Motor finance, Madoff fraud, tax fears – bank shares defy the noise October 31, 2025 A motor finance battle, hefty impairment charges and the shadow of 2008 all cast over banks third-quarter results but beneath the fog investors are rewarding the FTSE 100’s top lenders for another bumper quarter. The FTSE 350 banks index has risen nearly four per cent this month and is up 17 per cent for the [...]
How Reeves could ‘trigger’ bond market fright and collapse UK economy October 9, 2025 Poor decisions made by Rachel Reeves at the next Budget could send the UK economy into a crisis if her announcements trigger a collapse in bond markets’ confidence, according to a scenario played out by analysts at Oxford Economics. Rachel Reeves has pledged to drive growth in the UK and lower the cost of living [...]
Bank of England’s Mann: Higher interest rates will lower inflation fears October 9, 2025 The Bank of England has said that households’ fears of high inflation levels could be tempered by keeping interest rates for longer. In an event hosted by the think tank Resolution Foundation, Mann doubled down on her calls for the Bank to squeeze out inflation pressures in order to ease household nerves of higher prices [...]
‘Subdued’ services sector suffers steep drop as tax hikes bite October 3, 2025 Business activity expansion fell to a five-month low after a “subdued” services sector experienced a dull end to the third quarter. S&P’s UK Services Purchasing Managers Index Business Activity tumbled to 50.8 in September, falling steeply from the 16-month high of 54.2 secured in August. “This summer’s acceleration in output growth is now looking like [...]
Economic uncertainty pushes potential house buyers to hold off September 30, 2025 An unpredictable economic and policy landscape has caused a slowdown in housebuying activity in the UK, according to new data. There were 93,630 UK residential transactions in August, two per cent higher than August 2024 but two per cent lower than July 2025, according to HMRC. There’s been a “noticeable shift” in sentiment amongst Brits [...]
Consumer confidence drops ahead of Budget September 19, 2025 Brits’ confidence has fallen as nerves grow over the possibility tax rises in the upcoming November Budget. GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index decreased by two points to -19 in September, with all measures down in comparison to last month. “There’s an autumnal chill in the air this month,” Neil Bellamy said. “With tax rises expected in [...]
Housing market ‘demonstrating remarkable resilience’ ahead of Autumn Budget September 17, 2025 House prices ticked up in July as Brits still showed a ‘good appetite’ for home ownership despite affordability challenges and uncertainty ahead of the Autumn Budget. Average house prices increased 2.7 per cent to £292,000 in England, two per cent to £209,000 in Wales, and 3.3 per cent to £192,000 in Scotland in the 12 [...]
City AM Shadow MPC votes 8-1 to HOLD interest rates September 16, 2025 Leading economists from academia and the City have voted 8-1 for interest rates to be held at four per cent in City AM’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) ahead of the Bank of England’s own decision this week. Top analysts, who expressed views independently of their organisations, have said that stubborn inflation above the Bank [...]
Investec raises growth forecast and backs November interest rate cut August 29, 2025 Global banking firm Investec has lifted its growth projections for the UK economy with another interest rate cut pencilled in for 2025. The financial services company expects the UK economy to grow 1.5 per cent this year and 1.6 per cent in 2026. This trumps the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast, which expects the [...]
Rachel Reeves told ‘copy Margaret Thatcher’ with bank tax raid August 29, 2025 Britain’s banking titans are back in the hot seat as Rachel Reeves faces renewed calls to hike taxes on lenders. The self-described “iron Chancellor” has been advised to take a leaf out of Margaret Thatcher’s book with a fresh levy on banks that would hand the Treasury up to £8bn a year. The levy – [...]