US stock markets plummet amid coronavirus sell-off February 24, 2020 US stock markets have plunged as investors scramble to sell-off global equities amid new fears over the coronavirus, which has spread rapidly in Italy, South Korea and Iran. The Dow Jones index plummeted 2.9 per cent after the bell, shedding 830 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq tumbled 3.4 per cent, while the S&P 500 dropped 2.8 [...]
Bank of England’s Mark Carney says infrastructure investment needed to boost growth February 11, 2020 Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said more public investment in infrastructure and higher corporate spending is needed to boost the UK’s struggling economy. Speaking to the House of Lords’ economic committee, Carney also said he expects interest rates to remain low for the foreseeable future as structural factors such as weak productivity weigh [...]
Federal Reserve chair Jay Powell warns coronavirus could hurt global economy February 11, 2020 US Federal Reserve chairman Jay Powell has warned that the coronavirus outbreak could “spill over to the rest of the global economy” and said the central bank is “closely monitoring” the situation. In his semi-annual testimony to Congress, Powell said coronavirus posed a new threat to the US’s economic outlook, even as “the uncertainties around [...]
ECB chief Christine Lagarde calls for higher spending and climate action February 11, 2020 European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde has renewed her calls for government spending to help tackle the Eurozone’s slowdown and said the bloc has to “gear up on climate change”. In a statement to the European Parliament as it looks at the ECB’s 2018 annual report, the new president also defended the central bank’s ultra-loose [...]
UK economy registers zero growth in final quarter of 2019 February 11, 2020 The UK economy flat-lined in the final quarter of 2019, data has shown, as political uncertainty driven by Brexit and the December General Election weighed on activity. Britain’s services sector – which makes up about 80 per cent of the economy – eked out growth of 0.1 per cent, while manufacturing production slumped 1.1 per [...]
Bank of England deputy Sir Jon Cunliffe warns EU to stay close to the City February 11, 2020 Bank of England deputy governor Sir Jon Cunliffe has warned the European Union that it will need to maintain close financial ties with London if it wants “to be part of global pools of capital and liquidity” after Brexit. He was also bullish about London’s future prospects, saying that although markets could transfer to EU [...]
Two in five UK workers living payday to payday, says survey February 11, 2020 Two out of five UK employees are living payday to payday, a new survey has found, with women and younger workers more likely to be financially stressed. The figures, from insurance firm Willis Towers Watson (WTW), suggest that workers feel increasingly financially vulnerable even as unemployment has hit record lows. Last week, the Joseph Rowntree [...]
Consumer spending bounces in January but high street woes continue February 11, 2020 Brits ramped up their spending in January after a thrifty December, according to new data, in the latest sign that the UK economy may have bounced back at the start of 2020. Consumer spending grew 3.9 per cent in January, data from payment provider Barclaycard showed today, up from the one per cent growth witnessed [...]
Competition watchdog tells Viagogo and Stubhub to pause merger February 10, 2020 The UK’s competition watchdog has told ticket resale websites Viagogo and Ebay’s Stubhub to pause any integration of the two businesses while it probes their $4.1bn (£3.2bn) merger. In an enforcement order published today, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) banned the two firms from taking any action which might “lead to the integration of [...]
Coronavirus dents Eurozone investor confidence February 10, 2020 Eurozone investor morale fell for the first time in four months in February, a closely-watched survey has shown, as fears rise about the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak. Sentix’s Eurozone investor sentiment index fell to 5.2 this month from 7.6 in January. Analysts had predicted a fall to 4.1. Sentix managing director Manfred Huebner [...]
