Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey and chief wonk Huw Pill admit they botched inflation forecasts May 23, 2023 Top officials at the Bank of England today admitted they have undershot the strength of inflation, with governor Andrew Bailey confessing the central bank has some “very big” lessons to learn over how it sets interest rates. MPs on the influential treasury select committee slammed members of the monetary policy committee (MPC) for failing to [...]
Swelling debt interest bill fashions second highest April government borrowing on record at £25.6bn May 23, 2023 A near £10bn debt interest bill helped to push UK borrowing to the second highest monthly total for April since records began in 1993, official figures out today reveal. The government took on an additional £25.6bn of debt last month, above market expectations and up from £13.7bn in the same month last year, according to [...]
IMF ditches UK recession call and lifts GDP growth from bottom of G7 May 23, 2023 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) today joined the Office for Budget Responsibility and Bank of England in admitting they were wrong to forecast the UK will suffer a tough recession this year. The globe’s lender of last resort in fresh forecasts hiked its gross domestic product expectations in 2023 to 0.4 per cent. It previously [...]
Topps Tiles share price up on record sales of £130m despite inflation throwing wrench into profits May 23, 2023 Shares in Topps Tiles soared 4.57 per cent this morning as the retailer reported “record” earnings in the first half of the year, crediting a cooling of high inflation and recruitment woes. The London-listed business said sales were up 9.3 per cent year on year to £130.3m, and group gross profit grew 2.7 per cent [...]
Yes, inflation will fall – but back to Bank of England target? Well, that’s anyone’s guess May 23, 2023 Inflation is definitely on its way down, but no thanks to the Bank of England – well, yet. Most of the drop will be driven by energy price rises falling out of the ONS’s numbers. Tomorrow’s figures are poised to start that descent, with the rate of inflation probably falling to around eight per cent [...]
Don’t believe the hysteria, landlords will barely pay a penny for rent reforms May 23, 2023 The new renters' rights laws attracted criticism because some argued they would drive landlords out of the market. Yet that is a misguided way of looking at these much-needed laws, writes Elena Siniscalco
Suppliers must improve customer performance after energy crisis May 22, 2023 Ofgem will meet this week to establish the latest update to the quarterly price cap, with energy suppliers under more scrutiny.
Pint pourers pocket 11.3 per cent pay rise beating UK average amid staff shortage May 22, 2023 Pub workers are raking in some of the biggest pay rises in the UK caused by landlords stepping up benefits in a bid to lure and retain staff, new figures out today show. Wages for people working in the country’s drinking holes climbed 11.3 per cent over the last year, higher than the hospitality sector’s [...]
Enough with excuses, energy suppliers must up their game May 22, 2023 Ofgem will meet to establish the latest update to the price cap, meaning a potential 30 per cent reduction in energy bills this summer.
UK inflation poised to slip out of the double digits to lowest level in over a year May 22, 2023 UK inflation is poised to tumble to its lowest level in over a year in what is expected to begin a steady descent from its multi-decade highs, new figures out this week are likely to reveal. The rate of price increases in April is tipped to have dropped markedly to 8.2 per cent last month, [...]