Sunak’s tough choices: a sobering assessment November 25, 2020 Rishi Sunak’s spending review was a sobering assessment of not only the challenges facing the UK economy, but also the enormous economic damage created by the pandemic and the numerous lockdowns around the country, with the budget deficit for 2020 expected to come in at £394bn. The Chancellor said that the UK economy was likely [...]
MPs amp up pressure to avoid placing London in Tier 3 when lockdown lifts November 25, 2020 The Prime Minister is facing mounting pressure from his own party to avoid placing London in Tier 3 when England’s lockdown lifts, over fears tough restrictions could cripple businesses in the capital. Reports of government plans to place London in the highest level of restrictions under the new tier system, set to be announced tomorrow, [...]
UK borrowing to hit record £394bn as economy shrinks 11.3 per cent November 25, 2020 Government borrowing is set to soar to a peacetime record of £394bn this year while the economy will contract at the fastest pace since the 1700s thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, according to bleak predictions from the UK’s budget watchdog. The figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) show that unemployment is expected to [...]
HMRC: 2.7m people still on furlough at end of September November 25, 2020 Around 2.7m people were still on furlough in the UK at the end of September, HMRC has estimated, as the UK’s incomplete economic recovery was knocked back by rising coronavirus cases. HMRC said the arts, recreation and entertainment sector had the highest proportion of workers on furlough, at 23 per cent. Food and accommodation was [...]
Before the bell: Quiet start for Europe as all eyes are on US data November 25, 2020 It was another bullish day for global stock markets yesterday as sentiment was lifted by the vaccine hopes as well as the prospect of President Trump departing from his role in January in a calm and measured manner. The update on Monday from AstraZeneca-Oxford University that its potential Covid-19 vaccine has made great progress in [...]
Exclusive: Cautious investors reluctant to launch funds in polarised market, says Savills CEO November 25, 2020 Institutional investors are increasingly reluctant to pour capital into property funds, as the pandemic has turned the sector’s investment cycle upside down, according to Savills group CEO Mark Ridley. Speaking exclusively to City A.M., Ridley said during a wide-ranging interview that October alone saw the third highest level of monthly redemptions ever experienced by open-ended UK real [...]
UK capital raising hits decade-high amid coronavirus crisis November 25, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic has driven UK companies to raise the most money on public markets in a decade, with firms scrambling for cash returning to traditional fundraising methods, analysis shared exclusively with City A.M. has shown. Listed companies have raised more than £26bn this year from London Stock Exchange’s (LSE) main and AIM markets, analysis [...]
Price of body bags up 1310 per cent: Initial govt mistakes cost taxpayer extra £10bn November 25, 2020 Inadequate stockpiles of personal protective equipment (PPE) led to the government spending approximately £10bn extra procuring additional items, a report by the National Audit Office (NAO) has found. Demand for PPE soared in England from March 2020, when NHS, care workers, and key workers in other industries started to require protection from the Covid-19 virus. [...]
Breaking: Three households will be able to mix for five days over Christmas November 24, 2020 Up to three households will be able to mix indoors during a five-day Christmas relaxation of lockdown rules, UK leaders have agreed. Under new plans, members of up to three different households will be able to form an exclusive bubble between 23 and 27 December. That will not include hospitality settings, though members of three [...]
Sadiq Khan: ‘Right and sensible’ to put London in Tier 2 after lockdown November 24, 2020 London is set to be placed under Tier 2 restrictions after the national lockdown ends next week, Sadiq Khan has said. The mayor said placing the capital back in Tier 2 would be the “right and sensible decision”, but added the final verdict would be made on Thursday based on the latest Covid-19 figures. Prime [...]