London firms now more pessimistic about Brexit than rest of country January 19, 2020 London firms are now more pessimistic about the effect Brexit will have on the economy than the UK as a whole, new analysis has shown, despite being less daunted than the rest of the country by the prospect a year ago. However, the capital’s businesses remain more confident about their trading prospects, hiring intentions and [...]
IMF warns growing inequality could cause a new financial crisis January 18, 2020 The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on the world’s financial sector to address near-record levels of inequality within countries that could be a harbinger of a new financial crisis. IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva issued a “call to action”, urging a shift to facilitate more lending to small and women-led businesses, [...]
Gold is the new gold: Why the safe haven investment could shine in 2020 January 18, 2020 The start of 2020 has certainly been a rude awakening for traders returning to work after the Christmas break. Oil prices spiked after the US assassination of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani ignited tensions in the Middle East. Equities were shaken, and investors flocked to safe haven assets in a bid to shelter from the storm. [...]
China reports weakest growth in 29 years as trade war bites January 17, 2020 China’s economic growth sunk to its weakest in almost 30 years in 2019 amid a bruising trade war with the US and anaemic domestic demand, with more stimulus from Beijing expected this year. Stocks held firm following the release of the data, which showed that the world’s second largest economy ended the year on a [...]
Donald Trump brands China trade deal ‘one of the greatest ever’ January 16, 2020 Donald Trump has labelled the agreement the US signed with China yesterday as “one of the greatest trade deals ever made”, adding that it has put the US in a “great position” for the next stage of talks. The world’s two biggest economies signed a “phase one” trade deal at the White House in Washington [...]
Cautious lenders left companies with lowest level of credit since 2008 January 16, 2020 The amount of credit made available to corporates last quarter fell to a level not seen since the Global Financial Crisis. The Bank of England’s (BoE) credit conditions survey released today showed that available credit for corporates fell for its sixth successive quarter in the fourth quarter of 2019. It dropped to minus 9.2 in [...]
Tackle badly-paid work to boost productivity, says new research January 16, 2020 The UK government should focus on raising the pay of the poorest in Britain and encouraging greater worker representation to tackle the country’s long-running productivity crisis, according to a new study published by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA). Increasing productivity – the amount produced per hour worked – is vital to the long-term growth [...]
US and China sign long-awaited ‘phase one’ trade deal January 15, 2020 US President Donald Trump and Chinese vice premier Liu He have signed a “phase one” trade deal in Washington that puts in place a fragile peace in the long-running tariff war between the world’s two biggest economies. Trump and Liu put pen to paper in a packed East Room at the White House after months [...]
Why a Bank of England interest rate cut looks increasingly likely January 15, 2020 Just a week ago, investors rated the chances that the Bank of England would cut interest rates at about five per cent. Today, they think there is a 60 per cent chance that the main rate will be lowered from 0.75 per cent, according to CME Group’s tool which analyses futures prices. So what has [...]
Expectations of BoE rate cut rise after UK inflation falls to three-year low January 15, 2020 Sterling fell on Wednesday after data showed UK inflation unexpectedly slipped to a three-year low during December, ramping up expectations that the Bank of England (BoE) will cut interest rates later this month. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.3 per cent last month compared to a year earlier — the weakest level since November [...]
