Brexit clock ticking towards ‘crisis point’ for manufacturers, CBI warns, despite strong factory orders February 20, 2019 The Brexit clock is “ticking towards crisis point” for the UK manufacturing sector despite factory orders rebounding strongly this month, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has warned. The CBI’s survey of manufacturers revealed that output growth slowed in the three months to February but would remain solid over the next quarter as the UK [...]
The Eurozone’s push for unified fiscal discipline is doomed to fail February 20, 2019 It is widely acknowledged that, under a monetary union, fiscal and monetary discipline have to go hand in hand in order to maintain financial and macroeconomic stability, and thus ensure that the currency remains sound. For a monetary area with such diverse economies as the Eurozone, establishing the right legal architecture and operational rules to [...]
Why we should allow second-rate universities to go bankrupt February 20, 2019 The political spotlight remains focused on Brexit, but an important dogfight is developing in the area of higher education. The specific issue is whether universities in the UK should be allowed to go bankrupt. It is not merely a theoretical question. In the past year, a number of universities have announced deficits running well into [...]
WTO blames trade war tariffs for weakest global trade in nine years February 19, 2019 Global trade is about to hit its lowest level in nearly nine years, warned the World Trade Organization (WTO) today, as international tensions and political uncertainty weigh on countries . The WTO's latest forecast warned that trade would fall below its baseline index value of 100 to 96.3 in the first quarter of 2019, the lowest reading since [...]
UK productivity fell in fourth quarter of 2018 as economic growth faltered February 19, 2019 The UK suffered a “disappointing” fall in productivity at the end of last year as GDP slowed, rounding off a sluggish 2018. Productivity – measured as output per hours worked – fell 0.2 per cent in the fourth quarter compared with the same period in 2017, according to the Office for National Statistics. Read more: [...]
Wages grow at their fastest rate since 2008 as employment rate hits joint record high February 19, 2019 UK wages grew at their fastest pace in a decade in the final three months of last year. Wages grew 3.4 per cent for October to December last year, according to the Office for National Statistics, up from 3.3 per cent growth to November, as vacancies reached a new record high. The employment rate 75.8 [...]
Want a more future-focused government? Climate action is just the start February 19, 2019 The reaction was predictable. Last week’s Climate Strike by schoolchildren was met with an inane debate about whether or not the pupils were right to “play truant”. This dialogue of the deaf was a missed opportunity. Politicians should take seriously the protesters’ demand that they “recognise that young people have the biggest stake in our [...]
UK household sentiment falls to 11-month low on slowing economy and Brexit fears February 18, 2019 UK household sentiment has hit an 11-month low as job fears grow on mounting Brexit uncertainty. IHS Markit’s household finance index (HFI) – based on consumer’s financial wellbeing – has dropped to its lowest level since March 2018. Read more: Bank of England slashes UK growth forecast The survey also revealed that job security perceptions [...]
The ECB has been keeping zombie banks alive February 18, 2019 A decade after the outbreak of the global financial crisis, banks in the euro area have still not recovered. The Eurozone financial stock index is 65 per cent below the pre-crisis peak, whereas the US S&P financial index has come close to the pre-crisis level. The varying fates of financial institutions is due to the [...]
Private sector pay set for growth as skills shortage bites February 18, 2019 Private sector pay is set to increase 2.5 per cent as skills shortages put pressure on employers. A survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and the Adecco Group of pay and recruitment intentions at 1,254 employers in the first quarter of 2019 showed basic pay expectations in the private sector have increased [...]