The City of London Corporation moves towards closing Bank junction to traffic by Spring 2017 October 5, 2016 Bank junction is set to be closed to all traffic apart from buses from Spring 2017. As part of the City of London Corporation's project "Bank on Safety", the six arms of the busy junction will be closed to traffic between 7am and 7pm on weekdays. The plan is to be put to the local planning and transport [...]
Brexit recovery continues with robust services numbers October 5, 2016 The post-referendum slowdown is set to be significantly better than first feared, vital services industry data out this morning has confirmed. The closely-watched purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the sector which accounts for three-quarters of the UK economy came in above expectations at 52.6 for September – solidly in the above-50 zone which signifies expansion. The [...]
Bank of England slaps down moaning pension funds October 5, 2016 The Bank of England has told pension funds to stop blaming low interest rates and quantitative easing for their measly returns and ballooning deficits. Ben Broadbent, deputy governor of the Bank with responsibility for monetary policy, said this morning that without the Bank’s swift rate-cutting action in both 2009 and more recently in the wake of [...]
Bookies think Steven Woolfe is most likely to be the next leader of Ukip though they aren’t ruling out a third comeback for Nigel Farage October 5, 2016 The UK's biggest high street bookmakers haven't ruled out Nigel Farage returning to the helm of Ukip for a third time, though the party's migration spokesman Steven Woolfe is being tipped to take the top spot. Ukip was plunged into another search for a leader yesterday after Diane James stepped down, having spent just 18 days [...]
With the FTSE 100 close to an all-time high, are UK markets heading for a fall? October 4, 2016 Jason Hollands, managing director of Tilney Bestinvest, says Yes. While it’s incredibly difficult to accurately call the top of a market, what we do know is that equities never rise relentlessly in a linear fashion, and the current bull market has run on for a very long time now, despite the headwinds of weak global growth [...]
Bank of England could unleash another £280bn of quantitative easing October 4, 2016 The Bank of England could take interest rates to zero and unlock another £280bn of quantitative easing if the economy slows in the wake of the Brexit vote. In fresh analysis by Michael Saunders, the newest member of the Bank's monetary policy committee (MPC), he outlines how the Bank would respond should the economy perform [...]
The Bank of England should follow Dr Seuss’ example and publish simpler reports October 4, 2016 The Bank of England (BoE) needs to simplify its speeches and reports, a researcher at the institution has said – and he pointed to beloved childrens' author Dr Seuss as the perfect example for the Bank to follow. People writing in the financial industry put too many long words in long sentences, according to Jonathan Fullwood, from [...]
One calculation shows both the UK and the US are in negative interest rates October 4, 2016 Extraordinary monetary policy and the latest extension of its money-printing bond-buying programme could have taken the Bank of England's real interest rate to as low as minus 2.5 per cent. Fresh analysis by investment outfit Hermes has found that adjusting for the impact of quantitative easing on "true" central bank rates, the UK and the US [...]
Deal-making at investment banks is set to hit a 10-year high October 4, 2016 Investment banks are eyeing up a bumper year of deal-making as activity in the money markets is set to hit its highest level in a decade. The volumes of cash flowing through investment houses in the shape of debt and capital market (DCM) activity hit $5.2 trillion (£4.1 trillion) in the first nine months of [...]
The big chop: European banks slash over 20,000 jobs October 4, 2016 European banks are set to slash more than 20,000 jobs as tougher capital requirements and negative interest rates bite into the sector’s profitability, putting fresh pressure on many lenders to cut costs further. Dutch lender ING Group said yesterday that it would get rid of 7,000 positions over five years as it focuses on internet and mobile banking and [...]