Maurice Obstfeld replaces Olivier Blanchard as International Monetary Fund’s new chief economist July 20, 2015 Maurice Obstfeld replaces Olivier Blanchard as International Monetary Fund’s new chief economist The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced the successor to retiring chief economist Olivier Blanchard. Its new chief economist will be Maurice Obstfeld, taking over the role as director of the IMF’s research department in September. IMF managing director Christine Lagarde commented that [...]
As rental prices soar, where do Londoners move to when they quit the city? Broadstone and Brentwood top the list July 20, 2015 London rental prices are soaring, forcing some Londoners to look move from the capital in search of cheaper lodgings. But where do they tend to go? While the commuter belt soaks up the majority (50.3 per cent of those leaving the capital stay in the south east, according to Homelet) of former Londoners, it is [...]
Bank of England governor Mark Carney would be wrong to hike interest rates this year, and the next move should be a cut July 20, 2015 At a time when central banks all around the world are stimulating their economies through monetary easing and/or quantitative easing, it's madness that the Bank of England is considering raising interest rates – and if anything the next move should probably be a cut to 0.25 per cent. The Bank of Canada cut rates last [...]
Gold loses its gleam as talk of a US interest rate hike encourages investors July 20, 2015 Gold lost some of its shine this morning, as the precious metal's price fell four per cent to as low as $1,088.05 (£697) an ounce during early trading in Asia – its lowest level since March 2010. Additionally, the price of platinum dropped five per cent in its weakest trade since the global financial [...]
The UK government’s student immigration policy is bad for business and the economy July 20, 2015 Education, particularly higher education, is one of this country’s great success stories. Every year thousands of students come here to learn and along the way they become lifelong friends of Britain. Nonsensically, the government seem intent on making this whole process harder. Under current rules most students can apply for a work visa while still [...]
Home extensions pile on the pounds to property values July 20, 2015 The alterations and extensions made to people's homes have added billions of pounds to property prices across Britain. Over the last 12 months, the work has added a combined £6.5bn to the value of homes, as nearly a quarter of a million owners made changes, adding around £30,000 per property on average. In London, where homeowners have [...]
High street shopper numbers continue decline as they head online July 20, 2015 The number of people heading to the high street has fallen again, new figures reveal, as one minister called for parking charges to be scrapped in an attempt to halt the decline of town centres around the country. Footfall fell 2.8 per cent on the same month last year on the high street and 2.4 [...]
City firms splash out on red tape officers as demand for compliance skills boosts wages July 19, 2015 (Source: Emolument) City workers who help companies cope with red tape are seeing their pay rocket, as a wave of regulations boosts demand for their skills. Figures out this morning reveal that some firms are offering pay rises of 30 per cent in order to attract the staff they need “The more [...]
London’s housing market hits consumer confidence July 19, 2015 London’s housing market is weighing on the minds of consumers, driving the steepest decline in consumer confidence for any major region of the UK last quarter, a poll shows. Consumer confidence in London and the south east fell by six points for the three month period ending June, making it the least optimistic region in [...]
Angela Merkel calls for action on Greek banking rules as lenders reopen July 19, 2015 Greek banks opened again today after a three-week closure, as European politicians try to restore trust inside and outside of Greece after it narrowly avoided bankruptcy with a last-minute financial reforms deal last week. German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for swift aid talks so that Athens can also lift withdrawal limits, which were previously set [...]