FTSE 100 close: London index falls as investors react to mixed retail figures, JD Wetherspoon and Tui March 24, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 index closed 1.31 per cent lower today as investors failed to be enthused by data showing the UK’s economy is faring better than expected following the Bank of England’s (BoE’s) decision to hike interest for the eleventh time in a row. The capital’s premier index fell 1.05 per cent to 7,424.71 points [...]
Tim Martin’s JD Wetherspoon blames ‘ferocious’ inflation for profits plummeting 91 per cent March 24, 2023 The chief of JD Wetherspoon has said blamed “ferocious” inflationary pressures in the pub industry as the pub giant reveals a 90.9 per cent loss in profits for the 26 weeks to January. As the cheap beer chain felt the hangover from Covid-19 and Brexit supply issues, pre-tax profits were down to £4.6m compared to [...]
Families grow increasingly confident about UK dodging recession March 24, 2023 Families are increasingly confident the UK will dodge a recession this year in another sign the economy is performing better than feared than at the turn of the year, a closely watched survey out today indicates. UK consumer confidence jumped in March for the second month in a row, albeit up to a historically low [...]
Rising food prices surprised the Bank of England, but supermarkets saw it coming March 24, 2023 An unexpected rise in inflation and the price of food shows us not to take it for granted.
FTSE 100 close: London index slips after of Bank of England interest rate hike March 23, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 slipped lower today after the Bank of England’s hiked interest rates for the eleventh time in a row. The capital’s premier index dropped 0.89 per cent to just under 7,500 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, lost 0.15 per [...]
Bank of England hikes interest rates for eleventh time in a row to post financial crisis high of 4.25 per cent March 23, 2023 The Bank of England today hiked interest rates for the eleventh time in a row to a post-financial crisis of 4.25 per cent as it continues to lead the fight against the worst UK inflation crisis in four decades. Governor Andrew Bailey and his team of rate setters bumped borrowing costs 25 basis points higher, [...]
Central banks are right to raise rates, even with banking on the precipice of a crisis March 23, 2023 This morning Andrew Bailey and the Monetary Policy Committee at the Bank of England rose interest rates to 4.25 per cent, even after the shock merger between Credit Suisse and UBS, and the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, writes Jumana Saleheen Decisions from central banks over the last week demonstrate an ongoing effort to bring [...]
WIN a ticket to the Crypto AM Spring Awakening event March 23, 2023 With just a week to go until the much-anticipated Crypto AM Spring Awakening event, we’re giving away 10 tickets to our exclusive gathering.
Livin’ la vida CoCo not possible in circumstances: Regulator defends AT1 wipe out in Credit Suisse merger March 23, 2023 The Swiss banking regulator defended its decision to wipe out alternative tier 1 (AT1) bondholders – also known as CoCo bonds – in the merger of UBS and Credit Suisse. In a statement put out today, Finma said Credit Suisse’s coco bonds could contractually be completely written down in a ‘viability event’, particularly if there [...]
Square Mile and Me: Emma Kane on building a City institution and her musical past March 23, 2023 Each week we ask the City’s movers and shakers to give us a tour of the Square Mile they know. Today, it’s Emma Kane, UK CEO of SEC Newgate and chair of Target Ovarian Cancer What was your first job? My first job was as a professional tenor saxophonist but my first role in the [...]