FTSE 100 close: A stable end to a miserable week May 26, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 showed tentative signs of recovery on Friday, after a turbulent week that saw numbers from the Office for National Statistics reveal far higher levels of inflation, all but sealing further interest rate hikes. The blue-chip index started higher before settling in flat, and then closing at 7,627, up 0.74 per cent, helping [...]
London’s FTSE 100 dragged down by house builders as more rate hikes loom September 27, 2022 London’s FTSE 100 fell today driven lower by house builders tumbling on the prospect of higher interest rates. The capital’s premier index lost 0.52 per cent to drop to below 7,000 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, tumbled 2.36 per cent to [...]
Truss and Hunt to oversee protracted recession, EY Item Club forecasts October 17, 2022 The UK is on course for a long recession that will last from this winter through to next summer, underscoring the tough challenge facing prime minister Liz Truss and her new chancellor Jeremy Hunt. Rising inflation compounded by higher interest rates will force the economy into reverse in the current quarter until the summer of [...]
Analysis: A growing economy and falling energy bills, the stars could be aligning January 13, 2023 Britain might narrowly avoid a technical recession, energy prices could be falling , and mortgage borrowing costs might not be as crippling. Sascha O’Sullivan looks at the good news.
UK economy headed for record recession if rates rise sharply, BoE warns November 3, 2022 The UK economy is on course to suffer the longest recession since records began if interest rates rise sharply, triggered by a toxic mix of higher mortgage costs, prices and energy bills, the Bank of England said today. Gross domestic product (GDP) will shrink for 24 consecutive months, beginning in the early stages of next [...]
Size doesn’t matter: Why the ‘race for space’ in London property is over February 17, 2023 The pandemic had some strange effects on the London housing market. Being cooped up made people realise the importance of having space, both indoor and outdoor, which led to the so-called “race for space” and a minor London exodus. More than 100,000 Londoners exited the city in 2021, many taking up homes in the surrounding [...]
Homeware retailers ‘draw short straw’ in economic crunch as Made.com nears collapse October 31, 2022 Homeware retailers are facing a turbulent 2023 as mounting operational costs and hesitant consumer sentiment piles the pressure on the sector. It comes as Made.com was still teetering on the brink of collapse on Monday after customers have pulled back from spending on pricier items like furniture. Last week, the ailing sofa seller said it [...]
Bank chiefs hit back at accusations of profiteering on higher interest rates February 7, 2023 Chief executives from the UK’s four largest lenders today hit back at accusations from MPs that they were too quick to charge customers more interest on their mortgages without offering higher rates on savings accounts. The bank chiefs were asked why interest rates on instant savings accounts remain around one per cent while the Bank [...]
US Fed chief Powell warns higher rates may tip economy into recession June 22, 2022 The chief of the US Federal Reserve has warned it may hike interest rates to a level that tips the economy into a recession. “It’s certainly a possibility” that a rapid tightening of monetary policy will force the US economy into reverse, Fed chair Jerome Powell said today in response to a grilling by American [...]
Mark Kleinman on banks, Ocado and London’s IPO market June 29, 2023 Mark Kleinman is City editor at Sky News Politics could push ministers to punish banks This is a cost of living crisis, not a banking crisis: if I had a fiver for every time a senior bank executive had said that to me over the last 18 months, I’d never need another mortgage of my [...]