US government shutdown to delay crucial economic data October 2, 2025 The United States government shutdown has caused federal statistics agencies to stop producing economic reports, sparking fears Federal Reserve officials will be deprived of crucial data in the run-up to one of the most eagerly anticipated interest rate decisions in recent history. Funding for America’s federal services and government departments was halted on Wednesday, causing [...]
Bank of England’s Mann calls for sustained interest rate hold October 1, 2025 The Bank of England’s Catherine Mann has called for interest rates to be held where they are for longer before making a larger cut to revive the sluggish growth outlook, citing a recent spike in consumer inflation expectations as evidence price rises were embedding into the economy. The external Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member known [...]
‘Packaging tax’ to force further price rises October 1, 2025 UK businesses will be forced to pass the vast majority of costs incurred by a new packaging tax onto consumers, in a move that will stoke already rampant food inflation and compound financial pressures on hard-pressed households. According to fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), retailers plan to pass over 80 per cent [...]
Bank of England’s Breeden says inflation ‘hump’ is transitory September 30, 2025 The Bank of England’s deputy governor has warned keeping interest rates too high could drag inflation below the Bank’s two per cent target in comments that further exposed the divergence that exists among central bank officials over the long-term path of inflation. In a dovish speech delivered at Cardiff Business School, financial stability deputy chief [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Asos and Close Brothers lead City stocks’ fall as economic growth slows September 30, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. When Rachel Reeves prepared her inaugural budget last year, she had little in the way of good news to impart to the people of Britain. The chancellor said she’d been left a bad inheritance, and had to raise tens of billions of pounds in extra taxes to plug spending [...]
Brits get poorer amid high inflation and soaring taxes September 25, 2025 British families saw their incomes drop in real terms last year when household sizes are taken into account, official data has shown, with high inflation and tax demands squeezing people’s finances. The Office for National Statistics has revealed that equivalised original income for UK households dropped by £1,400 in real terms because salaries did not [...]
Autumn tax hikes would lead to inflation over five per cent ‘well into next year’ September 23, 2025 Food inflation will rise and remain above five per cent well into 2026 if the retail industry is hit by further tax rises at the Autumn Budget, a leading lobby group has warned. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that the government risks ‘losing the battle’ against inflation if business rates on large shops rise [...]
Don’t rule out another rate cut this year September 23, 2025 Many are assuming the Bank of England will hold rates for the rest of the year. But scratch the surface and there is a case for another move before year-end, says Martin Beck Most analysts reckon the Bank of England is done cutting rates in 2025, a consensus reinforced by the Bank’s decision today to [...]
Lavazza: Profit doubles amid ‘unprecedented’ price rises September 22, 2025 Profit at coffee brand Lavazza doubled in the UK during its latest financial year as it battled “intense pressure” on its supply chain and “unprecedented” price rises. The Uxbridge-headquartered division has posted a pre-tax profit of £3.2m for 2024, up from the £1.5m it achieved in 2023. New accounts filed with Companies House also show [...]
Reeves’ tax hikes ‘won’t bring inflation down anytime soon’, Smeg warns September 18, 2025 The tax hikes introduced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in last year’s Autumn Budget will mean it is “sometime” before inflation gets down to the government’s two per cent target, the UK arm of kitchenware brand Smeg has warned. The Abingdon-based division said the increase to employers’ National Insurance contributions, which came into effect in April, [...]