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 [...]
Analysis: This shapeshifting inflation surge ain’t over yet October 19, 2022 Today’s inflation figures may have caused a few chairs to be flung at walls in the Bank of England. Prices are up 10.1 per cent over the year to September, above the City’s expectations and up from August. They were in line with the Bank’s forecasts though, a genuine rarity. Remember, the central bank has [...]
Bank of England to launch record rate rise to step up fight against 40-year high inflation October 19, 2022 The Bank of England will have to hike interest rates by a record whole percentage point at its meeting on 3 November, City economists are betting today after inflation returned to a 40 year high of 10.1 per cent last month. Prices are still rising sharply despite the Bank already lifting borrowing costs seven times [...]
Small business confidence tumbles on swelling costs and weaker demand October 19, 2022 Intensifying cost pressures and a slowdown in consumer spending as a result of cost of living crunch squeezing Brits has led to a collapse in confidence among small firms, a new survey out today shows. Net confidence plummeted to minus 35.9 in the three months to October, down by 11.2 points over the last quarter, [...]
Truss mini-budget sparked five worst days on UK debt market on record, Bank of England says October 18, 2022 Prime minister Liz Truss’s botched mini-budget triggered the five most volatile days on the UK debt market since records began 22 years ago, the Bank of England said today. Financial markets were rocked by Truss and her former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng launching £45bn worth of unfunded tax cuts and raising borrowing to fund a two-year [...]