Coronavirus to bring UK house prices growth to ‘juddering halt’ March 25, 2020 The coronavirus outbreak is set to bring UK house prices to a “juddering halt” in the coming months, a top economist warned today. UK house prices fell 1.1 per cent between December and January. But they were 1.3 per cent up on the previous year, data released today showed. The Office for National Statistics said [...]
Milestones for ending Libor will be hit by coronavirus, says City watchdog March 25, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic will make it harder for some firms to meet some of the milestones for transitioning away from Libor, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said. Libor, or the London Interbank Offered Rate, is an interest rate benchmark used in contracts worth around £355 trillion globally. The rate was widely discredited after banks were [...]
Government and Bank of England urge banks to keep lending despite coronavirus uncertainty March 25, 2020 British banks must continue to provide loans during the coronavirus pandemic to ensure that previously viable companies do not fail due to the crisis, the government and Bank of England said. In a joint letter to the chief executives of major banks, Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey and the interim chief [...]
Oil prices knock UK inflation rate down to 1.7 per cent in February March 25, 2020 UK inflation slipped 0.1 per cent in February to 1.7 per cent, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed today, as oil prices sank. Falling oil prices helped push the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) UK inflation rate down from 1.8 per cent in January, amid the ongoing coronavirus travel restrictions. Read more: Oil prices stage [...]
Lloyds suspends 780 planned job cuts amid coronavirus uncertainty March 24, 2020 Banking giant Lloyds is suspending 780 job cuts across its branches amid surging demand for loans and uncertainty over how many of its staff may need to self-isolate. The cuts were originally announced in February as part of a cost-cutting drive by Lloyds, which is working to shrink its branch network in response to declining [...]
Bank of England will ‘closely’ monitor credit to economy amid coronavirus crisis March 24, 2020 The Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) said it will “monitor closely” the credit conditions facing the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, and stands ready to take further actions if needed. In minutes from recent meetings released this morning, the Committee said it “stands ready to take any further actions deemed appropriate to support [...]
Coronavirus to hit UK economy harder than financial crisis March 24, 2020 Business activity crashed at a record pace in March as efforts to contain coronavirus sent the UK economy into a tailspin, preliminary survey data has shown, putting Britain on track for an extreme recession. The IHS Markit/Cips private sector purchasing managers’ index (PMI) – a gauge of economic performance – plunged to a record low [...]
The City will guide the way for economic recovery March 24, 2020 The latest assessment of leading economic organisations is stark – and grim. The head of the OECD, Angel Gurria, warned yesterday that the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic will result in a deeper and more complex hit to the world economy than the 2008 financial crisis. He echoed the head of the IMF, Kristalina [...]
Coronavirus and policymaking: Mario Draghi didn’t just say ‘whatever it takes’ March 24, 2020 These are unprecedented times. Our lives as we know them have been upended: the comforts of routine squarely thrown out of the window and replaced with a combination of anxiety and dread. The coronavirus pandemic of 2020 is a black swan that no one saw coming (though we should have been better equipped) and has [...]
FTSE 100 slumps despite massive Fed intervention March 23, 2020 FTSE 100 and global stocks tumbled today despite a massive intervention by the US Federal Reserve to try and stabilise coronavirus-ravaged markets. Britain’s blue-chip stock index closed nearly 3.8 per down at 4,993 points. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed down 4.3 per cent, Germany’s Dax closed down 2.1 per cent and France’s CAC 40 ended [...]