New measures offer boost to small business December 3, 2014 THE UK’s small businesses and entrepreneurs were heartened yesterday after a series of policy measures were announced aimed at providing them with better access to funding and investment support. In the Autumn statement yesterday, the chancellor announced the government would provide further funding for the Enterprise Finance Guarantee to facilitate up to £500m of new [...]
Four principles to keep on track in slippery markets January 27, 2015 GLOBAL markets have served up an avalanche of events in 2015 so far – from a plunging oil price and euro, to rallying government bonds; from the removal of the Swiss franc floor, to the shock election results in Greece. It looks as if European markets will be setting the tone for global risk appetite [...]
Budget 2015: Here are George Osborne’s best quotes plus his Budget speech in full March 18, 2015 George Osborne's final Budget during this parliament had few surprises but plenty of great quips, including – to the dismay of bookies everywhere – a quip about Ed Miliband's now-infamous second kitchen. Here's a selection of our favourites from today's big speech. (Source: Getty/City A.M.) (Source: Getty/City A.M) (Source: Getty/City A.M.) [...]
Stewart Wood: The man behind Ed Miliband shaking up his party’s approach to business and the economy April 12, 2015 Stewart Wood, the Labour peer, is not exactly a household name. He is more likely to be found following his beloved Liverpool football team around the country than touring the television studios for political programmes. However, his influence as a long term ally of party leader Ed Miliband is becoming increasingly clear. Wood [...]
We can live with zero inflation: The two per cent target must not be set in stone March 26, 2015 For the first time since the 1960s, the main measure of UK inflation has fallen to zero. While this seemed to be a shocking fact for many economic commentators, it should not be a great surprise. For over 30 years, defeating inflation and achieving price stability have underpinned UK economic policy. Low inflation became a [...]
“Politicians are scared of telling the truth”: Circle blames Hinchingbrooke hospital failure on unequal spending cuts across the NHS March 31, 2015 Exclusive: Today, the NHS's biggest privatisation experiment ever comes to an expensive and embarrassing end – Circle Healthcare, which was chosen by the government three years ago to turn around the troubled Hinchingbrooke hospital in Cambridgeshire, is abandoning the project seven years early, leaving behind a deficit of between £7.7m and £12m. What's more, the [...]
Credit and money growth show early signs of euro policy failure November 27, 2014 EUROPEAN policies are failing to inspire any revival in credit and money growth, official figures showed yesterday. Eurozone bank lending to the private sector fell by 0.5 per cent year-on-year in October. Growth in the European Central Bank’s (ECB) headline measure of money in the economy remained flat at 2.5 per cent year-on-year. The headline [...]
Commons in chaos as Home Office faces cross-party rebellion on vote November 10, 2014 HOME Secretary Theresa May faced down a cross-party rebellion in the House of Commons last night after she pushed through a vote on just 11 EU measures instead of the full 35 MPs had expected, including the European arrest warrant. May’s decision not to allow time for a full vote on the 35 opt-in justice [...]
After the Swiss franc bombshell: Traders should expect a bumpy year ahead January 19, 2015 From the Eurozone to the UK, volatility will keep on returning. The Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) shock decision to abandon the Swiss franc’s euro anchor last Thursday saw markets reel. At one point, the euro had crashed 30 per cent against the franc (see graph) before recovering some of its losses. Ajay Pabari, founder [...]
FTSE 100 edges up as oil and metals recover – London Report December 17, 2014 Energy and mining stocks rallied to help the UK’s top share index end slightly higher after a sharp decline earlier in the session, buoyed by a recovery in crude oil and industrial metals prices. Expectations the European Central Bank will take fresh measures to support the region’s economy and that the US Federal Reserve’s final [...]