SMEs paid out more in dividends over fears that taxes will increase September 27, 2015 The percentage of profits British small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) paid out as dividends last year rose to 63 per cent, up from 46 per cent the year before, according to accountancy firm Moore Stephens. The accountancy firm said today this was due to business owners reacting to concerns about possible tax increases following the [...]
Why Bank of England hawk Ian McCafferty voted for an interest rate rise September 25, 2015 The Bank of England's (BoE) solitary hawk, Ian McCafferty, has said he voted for an interest rate rise at the September meeting because inflation risks overshooting its short to medium-term target. McCafferty said inflation is being held down by temporary factors such as sharp falls in oil and commodity prices, and that it should return to [...]
Buy-to-let boom coming to an end? One in five landlords going out of business hit hard by tax break cuts September 25, 2015 Could the buy-to-let boom be coming to an end? The possibility of lucrative returns may have prompted many to invest in a buy-to-let property, but a new study suggests being a landlord may not be such a sure-fire investment after all. One in five landlords are forecast to be out of business within the next [...]
UK house prices: Supply of properties for sale crashes to 11-year low as National Association of Estate Agents warns “We’re reaching crisis point” September 25, 2015 The supply of houses for sale has slumped its lowest level for 11 years, exacerbating fears that housing affordability is set to continue declining. The number of properties available to buy per estate agent branch dropped to 38 in August, according to figures released today by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) – a [...]
Moody’s Analytics: Economists say Syrian migrants will boost the European economy September 25, 2015 Welcoming immigrants fleeing the turmoil in the Middle East is in Europe’s self interest, top economists at Moody's Analytics have said. Europe is suffering from dire demographic trends with fertility rates in most countries below self-replacement rates – implying populations are set to decline. It also means the share of elderly, which already exceeds the [...]
UK house price gap hits a 20-year high September 25, 2015 The gap between house prices in London and other major regional UK cities has grown to its widest level in 20 years. Homebuyers can expect to save on average £300,000 if they ditch the capital and move to Manchester, according to data released this morning by Hometrack. The gap was greatest in Glasgow, [...]
National Living Wage: Business groups raise red flag on future pay rises September 25, 2015 Leading business groups are cautioning against “artificially increasing pay” today, as the Low Pay Commission closes its public consultation on the minimum wage. The Low Pay Commission – an independent body set up to advise the government on the national minimum wage – opened the public consultation last month, as part of a larger [...]
UK house prices: High first-time buyer confidence heats up the housing market in August September 25, 2015 The market for new buyers, who have been boosted by government schemes such as help-to-buy, has had a strong summer. First-time buyers sales climbed 11.9 per cent in August compared with the same month last year to match July’s eight-year high of 30,200, figures released today by estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains (YMRR) [...]
Glencore share price hit worst in fallout from China’s slowdown: The scale of impact on commodity stocks and financial services revealed September 25, 2015 Just one month after plummeting Chinese equity markets sent shockwaves across global stock exchanges, industries around the world are seeing the damaging effects that China’s slowdown is having on jobs, growth and investment. “The Chinese slowdown and the Chinese economic rebalancing are pretty remorseless,” Kit Juckes, macro strategist at Societe Generale, told City A.M. [...]
Capital Economics says Brexit after the EU referendum will not stop the City from prospering September 24, 2015 Brexit may not be so bad for the City, after all, according to a new note from Capital Economics. Vicky Redwood, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a note published yesterday that while a “British exit from the EU would probably hurt the City in the short term,” it would “not spell disaster” [...]