Japanese economy grinds to a halt in second quarter with zero growth August 15, 2016 Japan has been confronted with a familiar foe this morning, as its economy recorded zero growth in the second quarter of the year. Despite intervention from government and a looser monetary policy, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was unable to heave the world's third largest economy into action, with GDP growth coming it at zero per cent [...]
Premier Oil eyes £2.6bn restructuring deal to complete North Sea oil projects August 15, 2016 Premier Oil is targeting a huge £2.6bn restructuring deal with lenders, ahead of the release of its first half financial results this Thursday. The FTSE 250-listed oil explorer has suffered poor fortunes since the oil price collapse of 2014 and 2015, with pre-tax losses deepening further to $830m in 2015. It has been in talks with [...]
The Bank of England’s chief economist has “sympathy for savers” after rate cut August 14, 2016 One of the Bank of England's senior policy-makers has said he has "enormous" sympathy for savers, after the central bank slashed interest rates in the wake of the Brexit vote. Andy Haldane, one of nine members of the BoE's rate-setting monetary policy committee who voted in favour of cutting rates even further from their already historic low, said [...]
Economists expect another month of stable inflation before sterling’s Brexit devaluation hits prices August 13, 2016 Inflation figures out this week are expected to reveal sterling's dramatic post-referendum collapse is yet to hit prices for UK consumers. Statistics out on Tuesday, which will show how quickly prices rose in July, the first full month after the referendum, will also be watched closely by commuters as they determine how much train tickets will [...]
Holiday taxes add £131 to typical family getaway August 13, 2016 A plethora of holiday taxes can add more than £130 to the typical family summer getaway, research by the TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA) has found. A combination of Air Passenger Duty (APD), the Insurance Premium Tax and the cost of VAT on holiday essentials such a sun cream and swimming costumes, sets vacationers back an extra £61.12 per adult [...]
IMF: China faces bumpy road to sustainable growth August 12, 2016 The Chinese authorities face "many challenges" in rebalancing its economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned today. Conducting its annual health-check of the world's second largest economy, the IMF said China needed to step up its reforms of the unproductive state owned enterprise (SoE) sector, reform governance rules to promote financial stability and drop [...]
US dollar fades as retail sales stagnate and send sterling back above $1.30 August 12, 2016 The US dollar has sunk after fresh economic data showed the recovery stumbled in July. Retail sales flat-lined in the world's largest economy in July and factory prices defied expectations to fall into negative territory. The pound climbed back above $1.30, up 0.5 per cent on the day, reversing some of the losses from earlier this [...]
Eurozone growth rate halves in second quarter as GDP expands by 0.3 per cent August 12, 2016 The Eurozone grew by 0.3 per cent in the second quarter of the year, as a slowdown in both France and Germany weighed on economic performance. The single currency bloc had surprised analysts with a bumper 0.6 per cent expansion in the first three months of the year, but zero growth in France and only [...]
Construction industry stumbles but don’t blame Brexit yet August 12, 2016 The stumble in UK construction in the run-up to the referendum was worse than economists first feared, as housebuilding and property development fell back in the second quarter of the year. Construction output dropped by 0.9 per cent in June, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning. The decline [...]
China’s slowdown intensifies with weak summer spending August 12, 2016 China's economic rebalancing hit another speed bump this morning as fresh data came in below expectations. Growth in both the mighty industrial sector and consumer industries slipped back in July, highlighting the extent of China's struggle to maintain its breakneck expansion while also implementing structural reforms. This morning the National Bureau of Statistics said investment in fixed [...]
