EU Robin Hood financial transactions tax is “within reach” if politicians can agree says diplomat January 26, 2017 A financial transactions tax – also known as a Robin Hood tax – on trades is “within reach” according to the EU’s commissioner on tax, which could represent a barrier to the UK’s post-Brexit trade deal with the bloc. The original proposal was for a 0.1 per cent tax on trades in shares and bonds [...]
Weaker retail sales suggest the UK’s consumer spending engine could stall January 26, 2017 Retail sales fell in January in the UK, surprising analysts and adding to suspicions the consumer spending engine driving Britain’s growth may be about to sputter. Almost a third of retailers surveyed report a decline in sales volumes in January, according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) distributive trades survey. While the decline comes [...]
Spain unemployment falls to lowest since 2009 January 26, 2017 Unemployment in Spain has fallen to its lowest point since 2009, as the economy continues its slow recovery. The jobless rate fell to 18.63 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2016, capping a fall in unemployment of more than two percentage points over the year, according to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics (INE). This [...]
UK economy sees no Brexit downturn with two per cent growth in 2016 January 26, 2017 The UK ended 2016 on a high as economic growth in the last three months of the year showed little sign of a hit in the aftermath of the Brexit vote. The economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the fourth quarter, beating economists’ expectations. This means the UK economy grew by two per cent [...]
I can’t help but worry about the potential for the mother of all house price crashes January 26, 2017 The year opened with alarming newspaper headlines in The Daily Telegraph on the risk of a global property price crash. How worried should we be in the UK? The ratio of house prices to incomes in the UK is close to the all-time high it reached before the financial crisis. If that ratio mean reverts over [...]
German business sees a surprise fall in confidence as political risk looms January 25, 2017 Confidence in businesses in Germany has posted a surprise fall to start 2017, as worries over Europe’s medium-term outlook increased, according to a long-running survey. Sentiment fell from a three-year high in December to its lowest point since September, according to a survey of over 7,000 companies by Germany’s Ifo Institute. Analysts had expected a [...]
Optimism at two-year high ahead of Brexit for UK manufacturers as domestic demand drives morale up January 25, 2017 A boom in domestic demand has boosted optimism among British manufacturers to increase at its fastest pace for two years ahead of Brexit, according to a survey of UK businesses. More than a quarter of manufacturing firms are optimistic for prospects for the year ahead, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), outweighing negative [...]
The NHS will never have enough cash: Our national religion needs a reformation January 25, 2017 We British like traditions. A well-established one which comes round every year is the “winter crisis” in the NHS. Health provision is a political hot potato not just for this government, or indeed for any particular UK government, but for governments across the developed world. One of the key assumptions made by economists about human behaviour [...]
Saudi Aramco eyes bankers for what could be the world’s biggest float January 24, 2017 Global banking giants are set to compete for an advisory role on oil goliath Saudi Aramco’s multi-billion-dollar float, which is expected to be the world’s biggest initial public offering. The Saudi state-owned firm, thought to be the world’s largest oil producer, has requested proposals from banks including Morgan Stanley and HSBC, sources told Reuters late last night. [...]
Trump bump: US manufacturing activity expands at fastest rate since 2014 January 24, 2017 The US manufacturing sector started the new year on a high as Donald Trump assumes the Presidency, according to a survey of business activity. Manufacturing activity in the world’s largest economy expanded at the fastest rate since September 2014, according to flash estimates from data provider IHS Markit. The manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose [...]