Exclusive: Support scheme for SMEs post-Covid has hit just 1 per cent of its target March 29, 2022 Rishi Sunak’s scheme to boost the productivity of British small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) post-Covid has hit just one per cent of its target since it was launched last July. The government wants 30,000 businesses to complete the Help To Grow management scheme – which offers subsidised business training – however just 402 SMEs have [...]
Russia-Ukraine war has made it nearly impossible for BoE to forecast UK economy, warns governor Bailey March 28, 2022 Uncertainty about how the Russia-Ukraine war will develop has made it nearly impossible for the Bank of England to chart the trajectory of the UK economy, the Bank’s governor warned today. A lack of information on the Kremlin’s next moves in their assault on Ukraine has made it harder to forecast the direction of the [...]
Cabinet row over wind farms as 90 per cent of Brits say they’d live near a turbine March 28, 2022 A cabinet row about offshore wind threatens to destabilise the UK’s energy policy, as a new poll suggests 90 per cent of Brits would be happy to live near a wind turbine. Two ministers clashed over the approval of wind farms off the Suffolk coast, which would generate enough energy to power 1.2 million homes. [...]
Shapps looks to strong arm P&O with minimum wage law changes March 28, 2022 Ministers are hatching plans to try and strong arm beleaguered ferry firm P&O into rehiring the 800 workers it unceremoniously sacked this month.
As tourism returns, we say: ‘Good morning Vietnam!’ March 28, 2022 Like much of the world, Vietnam was on its knees these last few years. Around 18 million foreign tourists visited in 2019 compared to a paltry 3,500 in 2021. But now visitors are flocking back. What’s more, there’s never been a better time to go: some high-end resorts are offering 25 per cent discounts on [...]
Brits’ inflation expectations scale to record high March 28, 2022 Britons’ expectations of where inflation will land in a decade has climbed to the highest level ever, reveals a closely watched survey published today. Households think the rate of price rises will still be more than double the Bank of England’s two per cent target in 10 years’ time, running at 4.4 per cent, according [...]
Shanghai is shut: China’s biggest city and beating heart of Asian economy goes into fresh Covid lockdown March 28, 2022 Authorities in China are currently locking down its largest city, Shanghai, as part of its strict Covid-19 strategy, amid questions over the policy’s economic toll on the country. Shanghai’s Pudong financial district and nearby areas will be locked down until Friday as citywide mass testing gets underway, the local government said. In the second phase [...]
Soaring energy bills to drag on UK economy, new forecasts reveal March 28, 2022 Swelling energy bills are set to drag on the UK economy this year by sending a chill through household spending, reveals new research published today. Household energy bills will almost double in October even after rebates are handed out, according to new forecasts published by the EY Item Club today. The downbeat assessment adds to [...]
Week ahead: City eyes fresh borrowing figures for signs of spending slowdown March 27, 2022 Investors will be keeping a close eye on fresh economic data this week for further signs of the cost of living crunch hitting spending. A flurry of downbeat economic announcements and data last week did not derail the capital’s premier FTSE 100 index, which added over one per cent to reach 7,483.35 points by the [...]
Sunday Spotlight: Less than 0.0007 per cent of all UK companies grew revenue at 20 per cent or more since 2017 March 27, 2022 Just 175, or approximately 0.0007 per cent of all UK companies have managed to grow their revenue by 20 per cent or more in each of the last five years, according to new research shared with City A.M. today. The findings show the difficulties in producing fast-growing companies that can maintain significant growth rates over [...]