Eurozone inflation soars to decade high August 31, 2021 Eurozone inflation soared to its highest level in a decade this month to breach the European Central Bank’s target, according to official figures published today. Data released by Eurostat, Europe’s statistical agency, shows prices rose three per cent this month in the 19 countries that make up the Euro area, ticking up from 2.2 per [...]
Soaring inflation to add £12bn to Rishi Sunak’s debt burden August 31, 2021 Soaring inflation could add at least £12bn to the already heavy debt burden weighing on the public finances, possibly crimping Rishi Sunak’s room for giveaways at the upcoming budget. Higher-than-expected RPI inflation is set to push debt interest payments above official forecasts produced by the government’s spending watchdog. In its latest official forecasts published in [...]
Stamp duty taper triggers dip in mortgage approvals August 31, 2021 Mortgage approvals declined over the last month as the tapering of the stamp duty holiday deterred Brits from pushing ahead with homepurchases, according to official data published today. Data from the Bank of England shows there were 75,152 mortgage approvals in July, the first full month after the stamp duty taper, down from 80,272 in [...]
US stocks hit fresh record highs again as Fed signals gradual tightening August 31, 2021 Wall Street moved to yet more record highs yesterday driven by investors reacting positively to the Fed’s dovish stance on winding down stimulus measures. The S&P 500 briefly touched a record high yesterday, as did the tech-heavy Nasdaq, but both pulled back slightly to rise 0.43 per cent and 0.90 per cent respectively. Fed Chair [...]
Covid emergency loan schemes push UK challenger bank lending to record high August 30, 2021 Lending by British challenger banks surged to a record high last year driven by businesses rushing to capitalise on emergency Covid loan schemes, according to new figures published today. Research by accountancy firm BDO shows challenger bank lending climbed 11 per cent over the last year to £143bn, a record high, up from £128bn in [...]
Wall Street scales to yet more record highs after Powell signals Fed will taper stimulus this year August 27, 2021 US markets were propelled to yet more record highs today after the chair of the US Federal Reserve indicated the central bank may start to wind down stimulus measures this year. The S&P 500 touched a record high today, before paring back slightly to rise 0.90 per cent to 4,510.49 points during early afternoon trading. [...]
Cristiano Ronaldo rejoins Manchester United after leaving the club over a decade ago August 27, 2021 Cristiano Ronaldo has rejoined Manchester United from Italian side Juventus twelve years after leaving the club for a then world-record transfer fee. United announced the signing on their social media channels today. Ronaldo’s first stint at the Manchester club lasted between 2003 and 2009, where he scored 118 goals in 292 games. He won the [...]
Powell confirms Fed may start winding down stimulus measures this year August 27, 2021 The chair of the US Federal Reserve has confirmed the central bank could start winding down the wave of stimulus measures it unleashed to dampen the economic impact of the Covid crisis this year. Jerome Powell said the US economy has reached a point where it no longer needs the same scale of monetary policy [...]
Covid R number jumps to between 1.0 and 1.1 August 27, 2021 England’s Covid R number edged up over the last week, according to official estimates released today. The country’s R number is now estimated to be between 1.0 and 1.1, up from 0.9 and 1.2 previously. The R number is a measure of how quickly coronavirus is spreading throughout the population.
Oil prices climb on suppliers switching off production ahead of storm hitting Gulf of Mexico August 27, 2021 Oil prices jumped today and are set to post huge gains for the week as energy suppliers shut off production in the Gulf of Mexico in preparation of a storm hitting the area on the weekend. International benchmarks WTI and Brent Crude rose 1.85 per cent and 1.62 per cent to $66.87 and $72.22 respectively. [...]