The next Bank of England governor must be prepared for a political storm October 6, 2019 When Dame Helena Morrissey revealed she was standing down from Legal & General last week, the City rumour mill was sent into overdrive. The Square Mile veteran and champion of boardroom equality said only that “in a changing Britain” she had “a lot of ideas and other things to achieve”. This rather enigmatic sign-off will [...]
Bank of England could cut interest rates if Brexit uncertainty persists, says MPC member September 27, 2019 The Bank of England may need to cut interest rates even if a no-deal Brexit is avoided, according to a member of the monetary policy committee (MPC), which sets the rates. Michael Saunders has said that the Bank may have to cut rates if the “slow puncture” effect on the economy from Brexit uncertainty persists. [...]
The UK faces a bipolar economic outlook September 20, 2019 The fact that the UK’s economic prospects appear both bipolar and nebulous is a measure of the unique period that we are in. While Boris Johnson began his premiership in high energy, with the strong conviction that Britain would exit the EU by 31 October, this momentum has quickly evaporated. Earlier this month, MPs voted [...]
Boris Johnson’s former advisor Gerard Lyons misses Bank of England governor shortlist September 7, 2019 The former economic advisor to Prime Minister Boris Johnson has failed to make the final shortlist to become the Bank of England’s next governor. Gerard Lyons had been the favourite to take over from Mark Carney due to his personal relationship with Johnson, but the Treasury have deemed him unsuitable for the role, according to [...]
Brexit prep has cut productivity of UK business, says Bank of England August 30, 2019 The Brexit process has cut the productivity of UK companies by between two and five per cent, research by the Bank of England has found. Much of this drop since the vote to leave the European Union in 2016 is due to falls in businesses’ productivity as managers dedicate several hours per week to Brexit [...]
UK economy on course to stagnate in third quarter, says Bank of England governor August 24, 2019 Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said that the UK’s economy is on course to stagnate in the third quarter. He also said that underlying growth looked muted even with Brexit volatility stripped out. Read more: UK will remain ‘energetic partner’ on world stage after Brexit, says Boris Carney said Britain’s economy was “currently [...]
Bank of England downgrades UK second quarter growth to zero as Brexit looms August 1, 2019 The Bank of England said UK growth ground to a standstill in the second quarter of the year due to the unwinding of Brexit stockpiling and car plant shutdowns as it chose to leave interest rates unchanged at 0.75 per cent today. In its latest gauge of the economy, released today, Threadneedle Street downgraded its [...]
UK inflation rate hits Bank of England target: Will Carney raise rates? June 19, 2019 The UK’s Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation rate fell to two per cent in May, in line with the Bank of England’s target, the latest figures show. CPI inflation dropped to within the target range set by Bank boss Mark Carney from 2.1 per cent in April, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today. [...]
Facebook confirms launch of own cryptocurrency June 19, 2019 | City Talk By Gary McFarlane from interactive investor. The social media giant announces its own cryptocurrency, called ‘Libra’ that aims to be ‘global money’. Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) has announced Libra coin, a cryptocurrency that aims to be global money and is set to launch in early 2020. A new app is joining the Facebook family called Calibra (https://calibra.com/), which will act as [...]
Bank of England calls ‘last orders’ on Libor as regulators push 2021 transition June 5, 2019 The Bank of England has called “last orders” on the scandal-hit Libor interest rates as regulators push for financial institutions to transition away from the benchmark by 2021. Deputy governor Dave Ramsden said good progress was being made and that getting on with the switch to alternative benchmark Sterling Overnight Index Average (Sonia) could be [...]