Dithering on airport capacity is choking British businesses, Theresa May needs to take urgent action August 30, 2016 The decision on whether to construct a new runway in the south east of England has been parked for too long. That cannot remain the case for much longer – a lack of airport capacity in the south east is acting a major constraint upon business and economic growth. Business leaders have become increasingly exasperated [...]
Emerging markets have enjoyed a real comeback, but as expectations of another Fed rate hike grow, can it last long? August 30, 2016 At the beginning of the year, things looked dismal for emerging markets. Investor optimism had soured over the previous three to four years, thanks to a cocktail of tumbling commodity prices, a strong dollar and a Chinese slowdown which had shaken confidence in the sustainability of their growth. Nine months later, and the mood has shifted [...]
London areas dominate list of fastest growing economies as Croydon – the Silicon Valley of South London – takes the crown August 30, 2016 Croydon's burgeoning reputation as a tech hub has made it the UK’s fastest growing economy, new research has found. Croydon topped the list of 173 areas as the fastest growing UK region with an annual growth rate of 9.3 per cent in gross value added (GVA), according to accountancy group UHY Hacker Young. GVA is a measure of an area’s [...]
Brexit negotiation “pettiness” would push UK and Europe into recession, says Mohamed El-Erian August 30, 2016 The UK and Europe will fall into recession and become less significant globally if Brexit negotiations become the victim of "pettiness", according to Mohamed El-Erian, Allianz's chief economic adviser who chairs President Obama's Global Development Council. El-Erian said that in a "rational world, the UK would end up with a free trade arrangement with the [...]
Oil prices under pressure as September US interest rate hike possibility climbs August 29, 2016 Rising chances of a US interest rate hike in September driving up the value of the dollar have put pressure on oil prices today. International Brent crude fell one and a half per cent to $49.19 per barrel at the market open in New York as a stronger dollar weighed on commodities and inventories remain well stocked by high output from Opec members. [...]
This former Bank of England governor is positive about Brexit August 29, 2016 A former governor of the Bank of England has said the decision of Britain to leave Europe put the country on a better economic footing. “We are now in a better position to rebalance the UK economy,” said Lord King of Lothbury, who headed up the central bank between 2010 and 2013. “The UK economy has [...]
Sterling surges after Janet Yellen rate hike remarks August 26, 2016 The pound surged against the dollar this afternoon, after Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen said the case for a rate hike had strengthened over the past few months. Sterling went up 0.5 per cent to hit a three-week high of $1.3264 following Yellen's speech at Jackson Hole. It has since fallen back, although it's still above the [...]
Janet Yellen says case for rate hike has “strengthened” in recent months August 26, 2016 The case for rate hikes has "strengthened in recent months", chair of the US Federal Reserve Janet Yellen has said. Speaking at Jackson Hole, the Fed chief said: "In light of the continued solid performance of the labour market and our outlook for economic activity and inflation, I believe the case for an increase in the [...]
Sterling nears three-week high on strong data August 26, 2016 Sterling hovered near a three-week high against the dollar this morning, after receiving a boost from strong economic data which showed investment was moving in the right direction. The pound was on track for its best weekly performance in six weeks against the euro, having hit a two-week high on Wednesday, although at pixel time [...]
One more measure of consumer confidence has come roaring back August 26, 2016 A leading measure of consumer confidence has surged by its fastest rate in more than three years as fears of a post-referendum economic collapse peter out. The YouGov/Centre of Economics and Business Research (CEBR) tracker, out today, climbed from 106.6 in July to 109.8 in August, on an index where scores above 100 indicate optimism among the [...]