Bank of England finds corporate calm before the Brexit storm September 21, 2016 The UK economy is ticking over in the wake of the EU referendum, although signs of a slowdown, a rise in inflation and pressure on jobs and wages are beginning to show, a survey for the Bank of England has shown. The Bank's agents summary of business conditions, which is compiled from Threadneedle Street's sprawling network [...]
The OECD just slashed its UK growth forecast and warned the world is in a “low-growth trap” September 21, 2016 One of the world's most influential economic organisations has slashed its forecast for UK growth next year. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said today it expects UK GDP to grow one per cent in 2017 – down by one percentage point from its prediction in June. However, this year, growth will hit 1.8 [...]
Deficit creeps down but government spending still higher than expected September 21, 2016 The government was forced to borrow a whopping £10.5bn in August as the aim to reduce the deficit suffers its latest stumble. The shortfall, which measures the difference between how much the government spends and receives in tax revenues, was down from £11.4bn in the same month last year, but still higher than economists' expectations. [...]
European Central Bank’s new ideas team still hasn’t had an idea September 21, 2016 Fed up with having to do the heavy lifting of the Eurozone recovery, the European Central Bank (ECB) has been upping the ante for governments to turn up to the party. President Mario Draghi makes a song and dance of the need for "national governments" to implement "structural reforms" to haul the Eurozone out of miserly [...]
Bank of Japan tweaks policy in fight for inflation September 21, 2016 The Bank of Japan has announced a raft of policy tweaks in measures it hopes will help Japan return to inflation. While keeping interest rates unchanged at minus 0.1 per cent and its quantitative easing programme steady at ¥80 trillion (£601bn) per year, the central bank introduced a new target rate for long-term government bonds and [...]
Before Britain joined the EEC, we had free movement between Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Post-Brexit, we can reignite the benefits that brought September 21, 2016 Nearly three months on from Britain’s momentous decision to leave the EU, our future remains uncertain. The Prime Minister is not expected to invoke Article 50 until next year and we’re yet to see a precise outline of the type of deal that she will seek to achieve in the coming exit negotiations. Some Remainers [...]
What to expect from Philip Hammond’s Autumn Statement September 21, 2016 The UK entered a period of heightened political and economic uncertainty following the EU referendum. But as the fog begins to clear, we are starting to see more clearly what might be on the horizon. We downgraded our forecast for UK economic growth in the aftermath of the referendum. Our concerns have since receded, as [...]
What should Hammond do to ensure steady management of the public finances? Not very much. September 20, 2016 Quietly, and without fuss, the Treasury has revealed that the first budget of Theresa May’s government will be unveiled on 23rd November. The confirmation of the Autumn Statement date was made just under two weeks ago – the chances are, you didn’t even notice. The memo was a passive and reserved show of defiance. Earlier [...]
UK economy will slow less than expected after Brexit vote, says Bank of England’s Michael Saunders September 20, 2016 A member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) believes the UK economy is likely to slow less than most economists are expecting after June’s Brexit vote. Michael Saunders, a new external member of the MPC, said: “There’s plenty of evidence from groups like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International [...]
Bank of England’s Andrew Hauser: Don’t expect blockchain to revolutionise finance any time soon September 20, 2016 Much heralded blockchain technology will not create a revolutionary shake up in the financial sector anytime soon, a top Bank of England official has declared. The distributed ledger technology has a way to go to become to be as revolutionary as some are predicting, according to Andrew Hauser, the executive director of banking, payments and financial resilience [...]
