European Commission fines British Airways £90m for its role in an air cargo cartel March 17, 2017 British Airways is to be fined €104m (£90m) by the European Commission for its role in a major price-fixing scandal dating back to 1999. Some 11 airlines will be fined a total of €776m for their role in a cartel to fix fuel and security charges on flights to and within the European Economic Area between [...]
Emerging markets and junk bonds suffered as investors thanked the Fed for the promise of higher US yields March 17, 2017 Investors pulled money out of emerging markets and high-yielding bond funds at the fastest rate this year, positioning instead for bigger returns from US assets as the Fed continued on the path to normal monetary policy. High-yield bond funds, which target junk bonds from riskier but higher-rewarding companies, saw their biggest outflows since the end [...]
The majority of gig-economy workers want employment rights such holiday and sick pay – but they’re still happy March 17, 2017 The majority of people who are part of the gig economy want access to the same benefits as traditional employees such as holiday pay, new research reveals. Some 1.3m people in the UK are workers in the gig economy, the human resources trade body CIPD estimates, with 63 per cent saying the government should regulate to ensure [...]
Editor’s Notes: Only a lack of ambition can hold Britain back, says the Legatum Institute’s researcher tasked with finding the upside of the Brexit vote March 17, 2017 Britain faces an enormous challenge in the wake of Brexit, but the prize is more than worth the fight. That’s according to one experienced former trade negotiator who now finds himself at the heart of the UK’s trade debate. Shanker Singham is director of economic policy and prosperity studies at the Legatum Institute in London. He’s [...]
Moving clearing from London to Europe is no piece of cake March 17, 2017 "Britain cannot have its cake and eat it over Brexit negotiations.” Comments such as this from the Prime Minister of Luxembourg at the height of political tensions following the EU referendum have, perhaps unsurprisingly, become synonymous with the Brexit debate since 23 June. But with the triggering of Article 50 just around the corner, it [...]
As Toyota says it’ll invest £240m in its UK plant, has the threat of Brexit to carmakers been overplayed? March 17, 2017 Daniel Mahoney, deputy director at the Centre for Policy Studies, says Yes. The prospect of a 10 per cent tariff on UK car exports to the EU is unnerving for the automotive industry. However, developments since the EU referendum are reason to remain positive. Both Nissan and now Toyota have announced major investments in the [...]
Government should do more to boost flagging company investment business group says March 17, 2017 An influential business group has called for government to do more to tackle falling capital spending as fears are rising about a slowdown in long-term business investment. The Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAEW) forecasts businesses will invest 1.9 per cent less in 2017 as companies start a “period of restraint” during the Brexit process. Stephen [...]
Sterling jumps as Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) votes to leave monetary policy unchanged, but one votes to hike March 16, 2017 A senior policymaker at the Bank of England defied her colleagues to vote to raise interest rates for the first time in over a year, as the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left monetary policy untouched. Kristin Forbes voted to raise bank rate by 0.25 per cent. Forbes is an external member of the nine-member MPC [...]
Four things to watch out for from the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting March 16, 2017 The Bank of England is set to announce monetary policy at its latest meeting this afternoon. Investors don’t expect anything in the way of change, but as always economists will try to read the runes of the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) statement to see how the Bank’s economists think the UK economy is faring. Read [...]
The idea that London will be replaced as Europe’s financial centre is completely potty March 16, 2017 It's now almost nine months since the referendum, and Article 50 is about to be invoked. Readers of this column will be familiar with my arguments as to why a unilateral free trade Brexit is the optimal exit strategy, because of the gain to consumers in the short term and to consumers and producers in the [...]