City reacts to Bank of England’s £100bn stimulus June 18, 2020 The Bank of England (BoE) this morning held interest rates at a record low and said it will expand its bond-buying programme by £100bn to help to steer the British economy through the coronavirus crisis. Economists had almost unanimously predicted that the Bank would keep the main interest rate steady and focus on expanding quantitative [...]
Bank of England holds rates, boosts stimulus by £100bn June 18, 2020 The Bank of England has held interest rates at a record low and will expand its bond-buying programme by £100bn to help to steer the British economy through the “unprecedented” crisis caused by coronavirus. At its June meeting, the BoE’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to keep the main interest rate at a record [...]
Coronavirus safety measures risk ‘immeasurable damage’ to economy, says travel boss June 18, 2020 The economy faces “immeasurable” damage if the government veers too far towards medical safety measures to to protect agains the coronavirus pandemic, according to the boss of travel industry association ABTA. Speaking on City A.M’s The City View podcast this morning, Mark Tanzer gave a grim assessment of the problems facing Britain’s travel industry. He [...]
Bank of England lookahead: Bailey set to ramp up QE but avoid negative rates June 17, 2020 The Bank of England is widely expected to boost its asset purchase programme by at least £100bn tomorrow, as the central bank ramps up quantitative easing to shore up the UK economy. Governor Andrew Bailey is set to bolster UK stimulus at the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) tomorrow, economists predicted. The expansion of quantitative [...]
US mortgage applications hit 11-year high, homebuilding misses expectations June 17, 2020 Mortgage applications by Americans have hit their highest level since 2009 as people rush to take advantage of record low mortgage rates, but homebuilding in the US increased less than expected in May. Applications for a home loan in the US have surged over the past nine weeks after cratering in early April, according to [...]
History shows us that slavery is an economic catastrophe as well as a moral one June 17, 2020 Slavery has certainly been in the headlines in the past couple of weeks. Given this sudden interest in this area of history, it is worth considering the economic lessons it can teach us, as well as the moral ones. Slavery was abolished in England itself in the twelfth century. Then in 1772, Lord Mansfield gave [...]
UK inflation sinks to four-year low as coronavirus puts pressure on prices June 17, 2020 UK inflation fell to a four-year low in May, driven by falling fuel costs and cuts to clothing prices as coronavirus sucked demand from the global economy. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) dropped to 0.5 per cent last month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, falling from 0.8 per cent in April. Read more: [...]
Fed chair Powell: US economic recovery hinges on coronavirus being under control June 16, 2020 The US economy will not fully recover from the coronavirus pandemic until the American people are sure that the outbreak has been brought under control, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell said. “Until the public is confident that the disease is contained, a full recovery is unlikely,” Powell told US lawmakers. In the first of two [...]
Bank of Japan boosts coronavirus lending beyond $1 trillion June 16, 2020 Japan’s central bank has increased its coronavirus lending programmes to over $1 trillion (£792bn) but kept monetary policy on hold, with governor Haruhiko Kuroda signalling that it is bracing for a second wave of coronavirus infections. Kuroda said it was impossible to rule out a second wave, signalling the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) willingness to [...]
US retail sales post record resurgence in May June 16, 2020 US retail sales recorded a record jump in May, rising far above expectations as Americans began to return to work and resume spending after weeks of lockdown. US retail sales rose 17.7 per cent in May, data from the US Commerce Department showed, reinforcing views that the worst of the economic slump triggered by the [...]
