Higher UK interest rates could give a boost to productivity January 27, 2025 Analysts at the bank think that more expensive borrowing costs could force firms to employ resources more efficiently.
CMA begins redundancy programme after overshooting budget January 23, 2025 The competition watchdog is planning to slash its head count by around ten per cent after overshooting its budget last year, piling fresh pressure on the body following the sudden exit of its chair this week. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which has faced public anger from the Prime minister and Chancellor over its [...]
Bank of England policymaker: ‘Dragons of market discipline are alive and well’ January 23, 2025 "There have been spikes in yields in a number of individual countries in recent years, including the UK, that indicate the dragons of market discipline are alive and well," she said.
‘It’s a clear message’: Reeves’ CMA scalp fires warning to regulators January 23, 2025 The government has sent a “clear message” to UK regulators by ousting the chair of competition watchdog, in what lawyers described as the “most overtly political” regulatory intervention of recent years. Marcus Bokkerink, who joined the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in 2022, was forced out of his role due to a “different approach” on [...]
Could the Bank of England push the UK into recession? January 23, 2025 As the Bank of England scrambles to unwind the disastrous effects of quantitative easing, the hidden costs of this policy are becoming clear, says Damian Pudner Quantitative easing (QE) has long been the Bank of England’s monetary policy nuclear option. Launched in 2009 to save a collapsing financial system, it was supercharged during the pandemic, [...]
Bank of England: Goldman Sachs expects deep interest rate cuts January 22, 2025 Markets are significantly underestimating the chance that the Bank of England will have to step up the pace of cutting interest rates, Goldman Sachs has argued. Traders anticipate just two interest rate cuts this year with one more cut priced in for 2026, which would leave the benchmark Bank Rate at 4.0 per cent. It [...]
PRA under pressure to cut red tape as growth plans fail to excite the City January 22, 2025 The banking regulator is under pressure to go further and faster in its efforts to cut red tape from the City after it outlined plans to boost the growth of firms within its remit last week. In a letter to the Prime Minister and Chancellor, the PRA, which sits within the Bank of England and [...]
More borrowers will be paying off mortgage debt into their 70s January 21, 2025 In the first nine months of 2024, 22,103 mortgages with a term of at least 35 years were approved to people aged over 36.
FCA chair: Our growth push will test UK’s risk appetite January 20, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) push to slash red tape and unleash growth in the City will test the UK’s appetite for risk, its chair has warned, accepting that two of its new proposals could open the door to more fraud and mortgage defaults. Writing in City AM today, Ashley Alder said the FCA will [...]
What is driving the FTSE 100 surge? January 17, 2025 The FTSE 100 has hit a new all-time high today, with the index within touching distance of 8,500 for the first time. Since the start of the week, London’s main index has grown almost three per cent, outperforming the Nasdaq, the S&P 500, and the Dow Jones. The strong performance from the FTSE 100 came [...]