National living wage for over-25s to have modest impact on costs September 14, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne’s new Living Wage, a higher minimum wage for over-25s, will be affordable to most industries but could severely impact others, a think tank said today. Around half of the employees set to benefit from the National Living Wage (NLW) are in industries where the resulting wage bill increase will by 0.6 [...]
UK public’s inflation expectations rebound from their record lows September 14, 2015 Expectations of inflation have bounced off record lows, according to survey data released by Barclays yesterday. The general public expect inflation to be 1.6 per cent over the next year, up from a record low of 1.3 per cent three months ago. Barclays has published its Basix inflation expectations figure since 1986. [...]
Eurozone industrial production accelerates to five-month high September 14, 2015 Eurozone industrial production beat economists' expectations in July, rising to a five-month high, amid a higher volume of energy, capital and durable consumer goods. Data from Eurostat has shown industrial output in the single currency bloc rose 0.6 per cent compared to June, and 1.9 per cent year-on-year. Economists polled by Reuters had been expecting a [...]
Shanghai Composite Index shares suffer amid disappointing Chinese economic data September 14, 2015 Chinese shares came under pressure again today, after disappointing economic data stoked concerns that the world's second-largest economy is losing momentum. The Shanghai Composite Index closed down 2.7 per cent, taking it to 3,114.80 points, also constituting the sharpest one-day drop since late August. Mainland Chinese shares have shed nearly 40 per cent since its [...]
Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane will answer questions on Twitter today September 14, 2015 A member of the Bank of England's rate-setting committee, chief economist Andy Haldane, will be answering questions about how the central bank should regulate financial markets in the UK on Twitter today. Haldane, who has been touted as a possible replace to ousted Financial Conduct Authority boss Martin Wheatley, will conduct the Twitter Q&A from the [...]
Federal Reserve’s US interest rates decision sets alarm bells ringing over global debt timebomb September 13, 2015 Global debt levels have hit dangerous heights, a top financial group has warned, leaving many countries vulnerable to a US rate hike which could come as early as this week. Recent swings in global stock markets are reflective of deep underlying problems in the global economy, the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) said yesterday. [...]
UK firms suffer a widespread dip in growth September 13, 2015 The UK economy looks to have cooled off over summer with new survey data showing businesses growing at their slowest for two years in August. The figures will add to concerns over the economy’s growth which were fed by a slew of negative data last week. Lloyds Bank’s purchasing managers’ index fell to a score [...]
Deloitte: UK savers must find extra £10k each year September 13, 2015 British savers will have to find an additional £10,000 each year from now until they retire if the nation is to close the growing so-called “savings gap” between incomes and retirement needs, according to a new report from Deloitte. The firm forecasts that the savings gap could hit £350bn by 2050 – almost £32bn more [...]
Bank of England governor Mark Carney wants an EU referendum sooner rather than later September 13, 2015 Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said he wants the Conservative government to hold an early referendum on Britain's membership to the European Union. Carney said that the planned vote on EU membership should be held "as soon as necessary" in an interview on BBC Radio 4 this morning. He stressed the importance of [...]
US rate hike? Wall Street analysts divided over Federal Reserve’s upcoming interest rate decision September 13, 2015 As the Federal Reserve’s pivotal decision on US interest rates looms closers, Wall Street analysts remain divided on the likely outcome. To hike or not to hike? The Fed’s big decision is coming up quick, with the interest rate-setting meeting just days away, and a Bloomberg survey of analysts showed that half are expecting a [...]