The surprise London areas where disposable income’s rising fastest November 28, 2016 Did someone say gentrification? Any resident of south London knows the area's on the rise, but now new figures reveal just how much that's happening: disposable incomes in some of the hottest areas south of the Thames are rising more than 10 times faster than the rest of the UK. Lewisham and Southwark experienced a 5.3 per cent rise in cash in [...]
The OECD becomes the latest in a long line of forecasters to downgrade UK GDP growth prospects after EU referendum November 28, 2016 UK growth will fall sharply in 2017 as uncertainty following the vote to leave the European Union weighs on Britain’s prospects, according to an influential intergovernmental trade group. Real GDP growth will decline from two per cent for this year to 1.2 per cent in 2017 and one per cent in 2018, according to the Economic [...]
The FTSE fell sharply at the open as bank stocks slid and Opec spooked oil markets November 28, 2016 The FTSE 100 is recovering slightly after posting a sharp fall at the open on Monday, as oil and bank stocks weighed on the index. The Bank of England is set to announce the results of its stress tests for UK banks on Wednesday. The stress tests investigate how the banks would fare in a [...]
The Confederation of British Industry says City firms are feeling the pinch, but we’re all still going down the pub November 28, 2016 Service sector profits have slumped in the UK in the last three months but declining sentiment among the sector’s business leaders is slowing. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said although morale among firms continued to drop, some sub-sectors were more positive. Hotels, bars and restaurants have been boosted consumer spending according to reports by [...]
Baulking boards to blame for pay probe November 28, 2016 Don't say you weren’t warned. Britain’s big listed companies have, in recent years, been told loud and clear – reform your executive pay structures before the government storms in and does it for you. The Institute of Directors, for example, has been preaching this message in the hope it could ward off any populist interventions [...]
The chancellor’s economic programme contains much the City should welcome November 28, 2016 The chancellor stepped up to the despatch box last week to make his most important speech since taking office in July. Where previously the Autumn Statement was an important political date on the calendar for UK media, it had gone largely unnoticed by the European press. This year, however, was different. Philip Hammond’s address was [...]
Michael Gove just totally dissed economists and “expert” pollsters and social scientists November 27, 2016 Michael Gove has dissed economists, calling them out for failing to predict the financial crisis back in 2008 and for getting it wrong when it comes to the impact of June's vote for Brexit, as well as labelling the profession "in crisis". The former justice secretary and Leave campaigner who was sacked from the frontbench by [...]
Euro and pound get a Thanksgiving relief from the stronger dollar November 24, 2016 The euro is enjoying a small rally on as the US celebrates Thanksgiving, after it hit its lowest level since March 2015 against the US dollar, still riding high as investors continue to adjust in post-election market turmoil. The pound held off the dollar in Thursday’s trading to rally slightly back towards $1.25 while US traders are on holiday. [...]
Let’s face it: the UK’s stagnant productivity levels are here to stay November 24, 2016 Key elements of the chancellor’s Autumn Statement were policies both to increase productivity and to curb the government deficit. Unfortunately, neither of these goals is likely to be realised. Stagnant productivity certainly is a major millstone round the UK economy’s neck. Output per hour today is only fractionally above what it was 10 years ago, [...]
“We have certainly not seen a period remotely like it in the last 70 years”: Think tank’s dire warning on wage growth November 24, 2016 The director of one of the UK's most respected think tanks has issued a dire forecast about UK wage growth, warning workers are in the middle of more than a decade of stagnant wages. In a highly emotive release, Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said its projections suggested real wages [...]