Budget: OBR says UK to avoid recession and is on course to grow every year after short blip in boost for Jeremy Hunt March 15, 2023 Britain will avoid a much-tipped recession this year and will grow every year until 2027 after a short blip, a massive reversal from economists warning of the longest contraction in a century just a few months ago, the country’s spending watchdog said today. UK GDP is on course to suffer a mild slump in 2023 [...]
Blackrock boss Larry Fink: SVB collapse may signal ‘dominoes are starting to fall’ March 15, 2023 The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank could signal the “dominoes are starting to fall” after an abrupt end to the era of low interest rates and cheap money, the boss of the world’s biggest asset manager BlackRock has warned. In his annual letter to investors today, Larry Fink said a series of aggressive rate hikes [...]
Budget: Why Jeremy Hunt needs you back at work to prevent a recession March 15, 2023 This was a budget for the workforce. It showed signs of sparking the supply side revolution that Liz Truss championed, but crashed hard in trying to get there too quickly. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) thinks so. It projects the government’s collective policies designed to boost the labour market will provide a 0.2 per [...]
FTSE 100 close: Global banking rout weighs on index as budget does little to lift sentiment March 15, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 slumped this afternoon as the banking sector faced a major sell-off following concerns over the future of Credit Suisse. The capital’s premier index closed 3.83 per cent lower at 7,344.45 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, shed 2.63 per [...]
FTSE 100 close: London index claws back Silicon Valley Bank induced losses as HSBC soars March 14, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 surged today, arresting the sharp declines notched yesterday as it was caught up in a global market sell off driven by investors’ fretting over the impact of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapsing. The capital’s premier index gained 1.17 per cent to close at 7,637.12 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, [...]
US inflation tumbles to lowest level since September 2021 but price pressures complicate Fed rate decision March 14, 2023 US inflation has dropped to the lowest level since September 2021, but underlying price pressures are still sticking around, complicating the Federal Reserve’s rate decision next week, official figures out today show. The rate of price growth in the world’s largest economy trimmed to six per cent over the year to February, down from 6.4 [...]
Why does the Bank of England (secretly) want to sack you? To hose down the inflation fire March 14, 2023 Whisper it very, very softly, but the Bank of England (secretly) is trying to force you out of the job. That’s right. Governor Andrew Bailey wants to toss you to the wolves in the name of the fight against inflation. That’s overegging it. No one is directly trying to make someone else unemployed. A kernel [...]
Budget: Why a high-tax country is still dealing with fraying public services March 14, 2023 Britain is on course to shoulder a tax burden that has “never been sustained before in its history” but is still grappling with fraying public services, a top economist has told City A.M. ahead of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s budget tomorrow. Carl Emmerson, deputy director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said the UK has [...]
FTSE 100 close: Silicon Valley Bank collapse drags London index into red despite HSBC sale March 13, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 was dragged down into a global market sell off today driven by fears over how far the effects of the collapse of tech-focused Silicon Valley Bank could ricochet through the financial system. The capital’s premier index slid more than two per cent to close at 7,548.64 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE [...]
US Federal Reserve to refrain from rate hike later this month after Silicon Valley Bank collapse, bets Goldman March 13, 2023 Speculation is growing among traders that the US Federal Reserve could refrain from hiking interest rates later this month for fear of triggering another Silicon Valley Bank-style collapse. Turmoil in financial markets sparked by the tech-focused lender’s collapse has raised the likelihood Fed chair Jerome Powell and co may hold off raising rates any further. [...]