Brace for rate hikes and tapering from BoE and Fed November 3, 2021 Just as the dust settled on Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s third budget, the City turned its attention to more set piece economic announcements. Today and tomorrow, the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England will deliver two of the most hotly awaited interest rate decisions in years. The latter is expected to hike interest rates [...]
Small UK businesses drown in swelling costs November 3, 2021 Small British businesses are drowning in swelling costs and are struggling to fulfil orders. Unit costs in the three months to October rose at the fastest pace on record, research by the Confederation for British Industry (CBI) has found. Eight in 10 small firms think costs will accelerate over the next quarter, indicating consumers may [...]
Sunak hails avoiding joblessness spike after furlough end November 2, 2021 The end of the furlough scheme is unlikely to trigger a surge in unemployment, according to the Chancellor. Speaking to a committee of members of the House of Lords, Rishi Sunak said he was “optimistic” the end of the job support scheme would not result in a wave of job losses. There were concerns the [...]
FCA: Wild west crypto market provides is hotbed for money laundering November 2, 2021 The wild west crypto market poses a real risk to the strength of the UK financial system by allowing fraudsters to conduct widespread money laundering and financial crime. That’s the warning shot from the City watchdog’s digital tsar, who slammed cryptocurrencies for often harming and exploiting consumers. Jessica Rusu, chief data, information and intelligence officer [...]
Sunak comes out fighting in defence of tax hikes and spending spree November 1, 2021 Tory Chancellor Rishi Sunak has defended his decision to swell the tax burden to its highest level in decades. Responding to a grilling from fellow MPs on the Treasury Committee, Sunak said last week’s bumper budget spending spree was designed to deliver on a “bunch of commitments” the government promised to achieve. The Chancellor’s decision [...]
Spate of downbeat economic news knocks UK business confidence November 1, 2021 The spate of negative news about the health of the UK economy has knocked businesses’ confidence. A combination of supply chain snarl ups, soaring inflation, severe worker shortages and uncertainty over the trajectory of Covid-19 has pulled confidence levels back from highs of 27 per cent in June, research by the Institute of Directors (IoD) [...]
Starling Bank chief swats away suitors in fresh book chapter November 1, 2021 The chief of digital bank Starling Bank has swatted away speculation that the lender is up for sale in a new chapter of her book. Anne Boden, founder and chief executive of the fintech, said in an updated version of her book Banking On It: “Starling is not for sale and I very much want [...]
London markets climb as Staley steps aside after FCA Epstein probe November 1, 2021 London markets climbed during the opening session of November as Barclays chief Jes Staley stepped down after UK regulators showed the bank preliminary findings of its investigation into his ties with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. The capital’s FTSE 100 premier index advanced 0.60 per cent to hit 7,280.97 points, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 climbed [...]
Supply chain breakdowns continue to drag on UK manufacturing November 1, 2021 Supply chain breakdowns continue to drag the UK manufacturing industry down, but greenshoots of stronger growth are emerging. Delays in deliveries for crucial materials, compounded by worker and skills shortages drove slower output growth among British manufacturing firms, a closely watched survey has found. IHS Markit’s latest purchasing managers’ index for the UK manufacturing industry [...]
London set to drive UK recovery with business confidence highest in capital November 1, 2021 London businesses are set to drive the UK’s economic recovery from the Covid-19 crisis over the coming months. Firms in the capital are the most confident out of all regions across the country, according to Lloyds Bank’s latest businesses barometer survey. 65 per cent of London businesses are optimistic about their medium term prospects, up [...]