Holiday taxes add £131 to typical family getaway August 13, 2016 A plethora of holiday taxes can add more than £130 to the typical family summer getaway, research by the TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA) has found. A combination of Air Passenger Duty (APD), the Insurance Premium Tax and the cost of VAT on holiday essentials such a sun cream and swimming costumes, sets vacationers back an extra £61.12 per adult [...]
IMF: China faces bumpy road to sustainable growth August 12, 2016 The Chinese authorities face "many challenges" in rebalancing its economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned today. Conducting its annual health-check of the world's second largest economy, the IMF said China needed to step up its reforms of the unproductive state owned enterprise (SoE) sector, reform governance rules to promote financial stability and drop [...]
US dollar fades as retail sales stagnate and send sterling back above $1.30 August 12, 2016 The US dollar has sunk after fresh economic data showed the recovery stumbled in July. Retail sales flat-lined in the world's largest economy in July and factory prices defied expectations to fall into negative territory. The pound climbed back above $1.30, up 0.5 per cent on the day, reversing some of the losses from earlier this [...]
Eurozone growth rate halves in second quarter as GDP expands by 0.3 per cent August 12, 2016 The Eurozone grew by 0.3 per cent in the second quarter of the year, as a slowdown in both France and Germany weighed on economic performance. The single currency bloc had surprised analysts with a bumper 0.6 per cent expansion in the first three months of the year, but zero growth in France and only [...]
Construction industry stumbles but don’t blame Brexit yet August 12, 2016 The stumble in UK construction in the run-up to the referendum was worse than economists first feared, as housebuilding and property development fell back in the second quarter of the year. Construction output dropped by 0.9 per cent in June, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning. The decline [...]
China’s slowdown intensifies with weak summer spending August 12, 2016 China's economic rebalancing hit another speed bump this morning as fresh data came in below expectations. Growth in both the mighty industrial sector and consumer industries slipped back in July, highlighting the extent of China's struggle to maintain its breakneck expansion while also implementing structural reforms. This morning the National Bureau of Statistics said investment in fixed [...]
UK front of the queue for US foreign direct investment August 12, 2016 British investment into the United States underpins more than one million jobs on the other side of the Atlantic, research has shown, highlighting the importance of the economic special relationship. Business group the CBI said the UK has retained its position as the single largest investor into the US, accounting for $449bn (£346bn) – or 15 per cent [...]
FTSE 100 soars to 14-month high as pound falls further against the euro August 11, 2016 The FTSE 100 soared to above 6,900 for the first time this year on Thursday. At 6,914.71, the bluechip index closed up 0.7 per cent, its highest level in more than 14 months. Read more: FTSE 100 charges towards 14-month high as miners gains The market had been lingering at less than 6,850 earlier in the [...]
One chart showing what would happen to the UK’s GDP if you stripped out London August 11, 2016 Since the Brexit vote and the ensuing realisation of a divide in national political priorities, an increasing amount of noise has been made about turning London into its own state. Admittedly, that's pretty unlikely – but figures put together for City A.M. by Statista using research from German think tank Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft suggests what might happen [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open August 11, 2016 Oil is falling and Australia's government is taking steps to stop Chinese firms from taking a controlling stake in its largest energy network: here's what you need to know before the market open at 2:30pm. US futures are pointing to a strong open. The S&P is up by 0.21 per cent, the Nasdaq is 0.24 per [...]