RECESSION OVER FOR BATTERED BRITAIN June 10, 2009 A TOP think-tank yesterday called an end to the bitter recession that has been crippling Britain, in a move that was welcomed across the City last night. The National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said output grew 0.1 per cent in May and 0.2 per cent in April. Martin Weale, its director, said [...]
Shadow MPC divided over policy moves June 3, 2009 DESPITE early signs of an economic recovery, interest rates should be kept on hold at 0.5 per cent according to all nine of City A.M.’s shadow MPC committee, ahead of the Bank of England’s June monetary policy decision due today at midday. The Bank of England has already announced asset purchases of £125bn out of [...]
Home loans at lowest level since 2001 May 27, 2009 MORTGAGE lending sunk to its lowest level for eight years in April, data showed yesterday. Net lending by the major banks was £2.7bn during April, down from £3.4bn in March – the lowest figure since March 2001, according to the British Bankers Association (BBA). However, the number of mortgages approved for house purchases actually rose [...]
Great Portland pays 18m to exit bet May 27, 2009 PROPERTY group Great Portland Estates yesterday spent £18.2m to buy its way out of an expensive interest rate hedge. The London landlord became the first major property company to pay a hefty break fee to end an interest rate hedge on £190m of debt. It’s thought the move will save the company about £8.5m a [...]
MILES HAS THE MPC FACTOR May 26, 2009 MORGAN Stanley’s chief UK economist David Miles beat 71 other applicants when he clinched a £128,600 role on the Bank of England’s nine-member Monetary Policy Committee. Miles will replace David Blanchflower, the policy maker widely credited with predicting the scale of the recession. Blanchflower leaves this week, and Miles is expected to stay for a [...]
Gilt prices on course to fall as UK public debt threatens credit rating May 25, 2009 MARKETS were rattled last Thursday when ratings agency Standard & Poor’s announced that it had downgraded its outlook on Britain’s AAA credit rating to “negative” from “stable” for the first time since October 1993. Lower credit ratings result in higher borrowing costs because the borrower is considered more likely to default on its debt. If [...]
AN ABUNDANCE OF GLITTER FOR THE ASIAN WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT May 21, 2009 LONDON’s most successful Asian ladies were out in force on Wednesday night for perhaps the sparkliest evening of the year, the Asian Women of Achievement Awards, in association with Lloyds TSB. The star-studded guest list included Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as well as BBC Dragon James Caan, MP Tessa Jowell, Lib Dem [...]
No green shoots but recovery is on the way, says Bean May 21, 2009 BRITISH firms can expect continued difficulty in obtaining funding, but should be optimistic about the prospects for economic recovery, the Bank of England’s deputy governor Charles Bean said last night. In a speech to steel industry figures in Sheffield, Bean said there were encouraging signs that business confidence was returning but said he would “hesitate [...]
BoE ready to pump more money into economy if needed May 20, 2009 FRESH money will be pumped into the economy if the outlook deterioriates further, the minutes from the Bank of England’s May policy meeting indicated yesterday. At the meeting, all nine members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted in favour of extending the central bank’s quantitative easing programme by £50bn, taking the total to £125bn. [...]
Pay cuts loom as prices fall to 61-year low May 19, 2009 AN ESTIMATED 80 per cent of workers face the prospect of a pay freeze or cut, after the measure of inflation used for the majority of wage settlements plunged last month. The Retail Prices Index (RPI), which is used for workers’ wage settlements and includes mortgage and rent payments, shrank to -1.2 per cent year-on-year [...]