One in six UK households face ‘serious financial difficulties’ amidst worsening cost of living crisis July 11, 2022 One in six households in the UK, about 4.4m, face “serious financial difficulties” as the cost of living crisis worsens with inflation at 40 year highs. This is an increase of 1.6m households from October last year, with over half of all UK households considering their financial situation to be worse now than during the [...]
Week ahead: City eyes new economy figures and Bank governor Bailey comments July 10, 2022 The City will turn its gaze to fresh GDP figures published this week for signs that the UK is already in the teeth of a recession in a busy week of data announcements. London’s premier FTSE 100 index shook off the turmoil in Downing Street to climb 0.38 per cent and finish the week at [...]
Brits slash spending on essentials as cost of living soars July 8, 2022 Brits are tightening the purse strings and cutting back on essentials as the cost of living continues to soar, according to official polling today.
New prime minister has to grapple with ‘unsustainable’ UK indebtedness, fiscal watchdog warns July 7, 2022 Britain is on “an unsustainable path” to high indebtedness unless action is taken to strengthen the public finances, the country’s fiscal watchdog warned today. A combination of higher health spending to deal with an ageing society, the loss of motoring taxes due to the transition to net zero and greater geo-political risks could swell the [...]
Cautious consumers send chill through UK services economy July 5, 2022 Consumers are rolling back spending at pubs, bars and restaurants in response to rampant inflation whacking their budgets, reveals a closely watched survey published today. New business growth in Britain’s services industry, its economic engine, slowed to its worst level in 16 months in June, according to S&P Global’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI). The cool [...]
Bank of England orders lenders to strengthen reserves amid ‘deteriorating’ economy July 5, 2022 The Bank of England yesterday ordered lenders to fortify their defences in preparation for the looming economic downturn, warning the City against “excessive” cuts in lending to households and businesses. The central bank, which oversees Britain’s banking sector and the country’s monetary policy, doubled the proportion of money lenders need to keep in reserve to [...]
Workers lose over £9k of yearly income rises during ‘lost decade’ July 4, 2022 Brits have lost over £9,000 of annual income rises during and just before the “lost decade” after the global financial crisis, reveals a fresh report published today. Typical household income growth has ground to a halt of just 0.7 per cent per year between 2005 and 2020, while incomes surged 2.3 per cent each year [...]
UK business bosses most pessimistic since the start of the pandemic over inflation and Brexit July 1, 2022 Business chiefs in the UK are at their most disheartened since the early days of the Covid pandemic. Soaring inflation and Brexit pains have crippled confidence on economic outlook with consumer confidence at a historic low. The Directors’ Economic Confidence Index by the Institute of Directors, a measure of economic confidence of over 400 business [...]
UK food prices now over seven per cent higher than 2021 with perishable goods leading the way July 1, 2022 Food and consumer goods prices across Europe are now 6.9 per cent higher than they were a year ago, rising to 7.5 per cent in the UK. According to new data released by NielsenIQ today, more than eight FMCG categories out of 10 showed increasing inflation rates during the 12 week period ending April 24 [...]
Johnson says sky-high inflation is ‘big chance’ to fix cost pressures and ‘do things differently’ as PM denies being complacent June 30, 2022 The Prime Minister said today there is a “big chance” to fix unnecessary cost pressures for people and businesses across the UK as Boris Johnson denied that his Government is being “complacent” about spiralling inflation. Speaking at a press conference at the close of the Nato summit in Madrid, Johnson said the “very, very tight [...]