UK set to face ‘sluggish’ growth in the face of sticky inflation and Bank of England interest rate hikes
Focus on banking helps deliver boost for Allen & Overy profits July 1, 2014 ALLEN & Overy recorded a seven per cent jump in profit before tax during the last financial year, according to results released by the law firm this morning. The group’s profits before tax rose to £532.1m while revenues rose at a slightly slower place, up two per cent to £1.23bn. Profit per equity partner also [...]
Sterling jumps to 2008 high on industrial surge July 1, 2014 THE POUND climbed to a fresh high yesterday, rising to its strongest level against the dollar for five and a half years, as a bullish report from manufacturing firms suggested that the recovery was steaming ahead. Sterling pushed to around $1.716 during the day. The latest survey of UK industrial companies by Markit and the [...]
Asian manufacturing firms bouncing back after spring slump July 1, 2014 Two of Asia’s largest manufacturing sectors indicated more robust growth in June, with businesses in both China and Japan reporting an improved expansion last month. Data from Nomura and JMMA suggest that Japan’s manufacturing firms are bouncing back from their decline around April’s sales tax hike, with a purchasing managers’ index (PMI) score of 51.5. [...]
Eurozone manufacturing sectors show slow growth July 1, 2014 The Eurozone’s industrial growth slowed for a second month in June, according to a series of business surveys which suggested the currency union was still expanding only at a weak pace. Markit’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) released yesterday came in at just 51.8 in June, the lowest of 2014 so far. New business inflows [...]
Poor productivity is holding back wages and interest rates July 1, 2014 More miserable figures on the UK’s shocking productivity slippage were released yesterday, suggesting little improvement and reinforcing a negative outlook for wages and higher interest rates in the near future. Output per worker dropped by 0.1 per cent in the first quarter, despite small increases in production and services. The output of the economy rose [...]
ONS changes push UK economy to new record size June 30, 2014 The British economy has probably already grown past its 2008 peak size, according to government statisticians yesterday, revealing new methods of measuring GDP. A range of alterations in the way that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) calculates the size of the economy comes into force later this year and will mean that the downturn after [...]
UK mortgage approvals drop to 11-month low as market cools June 30, 2014 Bank of England figures confirmed yesterday that mortgage approvals dropped to an 11-month low in May, even as the actual amount of lending secured against property rose to the highest level since mid-2008. There were 61,707 applications approved during the month, a drop of more than 1,000 from April and down from the 75,901 in [...]
Eurozone lending and inflation data signal meagre expansion June 30, 2014 LENDING and inflation in the Eurozone showed little sign of recovery in May and June, according to figures published yesterday. Inflation held at 0.5 per cent in June, the same figure as in May and the joint-lowest since a brief period in 2009. Prices are rising far more slowly than the European Cental Bank (ECB) [...]
Greek banks rush to sell state debt in May after periphery rally June 30, 2014 The Greek banking system sold more government debt in May than in any other month for the past 13 years, according to figures released by the European Central Bank (ECB) yesterday. Statistics released by the central bank suggested that the country’s financial institutions offloaded €4.84bn (£3.88bn) of government bonds during the month, the most since [...]
Housing downturn would not derail the economic recovery June 30, 2014 RESEARCH released yesterday suggested that a housing market slowdown alone would not send the British economy into a crisis. The combination of climbing mortgage rates and increasing property prices would not be enough to derail current growth, according to a report by credit ratings agency Moody’s. “While a steeper slowdown in the housing market would [...]