Fizzy drinks ousted by mineral water in ONS inflation gauge March 15, 2010 Canned fizzy drinks are out and small bottles of mineral water are in, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in its latest annual rejig of the “shopping basket” of goods it uses to calculate inflation. The ONS has also ditched pitta bread in favour of garlic bread and included cereal bars in the [...]
NEWS | IN BRIEF March 11, 2010 Consumer inflation in China has soared to a 16-month high, according to official data published yesterday. Annual consumer price inflation rose to 2.7 per cent in February compared to 1.5 per cent the previous month. The main driver of the acceleration was a 6.2 per cent jump in the price of food. Inflation remains well [...]
As inflation rises, so can your profits March 7, 2010 WHATEVER the Bank of England might be telling us about a temporary spike in inflation, fund managers and analysts around the City are preparing themselves for a period of rising prices and adjusting their portfolios accordingly. Their reason? The parlous state of developed countries’ public finances combined with a weak recovery means that heavily indebted [...]
Record low for food inflation March 2, 2010 FOOD PRICES are increasing at their slowest annual rate in three years thanks to the falling cost of fresh food according to the British Retail Consortium’s (BRC)-Nielsen shop price index published today. Food prices were just 1.3 per cent higher on a year earlier in February compared to an annual increase of 2.9 per cent [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 23, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES USAF STARTS BID TO REPLACE AGEING TANKERS The US Air Force will attempt to kick-start its long-delayed, multi-billion dollar competition to replace its ageing fleet of refuelling tankers this week with a new set of bidding rules. It promises the competition, mired in controversy for more than six years, will be “full and [...]
Inflation hits 14-month high of 3.5pc February 16, 2010 BRITAIN’S inflation rate jumped to a 14-month high of 3.5 per cent in January. The increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) will mean Bank of England Governor Mervyn King will have to write a letter of explanation to the Chancellor detailing why inflation has risen more than one percentage point above the 2 per [...]
Inflation hits 14-month high of 3.5pc February 16, 2010 BRITAIN’S inflation rate jumped to a 14-month high of 3.5 per cent in January. The increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) will mean Bank of England Governor Mervyn King, will have to write a letter of explanation to the Chancellor detailing why inflation has risen more than one percentage point above the 2 per [...]
Hawks, hares and tortoises in Scandinavia February 9, 2010 SCANDINAVIAN economies managed a soft landing during the global financial crisis. Unemployment and GDP held up strongly in Norway, and Sweden’s economy is starting to accelerate. With the Swedish central bank expected to strike a more hawkish tone when it meets later this week, now is a good time to pit the two currencies against [...]
Flight to quality in stores February 2, 2010 Intense competition among Britain’s top grocers has hit sales growth at smaller hard discounters Aldi and Lidl, while Asda has suffered most from recent severe weather, market researchers said yesterday. Kantar Worldpanel, the new name for TNS Worldpanel, said sales at Britain’s grocers rose 5.2 per cent in the 12 weeks to 24 January, helped [...]
Shop price inflation sees modest rise as retailers discount heavily February 2, 2010 DESPITE the January increase in VAT, shop price inflation rose a modest 0.2 per cent on the month as retailers offset the hike through heavy discounting and promotions, according to fresh data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Annual shop price inflation now stands at 2.3 per cent. Food inflation slowed for the first time [...]