Still doubting the benefits of free markets? Just look at Ethiopia April 1, 2019 “It's a zero-sum game,” says Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s 1987 film, Wall Street. “Somebody wins, somebody loses.” This sentiment relies on the idea is that there is a fixed amount of wealth to go round. It is nonsense – yet many, perhaps unthinkingly, believe it. Read more: Editor's Notes: The future of capitalism deserves more [...]
Growth in key US inflation rate slows in sign of cooling economy March 29, 2019 A key measure of US inflation rose 1.8 per cent in January compared to a year earlier, its slowest rate of growth since February 2018, figures released today showed. Read more: US economic growth unexpectedly slows in final quarter Consumer spending increased by 0.1 per cent in January compared to December, recovering from a 0.6 [...]
Mortgage approvals fall as lending to businesses also drops March 29, 2019 Mortgage approvals for house purchases fell in February while the number approvals for remortgaging also decreased, data released today showed. Meanwhile, the annual growth of bank lending to businesses fell in February for non-financial businesses, reversing an increase in January, Bank of England (BoE) data revealed. Read more: Sluggish GDP growth and shrinking business investment in UK [...]
UK growth sluggish as consumer spending keeps economy afloat March 29, 2019 Britain’s economy grew by just 0.2 per cent in the final quarter of last year compared to the quarter before, figures released today have confirmed, giving it the third-slowest growth rate out of the G7 countries in 2018. The economy was boosted by British consumers spending more than they earned for a ninth consecutive quarter, [...]
Tesco boss accuses business rates system of ‘killing’ retailers March 28, 2019 The chief executive of Tesco, Dave Lewis, has harshly criticised the UK’s business rates system, saying it has become “a rising tax on investment” in a speech today. Lewis said that increasing business rates have come as retailers are squeezed by online competitors, and called for an online sales levy. He brushed off criticism that this [...]
Labour plans to nationalise industries will cause ‘profound harm’ to UK economy, says CBI chief March 28, 2019 Labour party plans to renationalise key industries such as rail would cause "profound harm to the economy", the UK's largest business group has said. Carolyn Fairbairn, the head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said the party's plans to bring rail, utilities and public services would "hurt the very people they are intended to help and [...]
US economic growth unexpectedly slows in final quarter March 28, 2019 America’s economic output grew more slowly than previously expected in the final quarter of 2018, at an annual rate of 2.2 per cent, figures released today showed. The 2.2 per cent figure, which amounts to 0.55 per cent GDP growth in the final quarter compared to the previous quarter, was 0.4 percentage points lower than the [...]
Liz Truss urges colleagues to back May’s deal and says UK should slash red tape March 28, 2019 Chief secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss called on her colleagues in the Conservative party to support Theresa May's Brexit deal today, while painting a picture of a post-European Union Britain with less “red tape” and a new regulatory system. The Treasury number two also used a speech to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) [...]
Eurozone economic sentiment dips as UK confidence grows March 28, 2019 Economic sentiment in the European Union and the eurozone fell this month, while confidence in the UK jumped 1.6 points. Sentiment in the euro area dropped by 0.7 points to 105.5 and in the EU sentiment fell by 0.4 points to 105, according to the European Commission’s latest business and consumer survey. Read more: Draghi [...]
Preparing for a black swan event in the financial markets March 27, 2019 Global markets are more complex and interconnected than ever. Since the 2008 financial crisis, it’s become increasingly difficult to predict how the behaviour of market participants will affect the broader financial system. Meanwhile, increased automation and the use of high-frequency trading have contributed to flash crashes. We struggle to manage the rapid market movements that [...]