Brexit stockpiling helps UK economy bounce back in first quarter of 2019 May 10, 2019 Experts hailed the UK economy’s “resilience” today as it rebounded in the first quarter of 2019 with growth of 0.5 per cent, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Read more: The City powers the UK economy – it must not fall into Labour's hands That is more than double the low 0.2 per [...]
Wanted: A new national statistician to restore the public’s faith in data May 10, 2019 The government has failed to find a new national statistician to oversee the UK’s numbers. And it’s not hard to see why – although the salary of £160k sounds attractive, data nerds can command much more in the private sector, without the additional headache of being in the public spotlight. The job of overseeing the UK’s [...]
Attempts to tackle the ‘problem’ of high pay will end up making everything worse May 10, 2019 The more we learn about what other people earn, the more concern there is about it. Specifically, a political debate is raging over dramatic increases in the pay of chief executives of listed companies. Deemed “unfair” in the widening inequality discussion, pressure is growing from activists and politicians to fix this so-called problem. The latest [...]
US-China trade war: China threatens retaliation as Trump rolls out $200bn tariff hike May 10, 2019 China has warned it will strike back at the US after President Donald Trump’s tariff hike on Chinese goods came into force today. China’s commerce ministry said it “deeply regrets” the move, which sees tariffs raised to 25 per cent on goods worth $200bn (£154bn), and said it would take necessary countermeasures. Read more: US-China [...]
US-China trade deficit falls ahead of crunch negotiations May 9, 2019 The US’s trade deficit in goods and services with China decreased in March, in news that will cheer the Trump administration as it prepares to ramp up tariffs on its largest trading partner. Read more: Global markets in tailspin after Trump threatens huge China tariff rise The country's deficit with the rest of the world [...]
Turkey introduces ‘backdoor’ rate rise as Turkish lira falls to eight-month low May 9, 2019 The Turkish lira has fallen to its lowest level in almost eight months, prompting the country’s central bank to suspend short-term borrowing of government securities, in what has been dubbed a “backdoor” interest rate rise. The country’s embattled currency – which has been under pressure since March – has seen a serious severe downturn since Turkey’s [...]
Time for South Africa to heed Mandela’s call and embrace the free market May 9, 2019 When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990, the then President of South Africa, F. W. De Klerk, estimated that at least half of the upper echelons of the African National Congress party were either Communist or Soviet-bloc trained. Consequently, when Apartheid was ended, economic expectations for the country were poor. Just as the [...]
London sees sharpest fall in permanent jobs in almost three years in April, survey shows May 9, 2019 The number of people starting permanent jobs in London fell at its sharpest rate for almost three years in April, new analysis has revealed, in a sign that the capital’s jobs boom may be slowing. Read more: UK employment hits record high as wages grow again Starting salary inflation for permanent positions cooled to a [...]
The City powers the UK economy – it must not fall into Labour’s hands May 8, 2019 Despite the best efforts of a few valiant voices, the City (and its interests) received a shameful lack of attention during the Brexit debate and has been largely left to fend for itself ever since. Read more: What the next Bank of England governor’s CV looks like However, the race to succeed Mark Carney at [...]
Trump claims China stalled on trade deal in hopes of dealing with Democratic president May 8, 2019 US President Donald Trump has claimed that China was seeking to U-turn on the trade deal struck between the two countries in the hope that it could renegotiate with a Democratic president following the 2020 election. Read more: Global markets in tailspin after Trump threatens huge China tariff rise He also said that China's vice-premier [...]