Hopes of Christmas spending splurge nudges UK business confidence higher December 21, 2022 UK businesses are hoping the Christmas spending splurge will give them a welcome boost before a long recession sets in, a new survey out today shows. According to Lloyds Bank’s business barometer index, every UK region notched a positive business confidence reading for the first time since July. Eight out of the 11 areas recorded [...]
UK on course for slow burning recession, KPMG predicts December 19, 2022 The UK economy is on track to enter a long recession sparked by households and businesses being squeezed by sky high price rises, new forecasts out today unveil. Gross domestic product (GDP) will shrink 1.3 per cent next year, according to consultancy KPMG, who have become the latest organisation to warn of a protracted slump [...]
Bank of England sends interest rates to 14-year high but slows hike cycle to 50 points December 15, 2022 The Bank of England today sent interest rates to their highest level since October 2008, although it slowed the pace of increases to avoid unnecessarily intensifying a looming recession by squeezing households and businesses’ finances. Threadneedle Street’s monetary policy committee (MPC) voted 6-3 in favour of a 50 basis point rise to 3.5 per cent, [...]
‘At last!’: City cheers signs of UK inflation passing its peak December 14, 2022 The City has cheered fresh figures out today that revealed this year’s historic inflation surge may have finally turned a corner. Prices accelerated 10.7 per cent over the year to November, down from a 41-year high rate of 11.1 per cent in the previous month, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The fall [...]
UK economic bounce back a false dawn as recession still looms December 12, 2022 The UK economy is bouncing back, latest figures show, but economists still expect the country to tip into a record long recession. Gross domestic product (GDP) climbed 0.5 per cent in October, swinging back from a contraction over the summer, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today. The figures beat the City’s expectations. London’s [...]
UK factories on course to sink into recession next year December 12, 2022 UK factories are on course to sink into recession next year driven by the wider economic slowdown and swelling costs cooling activity, a new survey out today shows. Manufacturing output will shrink 3.2 per cent in 2023, according to Make UK and BDO. The pair have been consistently slashing their forecasts for industrial output throughout [...]
City braces for final economic figures before Christmas break December 11, 2022 The City is bracing for a string of big economic announcements in what will be the final busy week of news before the Christmas break. Tomorrow, fresh gross domestic product (GDP) figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) are expected to show the UK economy recovered in October. But, the 0.4 per cent growth [...]
Buy-to-let landlords in shock as mortgages skyrocket by record 286 per cent December 6, 2022 Buy-to-let landlords are facing a tougher time securing finance due to a significant reduction in product choice and rising mortgage rates, it has emerged. The debate around rising mortgage rates has so far been centred around the strife facing homeowners and families, but it’s also had an impact on buy-to-let landlords, to the detriment of [...]
UK businesses fear supply chain chaos will ruin Christmas trading December 5, 2022 UK businesses are anxious that supply chain chaos and soaring costs that have punctuated this year will scupper the lucrative Christmas trading period, a new survey out late last night revealed. Nearly half of British firms are concerned about the rising cost of sourcing materials to produce products, making it the most common problem businesses [...]
‘Government can change’ UK economic stagnation, CBI urges December 5, 2022 The UK risks another “lost decade of growth” unless the government takes action to strengthen companies’ confidence in the economy, the country’s top business group warned today. Rishi Sunak must create an environment that incentivises business investment to avoid prolonging the UK’s growth malaise since the financial crisis, according to the Confederation of British Industry [...]