Nearly half of tenants struggle to pay rent with millions now facing ‘financial vulnerability’ July 14, 2023 Nearly half of tenants are struggling to pay their rent, with millions now spending more of their disposable income on renting costs than homeowners. As the cost of living crisis has led many landlords to up the costs of rent, some 21 per cent of tenants report spending a higher proportion of their disposable income [...]
Pound surges to strongest level since April last year as traders bet on further rate hikes July 14, 2023 The pound has surged to its strongest position in over a year over the past week as traders bet the Bank of England will have to hike rates further and faster than global counterparts. Since the beginning of the month, the pound has risen from below $1.27 to trade at over $1.31. The last time [...]
FTSE 100 close: London’s premier index creeps into the green ahead of crucial inflation print on Wednesday July 14, 2023 London’s premier index closed the week slightly in the green after a quiet day ahead of next week’s crucial inflation print. The FTSE 100 slipped out marginal gains to trade at 7,440.65 while the midcap FTSE 250 index dropped 0.2 per cent to 18,594.73. All eyes will be on UK inflation data next week. Inflation [...]
Sunak accepts six per cent public sector pay rises but warns it ‘will cost all of you as taxpayers’ July 13, 2023 Government has accepted recommendations for millions of public sector workers to receive pay rises of six per cent or more, Rishi Sunak has announced. The prime minister said today reports from independent pay bodies calling for public sector pay rises of between five and 6.5 per cent for millions of medics, teachers and civil servants [...]
Jeremy Hunt on track to ‘obliterate’ fiscal rules as OBR warns of much higher debt bill July 13, 2023 Jeremy Hunt is on track to blow out his financial goals due to the Bank of England hiking interest rates aggressively to bring down sticky inflation, according to new forecasts out today from the UK’s spending watchdog. Payments to investors who have purchased UK government debt are poised to rise more than £90bn above what [...]
The Square Mile and Me: Paragon Bank CEO Nigel Terrington talks paper rounds, The Lamb and office faux pas July 13, 2023 We dig into the memory bank of the City’s great and good: this week, Nigel Terrington, chief executive of Paragon Bank, takes a stroll down memory lane. What was your first job? I was a paper boy, aged around 14, in Surrey. I had to get up ridiculously early and the biggest challenge was to [...]
Mortgage defaults expected to pick up as rising rates hits borrowers, say lenders July 13, 2023 Banks and building societies expect the level of mortgage defaults to increase over the next quarter as the impact of rising interest rates filters through the economy. In the Bank of England’s quarterly credit conditions survey, lenders reported “losses and default rates on secured loans to households increased in Q2, and were expected to increase [...]
Barratt Developments warns a ‘deterioration’ in demand for homes due to rate pain has hit hard July 13, 2023 Barratt Developments has warned a “deterioration” in demand for homes has hit housebuilding hard, as a tumultuous mortgage market continues to pile on misery, with the group’s share price down over four per cent when markers opened this morning. The residential building company said net private reservation rate – the number of people putting their [...]
King’s coronation steers UK economy back into red as GDP shrinks 0.1 per cent in May July 13, 2023 Lost work owing to the additional bank holiday to celebrate the King’s coronation has sent UK economic growth into reverse, official figures out today reveal. UK gross domestic product (GDP) contracted 0.1 per cent in May, a much smaller drop than the City expected and down from a 0.2 per cent expansion in April, according [...]
Businesses need to stop looking for a public pat on the back and gold stars July 13, 2023 Businesses must realise that just bragging about how good they are is not a great communication strategy. They won't win a gold star for just doing their job, writes Simon Neville