House prices and sales fell in January as buyer inquiries dropped February 9, 2023 House prices are starting to reflect the shift in demand in the market, according to surveyors. Agreed sales, house prices and new instructions to sell homes remained on a downward trend in January, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) said. Property professionals’ expectations suggest this picture is likely to remain in place for a [...]
Businesses trim hiring ahead of possible UK recession but experts cheer swelling vacancies February 8, 2023 Businesses are reining in hiring ahead of an economic slowdown that could tip the UK into recession, a closely watched survey out today shows. Permanent hires fell for the fourth month in a row last month, with KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s (REC) permanent placement index coming in below the 50 point growth [...]
UK to narrowly avoid recession but cost of living crisis will leave families £4,000 worse off February 8, 2023 The UK is poised to narrowly avoid a recession but the cost of living crisis will still leave average Brits £4,000 worse off this year, fresh forecasts out today reveal. Britain’s economy is set to squeeze out 0.2 per cent of GDP growth in 2023, meaning it will just about swerve a technical reversal, two [...]
Digital pound needed to ‘anchor’ monetary system as Bank likely to set £20,000 limit on holdings: John Cunliffe February 7, 2023 John Cunliffe, deputy governor of the Bank of England, said a ‘digital pound’ would be needed to maintain trust in the UK’s monetary system while he set out limits for its use to preserve financial stability. Speaking at UK Finance, Cunliffe said the Bank could not ignore the possibility that the use of cash would [...]
Bank chiefs hit back at accusations of profiteering on higher interest rates February 7, 2023 Chief executives from the UK’s four largest lenders today hit back at accusations from MPs that they were too quick to charge customers more interest on their mortgages without offering higher rates on savings accounts. The bank chiefs were asked why interest rates on instant savings accounts remain around one per cent while the Bank [...]
OPINION: The public must be correctly informed over Hunt’s roadmap for a CBDC or face the prospect of ‘SpyCoin’ February 7, 2023 Susie Violet Ward takes a dim view of the Bank of England's plans for a 'digital pound' - a CBDC she brands as 'programmable money'.
Is UK’s digital pound ‘Britcoin’ innovation or a darker kind of 1984-esque state control? February 7, 2023 Nigel Green warns of a dark side to the Bank of England's announcement that it is to 'explore the possibility' of a CBDC branded 'the digital pound'.
House prices are poised to slide in 2023 but straight into the hands of the lucky few February 7, 2023 There’s a pretty wild variety of house price predictions doing the rounds. Capital Economics have forecast they could fall 12 per cent, while experts at property search site Zoopla are a bit more optimistic. The consensus seems to be somewhere around a six per cent fall in 2023. One thing is certain: house prices are [...]
‘Britcoin’: Bank and Treasury explore the need for a digital pound February 6, 2023 The Bank of England and Treasury are exploring launching a digital pound in a move that officials claim would firm up financial stability in Britain. “No decision has been taken at this stage,” the pair’s experts said yesterday, but added that what some are dubbing ‘Britcoin’ is “likely to be needed in the future”. The [...]
Liz Truss admits £45bn mini budget would have been scaled back if Bank of England warned on LDI crunch February 6, 2023 Former prime minister Liz Truss has today admitted her calamitous mini-budget could have scaled back had she known about the existence of LDIs. Truss admitted in an interview with Spectator TV that she “didn’t know the existence” of LDIs – liability driven investment vehicles – which sparked a near fire sale in the pension market [...]