As the Bank’s latest minutes suggest, is it likely that inflation will bounce back soon? April 22, 2015 Andrew Sentance, senior economic adviser at PwC, says Yes Consumer price index inflation has been at zero for two months now. But looking ahead, the pressures are in an upward direction. The oil price has recently risen above $60 per barrel and petrol prices are firming up. The labour market continues to tighten, putting upward [...]
MPC minutes to be released as Tesco is set for annual report – London Report April 19, 2015 THE BANK of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) will publish the minutes of its last rate setting meeting on Wednesday. The notes are expected to reveal officials’ thoughts on the strength of sterling and whether low inflation expectations will feed into the April wage negotiations. Traders will also be keeping a close eye on the [...]
After core inflation fell to a nine-year low of 1 per cent in March, should we be worried? April 15, 2015 Ashraf Laidi is chief global strategist at City Index, says Yes As UK inflation extends its hold in zero territory, it may only be a matter of time before core inflation (stripping out volatile factors like food) creeps closer to zero. A continuation of this trend may imply that disinflationary pressures coming into the production [...]
Inflation stays at record low of zero in March April 14, 2015 UK PRICES stayed flat in September, weighed down by cheap fuel and a lack of rebound in clothes prices after the January sales. Inflation – as measured by the annual change in the consumer price index (CPI) – was zero per cent in March, according to figures released yesterday by the Office for National Statistics [...]
FTSE 100 stocks rise again on merger activity – London Report April 14, 2015 MINING stocks helped take the FTSE 100 close to another record high yesterday while potential deal activity also gave the stock market a boost. Miners such as Anglo American, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton rose 2.8 to 4.1 per cent as metal prices bounced up off their earlier lows. The UK mining index was up three [...]
Don’t worry about zero UK inflation: The outcome of the election will be far more significant for markets April 14, 2015 Britain narrowly avoided heading into deflation last month, with prices unchanged compared to a year ago. But over the past six months, prices have fallen by 1 per cent annualised after adjusting for seasonal trends. Should we worry about deflation and the prospect of falling prices? Well, after stripping out some of the more volatiles [...]
Pound falls as UK inflation stays flat at zero in March April 14, 2015 The pound weakened 0.5 per cent against the dollar to $1.4614 after figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed consumer price inflation stayed flat at zero per cent in March. Although it means the UK has missed slipping into deflation for now, a sustained period of stagnant growth is nevertheless a concern. [...]
Early Easter helps lift retail sales out of the doldrums in March April 13, 2015 A PICK-UP in the grocery market together with the earlier timing of Easter this year helped boost retail sales in March. Data out today from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG show retail sales increased by 3.2 per cent on a like-for-like basis in March compared with the same month last year when they fell [...]
Deflation sets in as shop prices fall even faster April 7, 2015 Shop prices fell at a record pace in March, with clothing and electrical prices diving, and food prices falling faster than ever before. Overall prices fell by 2.1 per cent on the year, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), with food prices falling by 0.9 per cent. Those are both the fastest declines in [...]
Buy European stocks – but be quick about it – CNBC Comment April 6, 2015 THE money-printing has begun, equities are surging, buybacks are back, and foreign investors are piling in — but it won’t all be plain sailing for Europe’s stock markets. Thanks to the European Central Bank pumping €60bn a month into the markets under its bond-buying programme, the euro has just had its worst quarter on record [...]