Treasury to pave way for tighter control of the buy-to-let market December 14, 2015 Regulators are expected to consult on the buy-to-let mortgage market this week, as they pave the way for the next salvo on the booming sector. George Osborne has committed to launching a consultation before the end of the year on handing the Bank of England new powers to apply rigorous rules to the buy-to-let market. [...]
London and the East lift UK economic growth as Scotland and the North East contract December 14, 2015 London was the second fastest growing region of the economy last month, according to a new business survey. Lloyds Bank’s regional purchasing managers’ index (PMI) scored 57 for London, above the 50 level that signals no change in business activity on the previous month. While it mark a slowdown in London’s economic growth – Octobers [...]
Rightmove: London house prices beat the seasonal slump December 14, 2015 London asking prices have gone up 10 per cent in the last year, yet some experts are warning the market could run out of steam in 2016. Prices are down 0.5 per cent compared with last month, according to figures published by property website Rightmove this morning. The smallest December dip since 2008 took asking [...]
High street suffers Black Friday blues as footfall slumps in November December 14, 2015 UK high streets suffered a massive slump in footfall in November as shoppers abandoned the high street in favour of bagging a Black Friday bargain online. The number of visitors making shopping trips to their local high streets, retail parks and shopping centres fell by 2.1 per cent year-on-year. This was significantly below the 0.2 per cent fall [...]
Fed revs up for historic lift in US interest rates – New York Report December 13, 2015 Stock market investors are ready for the first US Federal Reserve interest rate hike in nearly a decade this week, but they may not be fully prepared for all of the nuanced remarks likely to accompany that announcement. If the Fed lays out an aggressive schedule of future rate increases, stock markets could become very [...]
US Federal Reserve to hike rates amid bond market jitters December 13, 2015 The US central bank is widely expected to lift interest rates from record lows this week, marking the Federal Reserve’s first move upward since rates were slashed in response to the 2008 financial crisis. Yet while the economy is strong overall, investors will be keeping a nervous eye on bond markets after junk bonds – [...]
US retail sales increase expectations for an interest rate rise from the US Federal Reserve December 11, 2015 US retail sales rose strongly in November as the Christmas shopping season got under way, heightening expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates for the first time in nearly 10 years next year. The Commerce Department said on Friday retail sales excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services rose 0.6 per [...]
Iron ore on course for longest losing streak since financial crisis December 11, 2015 Iron ore prices are on course to fall for the ninth week in a row, meaning the steel-making material will clock its longest losing streak in seven years. Iron ore has shed 3.8 per cent this week, haven fallen to just $38.52 a tonne today. This marks a record low in daily prices compiled by Metal Bulletin, which [...]
IMF managing director Christine Lagarde says house prices, deficit, EU referendum could hurt UK growth December 11, 2015 Rapidly rising house prices and a "strikingly large" current account deficit could inhibit Britain's economic growth, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned this morning. In its annual report on Britain's economy, the IMF said that while UK growth has been strong in recent years, domestic risks threaten the "broadly positive outlook". "Domestic and external [...]
Crown Estate sitting on £800m of vacant London properties December 11, 2015 The Crown Estate is sitting on over £800m worth of empty properties in London alone, a City A.M. investigation has revealed, exposing the scale of the developer’s property footprint in the capital. The monarchy’s portfolio of property and land includes 312 vacant properties in the Greater London area, according to a Freedom of Information request, [...]