Hopes of lower interest rates fuel construction sector optimism amid housebuilding resurgence March 6, 2024 The overall construction PMI rose to 49.7, up from 48.8 in January, its highest level since August 2023 and only marginally below the neutral 50-mark.
Moving markets: Five things shaping the FTSE 100 today March 6, 2024 Asian markets falter with China stocks leading the decline, while bitcoin retreats from record highs. Apple's iPhone sales in China drop sharply. Attention shifts to the UK's Spring budget and Fed Chair Powell's testimony.
Blackstone and Thomson Reuters to offload £1.9bn LSEG stake March 5, 2024 A group of LSEG investors including Blackstone and Thomson Reuters are offloading a four per cent stake in the firm worth £1.9bn, the London Stock Exchange owner has said today
Spring Budget 2024: What will markets look out for? Gilts, rabbits and cuts March 5, 2024 Given the state of the UK's public finances, investors may get jittery if Hunt pulls too many rabbits out of the hat.
What is the OBR and why does it matter? March 5, 2024 Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will take centre stage tomorrow when he delivers the Spring Budget but investors are likely to pay just as much attention to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
UK economy ‘turned a corner’ despite slight weakening in services sector March 5, 2024 New business orders drove the increase, with the survey showing the sharpest rate of new business growth since May 2023.
Treasury has no way of recording value for money on borrowing, MPs find March 5, 2024 Government borrowing has ballooned since the early 2000s as a result of a succession of crises, rising from around £300bn in 2003 to as much as £2.5trn last year.
Wettest February on record leads to poor month for retail March 5, 2024 New figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) showed that retail sales increased 1.1 per cent in the year to February, down from 5.2 per cent last year and below the three-month average of 1.4 per cent.
FTSE 100 today: London markets braces for cautious opening as U.S. and Asian markets slip March 5, 2024 Hong Kong and Chinese stocks fell as China set a 5% growth target. Meanwhile, Bitcoin surged past $68,000. Investors now await Fed Chair Jerome Powell's testimony for market insights.
China’s audacious aim: pursuing five per cent growth target amidst economists’ scepticism March 5, 2024 China has set its sights on achieving an economic growth target of approximately 5% for the current year, a goal that some economists consider ambitious.