Escalating trade tensions to harm global growth, IMF warns as it further downgrades forecasts January 21, 2019 Escalating trade tensions could hit global growth, the International Monetary Fund warned as it downgraded forecasts for the second time in four months. The IMF’s world economic outlook warned that China’s growth slowdown could accelerate if trade tensions continue and trigger sharp sell offs in financial markets, while the “Brexit cliffhanger” could also slow growth. [...]
No Boris, springing aimless policy promises on the public is not the way to make change January 21, 2019 The tax burden in the UK is at a 50-year high, accounting for over 34.5 per cent of GDP. Nevertheless, MPs from across the political spectrum like to propose new and higher taxes – the implementation of which increase the burden on families, who are already struggling from Britain’s cost of living crisis and lackluster [...]
Davos is a chance for the UK to step-up and collaborate in the digital revolution January 21, 2019 After the drama of last week in Westminster, it’s the 49th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum that will take centre stage over the next few days. I will join more than 100 heads of government, as well the globe’s leading companies, international organisations, and NGOs in making the annual visit to Davos. Brexit [...]
London needs micro-homes to solve the housing crisis January 21, 2019 Size doesn’t matter. When it comes to property at least, it’s all about location, location, location. Everyday, thousands of city workers (yes, I’m talking about you) are forced into excruciatingly long commutes from the outskirts of London, because living in the city centre – and, frankly, most of the capital – is simply unaffordable. Micro-housing would [...]
Chinese economy grew at slowest rate since 1990 in 2018 as hopes for US trade deal persist January 21, 2019 China’s economy grew at its slowest rate since 1990 in 2018 as demand lessened and trade tariffs imposed by the US continued to bite. GDP growth eased to 6.4 per cent from 6.5 per cent in the third quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said today, dragging full-year growth to 6.6 per cent, the slowest [...]
London house prices fell 1.5 per cent in December as Brexit bites January 21, 2019 The average asking price for London houses fell 1.5 per cent in December compared to the previous month as Brexit uncertainty continued to dampen the capital’s property market, according to figures released today. Figures from the latest Rightmove House Price Index showed the average asking price for a London home is now just under £594,000. [...]
UK tech sector growth cools to slowest pace since 2015 amid political uncertainty January 21, 2019 Growth in the UK tech sector cooled to its slowest pace in three years in the final quarter of 2018 as political uncertainty and global trade frictions dented industry confidence. Tech companies also reported the sharpest fall for seven years in backlogs of work, suggesting a lack of new work to replace completed projects at [...]
UK businesses reduce spending on redundancy payments despite Brexit uncertainty January 21, 2019 UK businesses reduced their spending on redundancy payments last year despite the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, a law firm has found. Commercial law firm EMW said spending on redundancy payments dropped to £3.6bn by the end of March last year, from £3.8bn the previous year despite the prediction that Brexit would cause widespread job losses. The total number [...]
The Lords have spoken: It’s time to fix RPI and reform the way we measure inflation January 17, 2019 On Thursday, the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee published an unusually strongly worded report about what seems like a relatively dry and technical topic: how we measure inflation. Let me stop you before you switch off – the calculation of inflation matters, because it affects all sorts of prices that you pay, from rail [...]
Eurozone inflation falls to eight-month low led by slower rise in energy prices January 17, 2019 Eurozone annual inflation fell to its lowest level in eight months in December, led by a slower rise in energy prices. The single currency bloc’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) met market forecasts as it dropped to 1.6 per cent from 1.9 per cent in November, the EU’s statistical office Eurostat said today. But the month-on-month [...]