Consensus of economic forecasts shows inflation is back, says chancellor Philip Hammond November 20, 2016 Chancellor Philip Hammond has declared: "It's clear that inflation is back." Speaking on ITV's Peston on Sunday, Hammond said: "We have to wait and see what inflation figures look like when we get the OBR's report on Wednesday, but I think looking at the consensus of forecasts, it's clear that inflation is back." "That is hopefully a [...]
Autumn Statement sell-offs? Land Registry, Lloyds, Channel 4 and more could be on the privatisation agenda November 18, 2016 Last year was a record for sell-offs of publicly-owned assets, with David Cameron and George Osborne’s government making more than £26bn from stakes in Royal Mail, Eurostar, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds and other companies. Next week’s Autumn Statement should provide an insight into how far Theresa May and Philip Hammond will seek to continue [...]
Ben Broadbent: The weak pound and higher import prices will dampen wage growth – but the Bank of England can fix it November 18, 2016 UK workers' wages are at risk as a result of weaker sterling, the Bank of England's deputy governor warned today. In a speech at the Society of Business Economists' annual conference, Ben Broadbent said the pound's fall against the dollar and the euro meant UK consumers face a long period of higher import prices. Without a [...]
London unlikely to lose out on euro clearing post-Brexit, finds report November 17, 2016 Euro-denominated clearing is unlikely to be shifted out of the UK following Brexit, a report from ratings agency S&P has said. Since the UK voted to leave the EU in June, there have been some fears that London institutions could be prohibited from carrying out lucrative euro clearing activities. While the report highlighted that the [...]
As experts forecast a £100bn budget black hole, should the chancellor prioritise deficit reduction in his Autumn Statement? November 17, 2016 Sam Bowman, executive director at the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. Whatever we borrow today we’ll eventually have to pay for tomorrow. So government borrowing just defers taxation – there really is no free lunch. It’s worse than that, though. Government borrowing crowds out private borrowing, so the more the state borrows for itself, the [...]
Strictly star (and former shadow chancellor) Ed Balls wants Bank of England independence reformed November 17, 2016 The star of Strictly Come Dancing 2016 has spoken out on the Bank of England's independence. Yes, that's right: former shadow chancellor Ed Balls has called for the BoE's independence to be curbed in response to growing "popular discontent". He has co-authored an academic paper on central bank independence saying: "We need a more nuanced approach [...]
Two thirds of business leaders think technology will create more value in the future than people November 17, 2016 Feeling a little undervalued and overlooked at work? Well, look away now. Some new research from Korn Ferry is unlikely to make you feel much better. A study of 800 global business leaders found that over two thirds think technology will create greater value in the future than people will. Ouch. And 44 per cent [...]
Why new rules for your buy to let mortgage could be in the pipeline, as Bank of England handed new powers by Treasury November 16, 2016 The government is to hand the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) new powers to better regulate the buy to let market. The new abilities, which are intended to help better protect the financial system from any wobbles in the buy to let market, will allow the FPC to direct the Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial [...]
Low interest rate challenges could be tackled by more than just central banks, says MPC committee member November 16, 2016 The solutions to problems often pinned on lower for longer interest rates may lie somewhere other than central banks, a key member of Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) said today. Speaking at the University of Manchester, Bank of England deputy governor for financial stability, Sir Jon Cunliffe, explained that issues could be addressed through, for example, putting policies [...]
Sterling falls back below $1.24 after a surprise fall in inflation – pushed down by tuition fees and clothes November 15, 2016 So much for the Trump rally. The pound fell back below $1.24 this afternoon after figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed prices rose 0.9 per cent in October – missing expectations. Economists had expected the weaker pound to push consumer price inflation (CPI) to a two-year high of 1.2 per cent, from September's one [...]