Fed’s Jay Powell: Too much stimulus is better than too little October 6, 2020 It is better for US policymakers to do too much to try to help the economy than to do too little, US Federal Reserve chair Jay Powell said in some of his most pointed comments about stimulus to date. Powell told the National Association for Business Economics that the recovery from the coronavirus lockdowns of [...]
Finance ministers give EU recovery fund the green light October 6, 2020 European Union finance ministers gave the green light to the €750bn (£682bn) coronavirus recovery fund that was first outlined by the bloc’s leaders in July. It means the European Council – the heads of EU states and the bloc’s top brass – can now negotiate the details of the fund with the European Parliament. Following [...]
IMF and WTO: Economy brighter than expected but big risks remain October 6, 2020 The hit to global growth and trade from the coronavirus pandemic will not be as bad as previously feared, although the recovery remains highly fragile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Trade Organization (WTO) have said. IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said the international organisation would make a “small” upgrade to its prediction that the [...]
UK businesses borrowed more in one quarter than in whole of 2019 October 6, 2020 British businesses borrowed 50 per cent more in the second quarter of 2020 than in the whole of the previous year as the coronavirus crisis hammered the economy, new figures show. Businesses borrowed a total of £34.5bn in the three months to the end of June, according to a report by banking lobby group UK [...]
Tonik Energy latest supplier to cease trading October 6, 2020 Tonik Energy has become the latest household supplier to go bust, with 250 employees set to lose their jobs. The Birmingham-based company’s 130,000 customers will be protected by regulator Ofgem and passed on to a new supplier. Last week, Ofgem said seven small British energy suppliers, including Tonik, owe a total of £34m, urging them [...]
FTSE 100 slips after Donald Trump leaves hospital October 6, 2020 The FTSE 100 slipped and European markets struggled for direction as US President Donald Trump returned to the White House after being hospitalised with coronavirus. The blue-chip index started the morning with modest gains, edging 0.1 per cent higher in early trading. Yet it slipped into the red to stand 0.2 per cent lower shortly [...]
Rishi Sunak signals that tax hikes will be delayed for some time October 6, 2020 Rishi Sunak has signalled he will hold off on tax rises and Budget cuts until the UK’s economic recovery is further along. Sunak said today that the UK needs to balance its books “over time”, just a day after saying at his conference speech that the Tories had a “sacred responsibility to future generations to [...]
ECB’s Christine Lagarde: Coronavirus cases putting recovery at risk October 6, 2020 European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde has warned that a second coronavirus wave could lead to a “shaky” economic recovery in the Eurozone, and said Covid has scarred some parts of the economy “probably for the long haul”. However, Lagarde told the Wall Street Journal in an online conversation that monetary and fiscal policy [...]
UK PMI: Construction activity rebounded more than expected in September October 6, 2020 The UK’s construction sector unexpectedly picked up speed in September, helped by a post-lockdown bounce in the housing market, according to survey data. The IHS Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index accelerated to 56.8 from 54.6 in August – well above the 50-point measure that separates expansion from contraction. The reading was above all forecasts [...]
Boris Johnson to unveil £160m for offshore wind power October 6, 2020 Boris Johnson will use today’s Conservative Party Conference speech to pledge £160m for developing offshore wind power as the UK attempts to “build back greener” after the coronavirus crisis. By 2030, the government is targeting developing enough wind power capacity to provide enough energy for the equivalent of every UK home. It is now looking [...]