Mortgage approvals decline in November as Brexit uncertainty impacts housing market January 4, 2019 The number of mortgage approvals fell to a seven-month low in November as Brexit concerns continued to rattle the housing market. Mortgage approvals fell to 63,728 in November, down from 66,709 the previous month, according to new figures from the Bank of England (BoE) released today. Mortgage lending rose by £3.5bn in the same month, lower than the [...]
Brexit fears see job creation fall to 29-month low January 4, 2019 Brexit uncertainty weighed on the UK’s services sector at the end of 2018 as it marked the close of the year with some of its weakest growth in recent times, while job creation fell to a 29-month low. The services sector posted a 51.2 score for December in the closely-followed IHS Markit/CIPS services purchasing managers’ [...]
Poll: Most Tories would back a no-deal Brexit rather than support Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement January 4, 2019 More than half of Tory party members prefer a no-deal Brexit over Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement, a new poll today suggests. Around 57 per cent of Conservatives would support leaving the EU with no agreement compared to just 23 per cent prepared to back the Prime Minister’s vision. The Yougov poll, funded by the Economic and [...]
Alexa: Tell me why I can’t have a flying car like in Blade Runner January 4, 2019 Bad news: it’s 2019, and that means we are now living through the year in which the original Blade Runner film was set. Released in 1982, Blade Runner has some interesting ideas about 2019. Yes, it’s a post-apocalyptic dystopian hellscape where sentient bioengineered robots (“replicants”) must be hunted down against a backdrop of a dying [...]
UK house prices fall in December on Brexit uncertainty as annual growth rate hits six-year low January 4, 2019 UK house prices fell by 0.7 per cent in December, as prices’ annual growth rate dropped to its lowest level in almost six years. Prices grew by just 0.5 per cent year on year, compared to 2.6 per cent growth in 2017, but fell compared to November. London recorded a 0.8 per cent decline in house [...]
Shop price inflation grows in December despite Christmas discounting January 4, 2019 Shop price inflation rose in December as festive discounting failed to keep prices down for stretched consumers. Overall inflation rose to 0.3 per cent last month, up from 0.1 per cent in November and the highest rate of inflation since April 2013. It is only the fourth month of inflation in the last five years, according [...]
DUP still has ‘principled objections’ to May’s Brexit deal after Downing Street meeting January 3, 2019 Theresa May’s hopes of winning key support for her Brexit deal appear to have suffered another blow after the DUP said its “principled objections” remain. Nigel Dodds, the DUP’s leader in Westminster, met with May in Downing Street on Thursday lunchtime as the Prime Minster sought to calm fears over the so-called ‘backstop’ in the [...]
UK M&A value soars by more than a quarter in 2018 as number of mega-deals increases January 3, 2019 The value of merger and acquisitions involving UK companies soared by more than a quarter last year as the number of mega-deals surged. Deal activity reached a three year high in 2018, while M&A activity involving UK firms hit £359.9bn which is 28 per cent more than the value recorded in 2017, according to data [...]
Bowmark Capital closes £600m UK-focused fund amid Brexit uncertainty January 3, 2019 Private equity firm Bowmark Capital has raised £600m to invest in UK companies, indicating investor confidence in British business despite Brexit uncertainty. A total of 44 per cent of the capital has come from European investors, and 35 was invested from North America, the company said. The Bowmark Capital Partners VI fund reached its target in [...]
Aviation regulator grants Ryanair UK air operator licence to continue flights in no-deal Brexit January 3, 2019 The aviation regulator has granted budget airline Ryanair with a UK air operator certificate that will allow it to operate flights within the UK and to non-EU routes in the event of a no-deal Brexit. The Irish airline said the risk of a no-deal Brexit was rising and repeated its call for the UK and EU to agree [...]