Stamp duty land tax changes, which were announced in last November’s Autumn Statement, will amount to a stealth Cupid tax, warn tax experts February 7, 2016 Valentine's Day is on the horizon but recent tax regime changes mean that it might not feel like love is in the air for those couples planning on purchasing property after 31 March. The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) has warned that couples could unwittingly find themselves subject to government's new three per cent surplus charge on stamp [...]
China’s foreign exchange reserves hit lowest level since 2011 February 7, 2016 China’s foreign exchange reserves tumbled in January, according to figures released today. The country’s holding of US dollars fell by $99.5bn (£68.6bn) in January to $3.23 trillion, the lowest it's been since 2011, the data from the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange shows. The Chinese authorities are attempting to maintain a value of the [...]
Deadline day for firms to send in forms identifying their senior staff under grandfathering rules for the Senior Managers Regime is tomorrow February 7, 2016 The Senior Managers Regime is taking one step closer to implementation, as many firms have until tomorrow to submit paperwork listing their senior staff members. Firms affected by the Senior Managers Regime, which include banks, building societies and certain investment firms, must file grandfathering notifications for staff members who have either already been approved or whose [...]
Six cities where house prices are more unreasonable than London February 7, 2016 Paris, Stockholm and Berlin are among the six capital cities where citizens consider property is less reasonably priced than London, despite it previously been labelled the most overvalued market in the world. Copenhagen, Helsinki and Amsterdam also scored under 10 per cent in a major survey when residents were asked if they agreed with the statement, it's [...]
Market volatility will continue as emerging markets pay off debt, warns Bank for International Settlements February 5, 2016 The volatility that has rocked financial markets since the start of the year is likely to continue, the ‘bank for central banks’ has warned. The strength of the dollar is leading many emerging market economies to start paying off their dollar debts – deleveraging – in response to the strengthening of the dollar. A strong [...]
UK rental prices: Why landlords aren’t to blame for the housing crisis February 5, 2016 Landlords aren't exactly flavour of the month right now. For many critics of the UK private rental market, it's landlords who seem to be presiding over a broken and unjust system, fleecing tenants out of their hard-earned cash while keeping property prices at the insanely high levels that price them out of home ownership. It’s [...]
Citigroup on oil prices: Financial market “death spiral” and “oilmegaddon” could lead to a global recession February 5, 2016 The financial market “death spiral” means we should all fear an “oilmaggedon”, which could herald a “‘significant and synchronised’ global recession”, according to a particularly gloomy note from analysts at investment bank Citigroup. Tumbling commodity prices, the resilient US dollar, weak trade, capital flows and slowing emerging market growth have created a “negative feedback loop”. [...]
UK skills shortage: Misconception about STEM subjects are failing young people February 5, 2016 When less than one in ten students leave secondary school with an A-Level in maths and physics, it's clear that the country has a problem on its hands. The UK STEM skills deficit has been reported widely for many years, but now is the time for us to take action. Put simply, Britain is facing a skills crisis. [...]
CBRE: Investment in City offices hit an all-time high in 2015 February 5, 2016 Investment in City offices rose reached its highest ever last year, according to new figures. Real estate giant CBRE's London Property Perspective report, seen exclusively by City PM, shows office investment rose to £8.2bn in 2015, eclipsing the previous record of £7.5bn set in 2007. In the fourth quarter alone, investment in the City rose 49 per [...]
Jobs market starts the new year with a bang February 5, 2016 The jobs market found new energy at the start of the year, according to survey figures released this morning. Job applicants soared in January, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) said. Growth in permanent placements also rose. Better candidate availability was reported by 25.5 per cent of recruiters, compared with 6.9 per cent in December. [...]
