House building craters to weakest level in 14 years amid Bank of England interest rate rises July 6, 2023 The Bank of England’s series of aggressive interest rate hikes to pull back raging inflation is wreaking havoc on house building, dealing a blow to first time buyers hoping to get on the property ladder any time soon, a closely watched survey out today shows. According to S&P Global and the Chartered Institute of Procurement [...]
The Notebook: Victoria Scholar on good news for inflation, the economics of Taylor Swift and the state of crypto July 6, 2023 Where the City’s movers and shakers get a few things off their chest. Today, it’s Victoria Scholar from Interactive Investor Supermarkets sound a positive note on inflation Some good news on inflation at last – Sainsbury’s says food inflation is starting to fall. Its CEO Simon Roberts said the company is “putting all our energy [...]
FTSE 100 close: Wilting Chinese recovery keeps London mining giants lower July 5, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 sagged today, dragged lower by industrial firms tumbling in response to signs that China’s economic recovery is running out of steam. The capital’s premier index shed 1.03 per cent to close at 7,442.11 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, [...]
Inflation falling rapidly but not enough to avert 14th straight Bank of England rate rise, experts warn July 5, 2023 Inflation is still hanging around in the UK economy due to businesses continuing to pass on higher wage bills, although there are signs price pressures have turned a corner, a closely watched survey out today reveals. A reduction in energy and transport bills caused by international gas markets and supply chains repairing from a series [...]
New car market ‘growing back and growing green’ with EV surge – but rate hikes peak concern July 5, 2023 Britain’s new car market recorded its 11th consecutive month of growth in June with registrations rising 25.8 per cent – but it might not be smooth driving in the near future. Just under one million new cars were registered in the first half of 2023, up 18.4 per cent on the previous 2022, according to [...]
UK now only rich country where inflation is rising despite Bank of England interest rate hikes July 4, 2023 Britain is now the only rich country where inflation is rising, signalling the Bank of England’s series of interest rate rises have been less effective than its peers’, new data out today shows. Inflation across the Group of Seven (G7) nations fell to 4.6 per cent in May, down from 5.4 per cent in April, [...]
Savings rates: Big banks to meet regulator this week after ‘blatant profiteering’ claims July 4, 2023 Banks will meet with the regulator this week to discuss the savings rates on offer as pressure grows on the UK’s largest lenders to avoid so-called ‘profiteering’. Heads of the largest UK banks – including Lloyds, NatWest, Barclays and HSBC – will meet with the Financial Conduct Authority on Thursday, according to people familiar with [...]
Higher interest rates tipped to accelerate UK house price decline in quiet week for City July 3, 2023 Higher interest rates are set to accelerate UK house prices’ decline, new figures in what will be a quiet week for markets are expected to reveal. Analysts at consultancy Oxford Economics reckon Halifax’s house price data on Friday will show they dropped 2.5 per cent over the last year and 0.1 per cent over the [...]
London life back on top as country homes drop in price July 3, 2023 Soaring interest rates have softened the prices of luxury homes outside of London, according to new data, in a signal that the ‘move to the country’ trend fuelled by the pandemic is showing signs of slowing. The average value of luxury homes across UK markets outside of London – broadly the top five per cent [...]
Rate pain takes its toll as home sales tumbled almost 30 per cent in May June 30, 2023 Home sales tumbled by 27 per cent in May compared with the same month a year earlier, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures. Across the UK, 80,020 transactions were recorded in May 2023, which was also 3 per cent lower than in April 2023. HMRC’s report said the big fall compared with May [...]