HSBC warns UK economy to shrink 10.3 per cent in 2020 August 19, 2020 The UK’s biggest bank HSBC has sharply downgraded its forecast for the UK economy, predicting it to shrink by 10.3 per cent this year and only grow six per cent in 2021. The latest figures are markedly more pessimistic than its previous prediction of a 7.8 per cent contraction in 2020 followed by growth of [...]
UK rail fares set to increase by 1.6 per cent in January despite pandemic August 19, 2020 UK rail fares are set to increase by 1.6 per cent in January, adding more than £100 to many annual season tickets to London, after an unexpected rise in a controversial measure of inflation. Official figures published today showed that retail price index (PRI) inflation rose by 1.6 per cent in July year on year. [...]
BCC: UK businesses face tough outlook after furlough ends August 19, 2020 More than one in three UK businesses have emerged from a bruising lockdown with less than three months’ worth of cash reserves, according to a British business body that warned firms remain “in the eye of the storm”. A survey conducted by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) found that business conditions have only slightly [...]
UK inflation unexpectedly rises on oil prices and clothes shopping August 19, 2020 UK inflation jumped unexpectedly to one per cent in July from 0.6 per cent in June amid a surge in global energy prices and increased retail activity, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said. The consumer price index inflation reading was the highest since March and markedly higher than the 0.6 per cent analysts [...]
Busting the myth of the selfless bureaucrat August 19, 2020 There seems to be a fundamental problem with quangos. Hardly a day seems to go by without some new story of incompetence and mismanagement emerging. Public Health England (PHE) is at least going to be put out of its misery by health secretary Matt Hancock, and replaced with a new agency specifically focused on pandemics. [...]
What role will cash play in the post-Covid recession? August 19, 2020 With the UK plunging into what the chancellor has called an “unprecedented” recession, what can we learn from the downturn in 2008 about the role of cash and its importance to people and businesses under economic pressure? Cash underpinned the economy and consumer spending habits after the 2008 recession. Will 2020 be significantly different? I’d [...]
UK job vacancies rise 50 per cent in July but sectors still suffering August 19, 2020 The number of job vacancies in the UK rose markedly in July and August, suggesting some areas and sectors have seen an economic rebound, although the number of openings is still far below its pre-crisis levels, new analysis has shown. New vacancies rose more than 50 per cent in July, according to the think tank [...]
Lending through key UK coronavirus schemes tops £52bn August 18, 2020 Bank lending to struggling businesses through the government-backed coronavirus lending programmes has topped £52bn, figures today showed. The bounce back loan scheme (BBLS), under which the government backs 100 per cent of loans up to £50,000, has seen by far the most use. Treasury figures showed £35.5bn had been lent out through the programme by [...]
UK wages fall steeply in August as job fears grow August 17, 2020 UK households suffered a fall in wages in August and reported increased fears about job security, a survey published today said. The IHS Markit UK Household Finance Index (HFI) – which measures households’ overall perceptions of financial wellbeing – fell from 41.5 in July to 40.8 in August, “signalling a further, slightly sharper, deterioration in [...]
Japan’s economy shrinks at record pace as coronavirus wipes out ‘Abenomics’ gains August 17, 2020 Japan was hit by its biggest economic contraction on record in the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic crushed consumption and exports, keeping policymakers under pressure for bolder action to prevent a deeper recession. The third straight quarter of declines knocked the size of real gross domestic product (GDP) to decade-low levels, wiping out the [...]