Consumer confidence suffers biggest drop in four years amid Iran inflation fears April 20, 2026 Consumer confidence fell at the fastest rate in four years as Brits tightened their purse strings amid fears the Iran war will spike inflation. Brits’ confidence in their spending power fell by three per cent at the start of this year, as it reached its lowest level since 2023 and made the biggest drop since [...]
UK economy ‘too weak’ to suffer from sky high inflation April 17, 2026 The UK economy will not suffer from a return of persistent high inflation because its labour market is too weak for staff to demand pay rises, a top investment bank has said. In a research note, Berenberg said that the government’s tighter grasp on the public finances and its rapidly deteriorating jobs market mean households [...]
Borrowing can make a country rich… until it doesn’t March 18, 2026 Debt can fund investment. But when it is used to pay for today’s consumption rather than tomorrow’s growth, the bill becomes unbearable, says Martin Beck At a personal level, millions borrow to buy their first home, start a business or invest in education. Used wisely, debt allows people to bring forward opportunities that would otherwise [...]
After 250 years Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations is as relevant as ever March 11, 2026 The fourth of July 2026 will mark 250 years since the Continental Congress issued the Declaration of Independence. It’s a birthday that America will mark with gusto, even if today the world’s focus is on the US for reasons other than its founding fathers’ commitment to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But this [...]
On This Day: Adam Smith publishes The Wealth of Nations March 9, 2026 Today in 1776, 250 years ago, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations was published, discovering rather than inventing the principle that free trade and efficient division of labour create general prosperity making the world richer, writes Eliot Wilson Adam Smith was 52 and had spent most of the preceding [...]
Economy bogged down by low-performing firms February 23, 2026 The UK economy is suffering from an ever-lengthening tail of low productivity businesses, according to a new report from BCG. Between 1997 and 2023, the number of firms below the 25th productivity percentile nearly doubled, rising from 444,500 to 873,000, while the total number of firms increased by 70 per cent. At the other end [...]
Manufacturing woes deepen as output falls again February 19, 2026 The struggles afflicting Britain’s ailing manufacturing sector show no sign of reversing according to a closely watched poll, with industry participants reporting output volumes and order books had both continued to fall. According to the latest CBI industrial trends survey, production from the UK manufacturing sector fell by a weighted balance of 14 per cent [...]
Services sector rebound expected to help economy limp towards growth February 10, 2026 Rachel Reeves is set to breathe a minor sigh of relief at the sight of new economic data this week with the UK economy expected to have limped towards growth in December. A survey of City economists by Bloomberg had projected a 0.1 per cent expansion in December and 0.2 per cent for the fourth-quarter. [...]
Barclays kicks off £15bn shareholder bonanza after profit rises February 10, 2026 Barclays kickstarted plans to dish out heaps of cash to shareholders on Tuesday after the bank’s profit breezed ahead of expectations for the 2025 financial year. The FTSE 100 giant launched a fresh £1bn share buyback after pre-tax profit soared 13 per cent in the last 12 months to £9.1bn. This came ahead of internal [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held in narrow 5-4 call February 5, 2026 Good morning and welcome to the City AM liveblog. The Bank of England’s monetary committee has decided to hold rates in its first meet of the year. Markets – and City AM‘s own Shadow MPC – had placed their bets on a hold as the Bank continues its gradual chop to the base rate. In [...]