Bank of England’s quantitative easing is making the rich richer claims Osborne September 27, 2016 The UK's monetary policy has made "life difficult for savers" and has helped the rich become richer, former chancellor George Osborne has said. In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Osborne said: “We need to offset the very necessary loose monetary policy and the distributional consequences that is having. Essentially it makes the rich richer and makes [...]
Liam Fox falls short of calling for hard Brexit September 27, 2016 Liam Fox has been accused of overstepping his mark after failing to deliver any significant detail on what trading relationships the UK will pursue outside the European Union. In a speech to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) today, the international trade secretary did not address the issue of whether the UK would seek to leave [...]
Consumer spending eases back after summer splurge September 27, 2016 UK shoppers cut back in September following a summer splurge, though it has not dented the confidence of retailers, a new survey has found. The CBI’s distributive trades survey found 38 per cent of shops said sales volumes were down on September last year, while 30 per cent reported growth. The score of minus eight [...]
US consumer confidence hits nine-year high September 27, 2016 Consumer confidence has hit a nine-year high in the US just six weeks before the country will elect its next President. According to The Conference Board, optimism jumped to 104.1, its highest level since the recession, from 101.8 one month ago, on an index where 100 represents the long-term average. Analysts had expected the index would dip [...]
Oil price sinks after Iran and Saudi Arabia play down prospects of an output freeze September 27, 2016 Oil prices have sunk today as investors scale back their expectations of a deal to curb output between some of the world's biggest suppliers. Rival producers Iran and Saudi Arabia have both poured water on the possibility of a deal being reached to limit oil exports, which have remained at record highs all year. Both [...]
Mums could boost London economy by £16bn with more flexible working September 27, 2016 A lack of flexible work for stay-at-home mums is costing the capital up to £16bn in lost economic activity every year, a new report has found. Over three quarters of stay-at-home mums in London would go back to work if there were more flexible options, according a survey by Digital Mums and the Centre for Economics and [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open September 27, 2016 A rise in US stock futures suggests investors are feeling more confident about a Clinton victory in the US election following the first candidate debate last night. Here's what you need to know before the US open at 2:30pm London time. The S&P is set to rise by 0.27 per cent at the open, while [...]
Analysts fear Deutsche Bank could become Europe’s Lehman Brothers September 27, 2016 The misery for Deutsche Bank continued this morning as shares continued to slide to fresh record lows. The German lender has seen its share price lose 30 per cent in the last three weeks and was hit by a new round of selling this morning, as shares dropped 3.3 per cent to €10.20 (£8.86). The latest slide [...]
Global trade growing at slowest pace since financial crisis September 27, 2016 Trade is growing at its slowest pace since the financial crisis amid crumbling commodity prices and a globalisation backlash, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has said. The body which sets the standards for global trade said the total value of exports and imports will rise by just 1.7 per cent this year, a massive reduction from its [...]
US Presidential Election 2016: How did financial markets react to the first debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump? September 27, 2016 Financial markets have decided Democrat Hillary Clinton came out on top in the first US presidential debate last night, as stock markets rallied and key currencies soared. In a pattern which should sound familiar to UK market-watchers over the last few months, markets have started to move back-and-forth in response to developments on the campaign trail. [...]