Coming To America: Osborne flies the flag for Britain on world tour as he seeks to bolster international trading relationships post-Brexit July 11, 2016 George Osborne is kicking off a post-referendum world tour with a declaration that “Britain will be a beacon for free trade…more open to the world than ever”. Writing in the Wall Street Journal ahead of visiting New York today, the chancellor says that he is determined “to build a more outward-looking, global-facing Britain, with stronger [...]
Over 1,000 barristers write to Cameron branding the Brexit outcome “not legally binding” July 11, 2016 The legal clamour against the result of the EU referendum is growing, with over 1,000 barristers branding the outcome “not legally binding” and demanding that leaving the EU be subject to an Act of Parliament. The barristers are writing to Prime Minister David Cameron this week to call for MPs to be given a free vote [...]
The discontinued Land Rover Defender (the Queen’s favourite car) could make a grand comeback July 10, 2016 Chemicals czar Jim Ratcliffe is gearing up to revive production of the Land Rover Defender, one of Britain’s most iconic cars. The Ineos owner is in talks with senior executives at the Tata-owned car manufacturer which stopped production of the 67-year old Defender in January this year after the vehicle could not keep up with [...]
Bank of England to cut interest rates next week according to financial markets July 10, 2016 Financial markets are expecting the Bank of England to slash interest rates when they meet next week, in a drive to stimulate the economy after the EU referendum. The Bank's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will announce its latest decision on interest rates on 14 July – and markets put the chances of a cut at [...]
Oil on course for largest weekly drop in six months July 8, 2016 Global oil prices headed towards their biggest weekly drop in six months today. Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 0.39 per cent to $46.58 per barrel in late afternoon trading. Meanwhile, its US counterpart West Texas Intermediate rose 0.20 per cent to $45.23. Read more: Norway union and oil industry talks break down as strike threat looms Both benchmarks were [...]
Moody’s warns political contagion from Brexit vote could threaten EU’s existence July 8, 2016 Moody's issued a stark warning that political spillovers from the Brexit vote could one day threaten the bloc's very existence and hit global economic growth. It came as the credit ratings agency downgraded the Eurozone's growth forecasts to 1.5 per cent from 1.7 per cent this year, and to 1.3 per cent from 1.6 per cent in [...]
US non-farm payroll numbers: Country added 287,000 jobs in June in turnaround from shock May figures July 8, 2016 The US added 287,000 jobs in June, driven by the leisure and hospitality and healthcare and social assistance sectors. The non-farm payroll data released today is a marked turnaround from the numbers published last month, which showed US employers added just 38,000 jobs in May. The greenback crashed after the May data, which showed the weakest jobs growth [...]
Sterling steadies after its worst three-week performance since 1992 July 8, 2016 Sterling steadied today after a tumultuous run over the past few weeks that saw the currency touch 31-year lows. The pound rose by 0.24 per cent against the dollar this morning, to $1.2939, and was up 0.13 per cent against the euro – £1 will now buy €1.1684 on the money markets. On Wednesday, the pound [...]
Brexit vote pushes confidence down at fastest pace in two decades July 8, 2016 One of the most closely-watched barometers of consumer confidence has suffered its sharpest monthly decline in more than two decades as the Brexit shock kicks in and households prepare to tighten the purse strings. The GfK consumer confidence index sank further into negative territory – scores which indicate more people feel the economy will get worse than better – between June [...]
London generates over a quarter of the UK’s so-called economy taxes, and that could be a problem post-Brexit July 7, 2016 London is stumping up a substantial amount of the UK's taxes, and that could create issues for the country after Brexit, a report out today has found. According to the figures from the Centre for Cities, in 2014-15, London shelled out 28.6 per cent of the UK's economy taxes, which the think tank defines as those [...]