Cost of living crunch to deliver shock to UK households’ balance sheets May 4, 2022 Households’ balance sheets are set to be tainted by problem debt this year, driven by the worsening cost of living crunch forcing Brits to turn to credit cards to pay bills, reveals fresh analysis published today. Accelerating inflation over the course of this year is likely to spark a jump in unsecured lending, credit that [...]
UK braces itself for nation-wide disruption as 40,000 workers announce another two days of rail strikes July 15, 2022 The UK will need to brace itself for nation-wide disruption as 40,000 rail members of the union RMT announced late last night an additional two days’ strike on 18 and 20 August. RMT members working at Network Rail and 14 other operators announced earlier this week they will also walk out on 27 July in [...]
Bank of England to launch brisk rate hike cycle to tame 40-year high inflation May 18, 2022 The Bank of England will have to launch a cycle of steeper and quicker rate hikes to tame the steepest rise in living costs in four decades, according to City economists. The case for front-loading rate rises is strengthening after new figures published this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed inflation climbed [...]
The Notebook: Victoria Scholar on good news for inflation, the economics of Taylor Swift and the state of crypto July 6, 2023 Where the City’s movers and shakers get a few things off their chest. Today, it’s Victoria Scholar from Interactive Investor Supermarkets sound a positive note on inflation Some good news on inflation at last – Sainsbury’s says food inflation is starting to fall. Its CEO Simon Roberts said the company is “putting all our energy [...]
Week ahead: City eyes potentially ‘staggering’ inflation figures May 15, 2022 The City will turn its gaze to what is likely to be another tranche of “staggering” inflation data in a week bulging with economic and corporate updates. London’s premier FTSE 100 index whipsawed last week, dropping sharply on Monday before finishing the week up 0.41 per cent at 7,418.15 points. The mid-cap domestically-focused FTSE 250 [...]
‘It’s not hard to imagine a future where the IPL simply is cricket’ May 18, 2023 As the ICC is set to change the way it distributes revenue, with India getting a significant portion, Ed Warner states that it is not hard to imagine a world where the IPL simply is cricket. The venality and self-interest that drive decisions in international cricket have been so well known for so long that [...]
Bank of England to usher in new era of higher interest rates after sending them to near 15-year high today May 11, 2023 The Bank of England will rip up the monetary policy order of the last decade and keep interest rates far above their post-financial crisis rock bottom levels over the coming years, new forecasts out today claim. UK borrowing costs are on course to top four per cent for the whole of this year and next [...]
Tube strike brings London to a standstill as Uber raises prices due to increased demand August 19, 2022 London has been paralysed by a strike from workers on the Underground, Overground and bus service, as private hire taxi services like Uber and Bolt raise prices due to increased demand. All London Underground lines are closed on Friday 19 August following a walk-out called by around 10,000 members of the RMT Union on the [...]
PM unaware of British businesses’ ‘lived realities’ October 6, 2021 Business leaders and industry chiefs have lashed out at Prime Minister Boris Johnson for dismissing the “lived realities” of British companies after he delivered the concluding speech at the Conservative Party conference today. In a policy-light but joke-heavy address, Johnson said the UK is barrelling toward a “high wage, high skill and low tax economy” [...]
Minimum wage hike to go ahead despite coronavirus pressure on businesses March 31, 2020 The UK minimum wage is set to rise tomorrow as planned despite calls for the government to postpone the increase due to the coronavirus outbreak. The National Minimum Wage will increase 6.2 per cent from £8.21 to £8.72 per hour from 1 April, despite the economic challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic. However, two thinktanks [...]