Bank of England inaction threatens house price bubble, warns analyst May 8, 2014 April saw a rare fall in house prices, according to the latest data from Halifax. They dropped by 0.2 per cent, a small monthly decline. But on an annual basis, UK house prices are now up by 8.5 per cent in the three months to April. House prices are driven by supply and demand, and [...]
House supply shortfall set to push prices higher May 1, 2014 HOUSE prices are now surging upwards at double digit rates across the country, as a Bank of England deputy governor indicates that the climb is set to continue. Sir Jon Cunliffe’s speech in London yesterday suggested that the lack of houses and ongoing recovery could continue to push prices up. “There is good reason to [...]
House prices see third drop in 15 months April 4, 2014 House prices fell 1.1 per cent in March, according to the Halifax House Price Index. The fall marks only the third monthly drop in 15 months. Halifax pointed out that the monthly movements can be volatile and cited the three month-on-three month measure as a more reliable guide for underlying trends. House prices in the [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 17 March 2014 March 17, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Big banks put forex bonuses on hold Barclays, Citigroup and Royal Bank of Scotland have frozen bonuses across swaths of their foreign exchange trading teams pending internal investigations into possible manipulation of key currency benchmarks. The cash and share bonus suspensions are targeted on the wider team rather than just the traders under [...]
Swelling house prices continue into February March 6, 2014 UK HOUSE prices surged in February according to a major index of prices, jumping 2.4 per cent in the month alone, and up 7.9 per cent from February last year. The monthly change is the fastest that Halifax has recorded since the first half of 2009, and February saw the 11th month-on-month increase in the [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 28 February 2014 February 27, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Investors disappointed in AO float Hundreds of institutions that tried to buy into the float of online retailer AO World have been left disappointed, after 85 per cent of the new issue was awarded to just 15 investors. One-third of the 300 institutions that applied for shares in the float received no allocation [...]
Mortgage boom grows as house prices keep soaring February 20, 2014 BRITAIN’S housing boom grew again in January as mortgage lending hit new post-crisis highs, the Council of Mortgage Lenders reported. The boom in lending came along side soaring prices – in London the average house cost £450,000 in December, up 12.3 per cent on the year. The intense pressure in the market could lead the [...]
What you need to know before the open February 20, 2014 Europe is expected to open lower this morning, after disappointing Chinese manufacturing data and yesterday’s release of the latest Federal Open Market Committee minutes. The minutes showed a further taper of $10bn is likely in March. The Chinese HSBC purchasing managers’ index has come in at 48.3, considerably below expectations of 49.4. Corporate news Centrica [...]
A mansion tax would be equivalent to feasting on our economy’s seed corn February 18, 2014 THE CHANCELLOR has a problem. People do not much like paying taxes, yet there is rising demand for welfare and state services, and politicians fear taking the tough decisions needed to reallocate spending. Into this unenviable situation steps the worst of all possible solutions: the wealth tax. The total UK tax take has been remarkably [...]
UK inflation falls to 1.9pc in January February 18, 2014 UK inflation figures have shown further signs of improvement in the recovery, falling below the Bank of England’s inflation target for the first time since November 2009. Measured by the consumer price index (CPI), prices rose by 1.9 per cent in January, below the two per cent expected. Month-on-month, CPI dropped 0.6 per cent. According [...]