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■■ The collapse of Monarch Airlines more than halved Manchester airport’s growth last month. They still saw passenger numbers rise 3.1 per cent to 2.4million year on year, but that was down from 7.4 per cent in September. Meanwhile, Manchester’s sister airport, Stansted, saw a 7.3 per cent rise in passengers in October, even though Ryanair cancelled a wave of flights after a pilot rostering fiasco. ■■ Cut-throat competition will hammer home insurers’ profits this year, accountant EY forecasts. They said householders are benefiting from new firms fighting for the business, just as the cost of claims rise. EY predict that insurers will make a loss next year. ■■ BMW sold a record two million cars around the world in the first 10 months of 2017. But sales in the UK dropped 3.2 per cent to just over 202,200 in the wake of a falling demand for diesel cars.