Pound surges and UK debt costs tumble on Sunak’s first day as PM October 25, 2022 Rishi Sunak on his first day as prime minister promised “hope” everyday after addressing the UK’s economic challenges, but it already seemed that way for the pound today. Sterling surged as much as 1.8 per cent against the US dollar, pushing it far above the $1.03 record it reached after former PM Liz Truss’s disastrous [...]
HSBC shares sink to bottom of FTSE 100 despite profits topping City forecasts October 25, 2022 HSBC’s profits slid over 40 per cent in the third quarter of the year as it was hit by rising loan losses and hefty charges relating to the sale of its French retail business.
UK borrowing costs fall after Sunak wins race to No 10 October 24, 2022 UK borrowing costs fell sharply today after former chancellor Rishi Sunak seized the keys to Number 10 following leadership contender Penny Mordaunt’s withdrawal. Yields on the 10-year gilt fell around 30 basis points today to below four per cent. Yields and prices move inversely. They had been falling in early morning trading after Boris Johnson [...]
This is a global, not a UK specific, economic slowdown October 24, 2022 Much attention has been devoted to the comings and goings at Number 10 Downing Street and the ailing economy in recent weeks, but the UK is not alone in wilting under the weight of soaring prices and interest rates. The eurozone economy, made up of the 19 countries that use the euro, is on course [...]
UK headed for ‘deep recession’ on political turmoil and soaring interest rates October 24, 2022 The UK could be hurtling toward a “deep recession” caused by a mixture of political turmoil and soaring prices forcing the Bank of England to hike interest rates steeply, a closely watched survey out today reveals. Britain’s private sector economy shrank sharply this month, with contraction rates returning to levels last seen in January 2021 [...]
Brits cutting spending sends profit warnings soaring October 24, 2022 Brits cutting spending in response to the cost of living crunch has driven a sharp uptick in the number of businesses warning profits will fall short of expectations, a new report out today shows. Some 86 listed companies issued a profit warning in the three months to September, up from 51 over the same period [...]
Central banks’ Covid QE splurge was a ‘mistake’, ex BoE governor King says October 23, 2022 Central banks were wrong to inject money into their respective economies through quantitative easing during the pandemic, the former governor of the Bank of England said today. Speaking to the BBC, Mervyn King, who steered the central bank through the global financial crisis, accused central banks of losing “control of inflation”. The Bank’s decision to [...]
Truss mini-budget boosts Brits’ confidence as experts warn against austerity 2.0 October 21, 2022 Brits’ confidence in their finances and the economy bumped higher in the aftermath of former prime minister Liz Truss’s mini-budget, a closely watched survey published today reveals. Consumer confidence rose for the first time since last November this month, up to minus 47 from a record low minus 49, according to research firm GfK. Optimism [...]
UK borrowing costs cool after Truss quits as shortest serving PM ever October 20, 2022 UK borrowing costs scaled lower today after Liz Truss exited as the shortest serving prime minister on record at 44 days. Yields on the 10-year gilt dropped around 27 basis points to 3.8 per cent after Truss resigned in the early afternoon. They had been trending higher during early trading. Rates on the 30-year gilt, [...]
Bank of England’s Broadbent urges markets to curb rate expectations October 20, 2022 One of the Bank of England’s top officials has today warned markets not to get carried away with the number of rate rises coming down the line. Ben Broadbent, a member of the monetary policy committee (MPC) and a deputy governor at the Bank, said Threadneedle Street’s internal calculations worked out the response to the [...]