Great British Rail Sale this week, offering discounts of up to 50% on selected UK train tickets, with some one-way fares starting at £3. The timing matters for households watching budgets after Christmas, and for operators trying to fill trains through winter and into early spring. The discounts apply to travel between Jan. 13 and March 25, covering midweek trips as well as some weekend travel. https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/great-british-rail-sale/about-rail-sale/