Green shoots: Four charts that suggest the worst is over for the UK economy June 4, 2020 The UK economy suffered its worst month in living memory in April, but there are tentative signs that things began improving in May as coronavirus restrictions were gradually lifted. “The government’s plans for a progressive opening up of non-essential stores in June suggest that the low point for the economy is behind us,” said Ruth [...]
UK house prices rise 1.9 per cent as buyers hail 2020 ‘Boris bounce’ January 29, 2020 UK house prices grew at their fastest rate in over a year at the start of 2020, according to Nationwide, as experts hailed Boris Johnson’s election victory. The housing market posted a 1.9 per cent annual rise in January, beating December’s 1.4 per cent climb. That followed 12 months of consecutive growth below the one [...]
DEBATE: Should the Bank of England cut interest rates this week? January 29, 2020 Should the Bank of England cut interest rates this week? Simon Ward, economic adviser at Janus Henderson Investors, says YES. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) keeps making mistakes because it ignores monetary trends. It hiked rates in August 2018 even though 12-month broad money growth (as measured by non-financial M4) had slumped from 6.5 per [...]
First time buyer mortgages hit 12-year high October 15, 2019 The number of first time buyer mortgage completions in August soared to the highest level since before the financial crisis. There were 35,010 mortgage completions for new buyers – an increase of 0.7 per cent on August last year – reaching the highest level since 2007. Read more: Mortgage approvals grow despite Brexit uncertainty Andrew [...]
UK house prices grow nearly three times quicker than salaries since 2008 October 1, 2019 UK house prices’ growth over the last decade has vastly outsripped that of people’s salaries, with property value increasing in value nearly three times faster than the wages of their occupants, according to research. The average UK home has risen around 43 per cent in value between 2008 and 2018, from £160,954 to £229,861. But [...]
Days of soaring London house prices ‘are long gone’, says UBS September 30, 2019 The capital’s real estate market has moved out of bubble-risk territory for the first time in four years amid cooling London house prices, according to a new UBS report. An end to London’s housing boom has pushed the capital down a UBS index that ranks the cities with the biggest real estate bubbles in the [...]
US Federal Reserve cuts interest rates by a quarter point September 18, 2019 The US Federal Reserve has cut interest rates for the second meeting in a row amid concerns about a global economic slowdown, in a move which was largely expected by economists. The central bank lowered its main federal funds target rate by 25 basis points (0.25 percentage points) to between 1.75 and two per cent, [...]
Second home ownership soars towards the value of £1 trillion June 15, 2019 The number of British people owning a second home has soared by more than 50 per cent since 2001 as the value of additional property wealth nears £1 trillion, according to a new report. Research from think tank the Resolution Foundation revealed that 5.5 million people – around one in ten of the UK population [...]
Just Group completes £375m fundraising to meet new regulations March 25, 2019 Retirement services firm Just Group shares fell again this morning as it announced it had completed a £375m fundraise to comply with new capital requirement rules. The firm, which unveiled heavy 2018 pre-tax losses earlier this month, said it had issued £300m worth of bonds and raised an extra £75m via an equity placing. Read [...]
Remortgaging in London hits decade high as homeowners capitalise on competitive deals February 27, 2019 Remortgaging in London has reached a decade-high and the number of first-time buyers also rose at the end of last year, according to UK Finance data. The number of new homeowner remortgages in the capital rose to 60,400 in 2018 – a 6.2 per cent increase on 2017 and the highest annual figure since 2008, [...]