Complacent monetary policy has driven an inflation crisis, not businesses’ price hikes January 28, 2022 Inflation hit 5.4 per cent in December, its highest level since 1992. It is widely expected to reach seven per cent in the next few months – it has already reached that level in the US. There are several reasons why inflation has raised its ugly head again. Demand for gas and oil has outstripped [...]
London markets mixed as banks soar on looming rate hikes January 27, 2022 London markets were a mixed bag today despite banks surging on the prospect of the global economy lurching into a period of higher interest rates. The capital’s premier FTSE 100 index closed 1.13 per cent higher at 7,554.31 points, while the domestically-focused FTSE 250, which is more aligned to the health of the UK economy, [...]
Nadhim Zahawi was ‘instrumental’ in helping Greensill become Covid lender January 27, 2022 Education secretary Nadhim Zahawi was allegedly “instrumental” in helping failed financial firm Greensill Capital lend £400m of Covid loans that are now subject to a fraud investigation, it has been revealed Greensill Capital, who collapsed in March last year and counted David Cameron among its employees, lent £400m of government-backed loans to Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG [...]
US economy smashes Wall Street expectations as GDP accelerates at quickest pace since 1980s January 27, 2022 The US economy is powering faster than Wall Street can keep up with as the recovery across the pond continues to gather momentum. Stateside GDP growth came in at 6.9 per cent in the final three months of last year, the US Commerce Department said today. Experts had been pencilling in a 5.5 per cent [...]
Matt Hancock: Britain will be left in the dust with our tepid attitude to cryptocurrencies January 27, 2022 We were already living in an age of change like no other. Now the pandemic has accelerated that change and Britain must embrace the opportunities it brings, or we will lose out. Most obvious is the Zoom revolution. There have been more rapid changes to the way we work in the past two years than [...]
Upskilling workforce can save City firms millions January 27, 2022 Piling money into upskilling existing employees can save banks, brokers and fund managers millions of pounds, reveals a fresh study published today. Investing in improving staff’s skills can generate cost savings of up to £49,100 per employee compared to hiring new talent, according to a report by the Financial Services Skills Commission (FSSC) and consultancy [...]
US Federal Reserve tells markets to buckle up for end of stimulus January 26, 2022 The US Federal Reserve yesterday told investors to strap in for a rapid unwinding of the wave of cheap cash that has flooded global financial markets. The most influential central bank sent the strongest signal yet that the era of ultra-loose monetary policy is coming to end. The Fed’s committee of rate setters said they [...]
Omicron pushing US Fed into action January 26, 2022 Stagflationary risks are rising as Covid variant extends disruption and central bank steps up to bring inflation under control. US inflation hit its highest level since 1982 at the end of 2021, with the consumer price index (CPI) reaching 7% year-on-year. The figures were widely anticipated, but only add to pressure on the US Federal [...]
Today’s Fed meeting: ‘Officials are behind the curve when it comes to dealing with inflation risk’ January 26, 2022 Markets’ main focus is set to be on today’s Fed meeting, and the messaging that is expected to layout the rate path for the rest of the year, starting with a widely expected 0.25 per cent March rate hike. “Last month’s Fed meeting saw the central bank accelerate its tapering program to $30bn a month, [...]
Wizz Air pursues expansion as losses deepen January 26, 2022 Wizz Air doubled losses in the third quarter as it expanded its workforce and fleet amid travel disruption spurred by Omicron.