UK inflation to bump above 40-year high on soaring food and energy prices June 20, 2022 The cost of living in the UK bumped above an already 40-year high last month driven higher by soaring energy and food prices. That’s according to the City’s consensus prediction of Wednesday’s new inflation figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Analysts expect prices to have climbed 9.1 per cent over the year to [...]
M&S names Alex Freudmann as new director of food June 20, 2022 M&S has named Alex Freudmann as its new managing director of food after Stuart Machin has taken up the job of chief executive. The retailer announced on Monday that Freudmann, who is currently the managing director of Australian alcohol seller Dan Murphy, would lead the supermarket’s grocery arm from November. As of 1 November, CEO [...]
London boroughs sound the alarm bells as skyrocketing inflation is eating £400m hole into budget June 20, 2022 Skyrocketing inflation is driving £400m of additional budget pressures on boroughs in the capital, London Councils warned this morning. Although the government increased local authority funding this year, fast-rising inflation has effectively cut £100m from the financial uplift boroughs received for 2022-23. London Councils, a cross-party group representing all 32 boroughs and the City of [...]
New shareholders set to cash out as troubled car dealer Cazoo braces for another tough week June 20, 2022 Cazoo could suffer another blow to its market value this week, amid speculation former DMGT shareholders could sell off their shares.
Recession concerns growing rapidly as central banks struggle to put inflation genie back in its bottle June 20, 2022 Despite attempts at a modest rebound on Friday, European markets still finished lower for the second week in succession, posting their lowest weekly closes since March. US markets also finished the week similarly mixed, but also sharply lower, with the S&P500 posting its worst week since March 2020, ahead of the Juneteenth long weekend. “As [...]
British manufacturers beg Treasury for more support to weather ‘the immediate storm’ June 20, 2022 British manufacturers have called on the Treasury to offer more support amid a poor economic outlook to help “weather the immediate storm”. Make UK, trade body for manufacturers, and consultancy BDO found that costs are continuing to rise and output opportunities have been stifled. A survey revealed that two thirds of companies (67.8 per cent) [...]
House price growth slows with real estate sector warning of affordability crunch for buyers June 20, 2022 The pace of house price growth slowed in May, with potential buyers’ tightening budgets set to slow growth further in the months ahead. According to today’s Rightmove’s house price index, buyer demand for available properties was down eight per cent last month, versus April. Even so, the price of property smashed another record, for the [...]
Interest rate hikes are a hard lesson for investors who relied on central banks bailouts June 20, 2022 In May last year, I wrote in this newspaper about the risks of moral hazard and the pandemic, with a generation of investors who had developed a skewed sense of risk. After the unprecedented level of central bank intervention, many believed policymakers would always ride to their rescue, providing portfolio safety nets with cheap money [...]
Indignant brokers fiercely dismiss Martin Lewis’ notion many mortgages are ‘a ticking time bomb’ June 19, 2022 The well-known personal finance guru Martin Lewis recently warned that mortgages are a “ticking time bomb” for homeowners, as he said Brits should lock in cheap mortgage rates soon before monthly payments become unaffordable. Lewis’ comments come as the cost of living for most Brits is climbing fast, with energy bills going up by an [...]
Money Spotlight: The reasons your real pay is dropping like never before June 19, 2022 Britons saw their basic pay fall at the fastest pace on record in April due to soaring prices. More pain is in store for UK households as inflation is set to hit further eye-watering peaks later this year. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said yesterday that regular wages excluding bonuses plunged by 4.5 per [...]