Bank of England decision to cut interest rates could be ‘closer call’ Economics The Bank of England’s expected decision to cut interest rates by 25 basis points could be a “closer call” than markets predict, analysts have said. Markets have all but priced in interest rates falling to 3.75 per cent at the Bank’s next decision in mid-December after a flurry of data points pointed to a continued [...]
The secret to a successful business AI strategy in the UK Artificial intelligence has become impossible to escape. The technology has been embedded into everything from messaging apps to design platforms, and with good reason. There is great value to be unlocked from AI, especially for businesses. However, for those who have yet to incorporate the technology into their day-to-day operations, this can understandably seem like [...]
Autumn Budget: Investor confidence crisis ‘remains live’ Markets The likelihood of an investor confidence crisis in UK assets after last week’s Autumn Budget “remains live” and markets will “gradually lose faith” in the government’s fiscal plans despite the initial reaction being largely positive, an economics consultancy has said. A fresh analysis published by Oxford Economics said the government’s frontloaded spending and backloaded tax [...]
Booming Manchester outshines ‘stagnant’ London November 4, 2025 Greater Manchester’s booming economy is outstripping the rest of the country and throwing into sharp relief the “stagnant” state London has found itself in since the 2008 financial crisis, according to a new report. As Chancellor Rachel Reeves sets out the productivity challenges facing the UK ahead of the Budget, new analysis from Oxford Economics [...]
Sir Jim Ratcliffe: Act now or five million jobs will be lost October 9, 2025 Sir Jim Ratcliffe has called on Europe’s leaders to save the continent’s chemicals industry or risk losing millions of jobs. The founder and chairman of Ineos has urged politicians to make an “eleventh-hour intervention” at what he has described as a “moment of reckoning” for the industry. Sir Jim, who is also known as a [...]
UK inflation to rise as summer spending pushes up hotels and airfares August 17, 2025 UK inflation is set to have edged higher last month as summer spending pushed up flight and hotel costs, and food prices continue to climb. One economist said an “Oasis bump” could have contributed to higher accommodation prices in July. Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation is widely expected to have increased in July, from the [...]
Trump hikes India tariffs to 50 per cent for fuelling Russian ‘war machine’ August 6, 2025 President Donald Trump has imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on India after the country’s government imported Russian Federation Oil. In an executive order signed on Wednesday, the White House said it would slap Indian imports with the fresh levy taking their overall rate to 50 per cent. The President warned on Tuesday he [...]
Analysis: A US-EU trade deal looks unlikely. What does that mean for the UK? July 7, 2025 The clock is ticking on the EU-US trade deal set to expire on 9 July. The European Union is pushing for immediate relief from tariffs, but the bloc expects even a best-case deal to include a degree of asymmetry. While the UK is not at the negotiating table, Britain may find itself absorbing collateral damage [...]
Only roaring growth can save Reeves, and the country June 11, 2025 The Chancellor had been speaking for about five minutes when it dawned on me that she wasn’t going to say anything interesting. By the time she got to discussing the finer points of Southport’s pier and Kirkcaldy’s high street, I’d moved on to other things. That’s not to say that the Spending Review wasn’t interesting, [...]
Interest rate cuts need to slow down to curb inflation, says Huw Pill May 20, 2025 Interest rate cuts are fuelling inflation and need to slow down, the Bank of England’s chief economist Huw Pill has warned ahead of the release of fresh data set to show a jump in price growth in April. The Bank‘s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by a slim majority to cut interest rates to 4.25 [...]