Cyber market boosts Beazley’s “robust profit” February 10, 2022 International insurance firm Beazley has reported a “robust profit” of $369.2m as a result of opportunities increasing in the cyber market. The firm said that, in the six months ended 31 December, its return on equity went up to 13 per cent on 2020 levels to 16 per cent, while its gross premiums written surged [...]
Exclusive: Millions of small businesses vulnerable as £672bn of business loans go unprotected February 10, 2022 Around £672 billion of corporate borrowing by SMEs is unprotected, which could leave businesses vulnerable to any future financial shocks. New data from Legal & General, shared exclusively with City A.M. this morning, shows that three in four of all small and medium size businesses in the UK are carrying some form of corporate debt, [...]
SMEs need support February 10, 2022 Since April 2020, as the pandemic started to truly bite, we’ve been getting regular feedback from our UK members about the financial outlook of their SME clients through our monthly ACCA UK and Corporate Finance Network SME Recovery Tracker. The data provides an insightful picture of the ups and downs for SMEs. We’ve seen how [...]
Bailey’s wage dilemma is real, but the Bank has dragged its feet on inflation February 10, 2022 It is often argued the signal central banks’ bond buying programmes send to markets is more effective at shaping financial conditions than the purchases themselves. It is all about influencing expectations by sending the message that monetary policy will stay loose. Governor of the Bank of England Andrew Bailey’s message to workers to temper pay [...]
Inflation crunch to intensify as wave of firms hike prices to survive cost assault February 10, 2022 A cost assault is forcing businesses to hike prices to protect margins in a sign the UK cost of living crisis is set to get worse before it gets better, reveals a new study published today. Around three in four firms are raising prices to weather soaring energy and staffing costs in what is being [...]
Go for growth to avoid economic stagnation, experts urge February 10, 2022 Going for growth by avoiding repeatedly hiking taxes to fund an ever-expanding British state is crucial to boosting the country’s economy, experts urged today. Policymakers must escape the trap of choking economic growth by financing further government spending by repeatedly hiking taxes. John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, told City A.M.: “Ministers must [...]
Persistent labour crunch intensifies pay pressures in sign of sticky inflation February 10, 2022 A shallower pool of available workers and growing calls among staff for employers to lift pay to offset the cost of living crunch is stoking wage tension in the jobs market, reveals fresh figures released today. Intensifying pay pressures in the jobs markets adds to the growing body of evidence indicating historically high inflation could [...]
Bank of England chief wonk backs ‘steady handed’ approach to rate hikes February 9, 2022 The chief wonk at the Bank of England today backed a “steady handed” approach to rate hikes despite a projected more than seven per cent inflation peak. Huw Pill, the Bank’s chief economist and successor to Andy Haldane, said the Bank needs to hold fire on pursuing an “activist” approach to tightening monetary policy. Pill’s [...]
Merger talks between LV= and Royal London break down February 9, 2022 Relations between LV= and rival mutual Royal London have taken another dramatic turn with the companies confirming the collapse of merger talks. LV= said the marriage would not be in the “best interests” of its members while Royal London suggested it was misled into thinking its rival did not have a viable future as an [...]
Ambitious target: Sajid Javid plans to recruit 15,000 new health workers by the end of next month February 9, 2022 Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said he aims to recruit 15,000 new health workers by the end of March as the Government warned the NHS waiting list in England will not start to fall for another two years and could even double in size. Sajid Javid, writing in the Daily Telegraph today, said the NHS [...]