UK retail sales see biggest contraction in 17 months, says CBI March 27, 2019 UK retail sales volumes fell sharply in March, seeing the fastest contraction in 17 months and marking a four-month run in which sales have not grown, a leading business group said today. Of the businesses surveyed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), 46 per cent said sales volumes were lower in March than a [...]
Italy’s trade deal with China is playing with fire March 27, 2019 Italy’s decision to be the first major European economy to join China’s massive investment and infrastructure project, the Belt and Road Initiative, can only exacerbate tensions between Italy and its neighbours. On Saturday, President Xi Jinping and the Italian government signed a non-binding agreement for Italy to join China’s 21st-century trade route, and inked a total [...]
Draghi says ECB ready to halt rates rises as Eurozone economy struggles March 27, 2019 Mario Draghi has said that the European Central Bank “will adopt all the monetary policy actions that are necessary” to boost the Eurozone economy should it continue to struggle, including further delaying planned interest rate hikes. Speaking in Frankfurt, Germany, the ECB boss also said that although he thought “growth will gradually return”, the “risks remain tilted [...]
Looking for Brexit consensus? You won’t find it – and this Nobel-winning economist can tell you why March 27, 2019 Should pure blue sky research be funded? Certainly, the answer from government-backed research councils seems to be “no”. The emphasis is increasingly on research which has immediate practical applications. Yet seemingly esoteric research can shed light in quite unexpected areas. For example, a PhD thesis written by a then obscure research student 70 years ago [...]
Losing out: British finance bosses leaking £6.7bn a year by failing to update accounting systems March 27, 2019 Outdated accounting systems which prevent British companies taking advantage of early payment discounts are costing them £6.7bn a year, according to research. More than one-fifth of finance bosses (22 per cent) surveyed by Opinium believe their accounting software is out of date, while 16 per cent said it did not allow them to use early [...]
US consumer confidence falls as worries about the economy mount March 26, 2019 US consumer confidence declined in March following an increase in February, the latest data has shown, as Americans raise concerns about the economy The widely-watched consumer confidence index, released today by US business research group The Conference Board, now stands at 124.1, down from 131.4 in February. Read more: Fed slows balance sheet reduction and holds [...]
Negative outlook from exporters fails to move German stocks March 26, 2019 German export expectations weakened considerably in March compared to February, dropping to their lowest figure since October 2012, according to one of the country’s leading think tanks. Export expectations among manufacturers in the automotive and metals industries have in particular weakened, and declines in exports are expected, survey results published by the Ifo Institute showed [...]
UK mortgage approvals fall as Brexit uncertainty bites March 26, 2019 Mortgage approvals in the UK have fallen year-on-year as homebuyers put off their decisions amid political uncertainty, new data has revealed. The number of mortgages approved by the main high street banks in February was 2.2 per cent lower than the same month in 2018, the finance and business services body UK Finance said today. [...]
Britain leads falling European stock markets as US recession risk grows March 25, 2019 European stocks fell today, with Britain's leading the drop, while US equities were volatile as investors weighed up global economic headwinds and recession fears. The US’s S&P 500 was down 0.4 per cent soon after opening at 1.30 pm UK time, but rebounded to rise 0.3 per cent for the day, while the Dow Jones [...]
FTSE 100 falls as markets fear slowing global economy March 25, 2019 The FTSE 100 fell this morning as European stocks followed Asia’s lead and dropped amid global economic headwinds and fears of a US recession. FTSE fell 0.5 per cent soon after opening, shedding 36 points, while the German Dax exchange opened down 0.4 per cent from its previous closing level despite later trimming its losses to become level after [...]