Could technology trigger a lasting boost to productivity? August 6, 2021 | City Talk Two years ago, we identified a series of inescapable investment “truths” that we expected would shape the following decade. Among these truths, we highlighted the accelerated adoption of technology and increased populism as two disruptive trends to watch. But have these two trends been strengthened or challenged by the pandemic? Growth outlook stronger as economies adapt Despite [...]
Pingdemic plagues UK jobs market as wages rise at fastest pace in over two decades August 6, 2021 The UK jobs market continues to be plagued by severe worker shortages caused by the “pingdemic” and intense job insecurity, but wages are rises at fastest pace in over two decades, according to new figures published today. KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation research shows candidate volumes for unfilled jobs fell at the second [...]
Wall Street lifted by Covid-era low jobless claims August 5, 2021 US stocks opened up sharply on Thursday morning after investors were boosted by fresh data showing the American labour market recovery still has legs. The blue-chip S&P 500 gained 0.43 per cent to reach 4,421, while the Dow Jones shot up 0.6 per cent to 34,998. The tech-heavy Nasdaq notched the best performance out the [...]
Venezuela to shave six zeroes off its inflation battered currency August 5, 2021 The Venezuelan central bank will shave six zeroes off the country’s currency, the bolivar, to make transactions less complicated, it said on Thursday. The change will come into force on 1 October with the distribution of new currency notes. “All monetary amounts expressed in national currency will be divided by one million,” the central bank [...]
Bank of England to tighten monetary policy to tame runaway inflation August 5, 2021 The Bank of England signalled today it is likely to start reining in the wave of monetary stimulus it unleashed in response to the Covid crisis to control inflation. “At some point, monetary policy may need to tighten so that the MPC can meet its remit” of achieving an inflation target of two per cent, [...]
Johnson and Sunak call for investment ‘big bang’ in UK to aid recovery August 5, 2021 The prime minister and the chancellor have called on the UK’s institutional investors to plough more capital into UK assets to ignite an “investment big bang” that drives an economic recovery from the pandemic. In a joint letter with Rishi Sunak, Johnson said the UK’s institutional investors should “seize the moment” and use their “hundreds [...]
China tech crackdown: From Jack Ma’s disappearance to online tutoring debacle August 5, 2021 Chinese technology giants once seemed untouchable, with billions of profits through aggressive expansion. But that status is now more uncertain after a year of Beijing’s sweeping regulatory crackdowns that have spread like wildfire across sectors. The saga started last October when Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, who founded e-commerce behemoth Alibaba, criticised China for lacking a [...]
Covid recovery: Failing supply chains constrain UK construction industry August 5, 2021 Severe shortages of essential materials triggered by faltering supply chains slowed the UK construction industry’s recovery from the Covid crisis last month, according to a closely watched survey released today. The latest IHS Markit / CIPS construction purchasing managers’ index for the UK construction industry hit 58.7 in July, down sharply from June’s 24-year high [...]
Investors pile £12bn into UK-listed companies, hoisting the market above pre-pandemic levels August 5, 2021 UK listed companies have raised more than £12bn in fresh capital from investors in the first half of this year, building the market back above pre-pandemic levels. The pandemic caused a resurgence in UK capital markets activity last year, with funds raised by listed companies peaking at its highest level in over a decade. Investors [...]
Bargain hunt: One in three London homes fetch lower asking price August 5, 2021 London’s property market has become a buyer’s market, driven by demand flowing out of the capital and into areas such as the commuter belt since the onset of the Covid crisis, according to new figures published today. Research by London estate agent Benham and Reeves reveals nearly one in three properties in the capital have [...]