Realistic interest rates will save us, and we have a sub-Prime Minister to thank for it October 27, 2022 This time last week, Monty Munford was enjoying a bit of lunch in Westminster when all manner of hell kicked off around him.
Fed pivot hopes fade after US economy returns to strong growth October 27, 2022 The US economy has surprisingly shaken off a series of steep rate rises, indicating the Federal Reserve’s campaign to tame historic high inflation is not over yet, new figures out today reveal. Gross domestic product (GDP) across the pond climbed 2.6 per cent last quarter, swinging from a 0.6 per cent contraction in the three [...]
ECB fires second successive jumbo rate hike in push to end Europe’s cheap money addiction October 27, 2022 The European Central Bank (ECB) today fired its second jumbo rate hike in a row in another sign that it is putting years of ultra-cheap money to the sword. The central bank that oversees the financial system of the 19 countries using the euro lifted borrowing costs 75 basis points to 1.5 per cent as [...]
Budweiser owner hikes guidance after raking in higher-than-anticipated beer sales October 27, 2022 Brewing giant AB InBev has lifted its yearly earnings guidance after posting higher than anticipated earnings, with punters’ thirst for beer not waning despite high inflation levels. Raising a glass to its best quarterly performance this year, on a volume basis, the Budweiser maker elevated its 2022 guidance. EBITDA is now anticipated to rise between [...]
Explainer-in-brief: Ben Wallace and his hardline for defence spending October 27, 2022 Ben Wallace is one of the few faces in Rishi Sunak’s cabinet who hasn’t been doing a kind of hokey-poke between his department and the back benches. The Defence Secretary has significant political pull as a result of his handling of the war in Ukraine and has consistently tried to stay above the internal turmoil [...]
Meta struggles: Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp owner’s profits halved October 27, 2022 Owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, Meta, reported a fall in its revenue for the third quarter driven by plummeting ad revenue. The social media giant’s intake was four per cent down on last year’s third quarter, from £29bn to £27bn, while its costs and expenses were up almost 20 per cent. Income was down [...]
Gender pay gap grows in past year but is – slowly – falling in the longer term October 27, 2022 The gender pay gap has grown over the past year as inflation sweeps the UK, but a longer-term trend reveals that the figure is – albeit slowly – declining. The difference in pay between men and women stood at 8.3 per cent in April of this year, up from 7.7 per cent in the same month a year prior, according to [...]
Ben & Jerry’s owner Unilever warns of shoppers buying less as inflation bites budgets October 27, 2022 Dove maker Unilever has seen consumers buying less of products after price hikes, as the consumer goods titan has ushered in record price rises. Prices increased by 12.5 per cent in the period, the brand’s highest ever hike, as consumers battle cost increases in every corner of life. The London-listed consumer goods giant admitted price [...]
Open arms? Sunak’s cabinet is a white flag as he fights for the party’s survival October 27, 2022 Sunak has promised all wings of the party that they can pursue their favourite plans as long as they also agree to a painful bout of fiscal tightening.
We must not put a salami slicer to our public services in a bid to balance the books October 27, 2022 Our country is deeply in debt, with a deficit that is viewed by the markets as on an unsustainable path. The mini-budget and the subsequent reaction from the markets have undoubtedly made the situation significantly more challenging. The new prime minister must now seize the opportunity to restore fiscal credibility. Both unfunded tax cuts and [...]