Wage costs grow in Britain amid record high employment rates March 18, 2019 Wage costs in the UK grew 1.7 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2018 from the quarter before, compared to an average of 0.5 per cent quarter on quarter growth over the last 10 years. Wage costs per hour worked in Britain – meaning benefits in kind, wages and salaries – were 3.2 per cent higher in the [...]
The Brexit unknown: how the votes moved markets – and what next March 15, 2019 British politics has faced a turbulent week: three nights of Brexit votes, a Spring Statement and a downgrade to economic growth. Market prices have swung on each twist as investors attempt to digest a constantly shifting set of possible outcomes. The single constant factor is uncertainty. With the scheduled exit date of 29 March looming, [...]
State-centric and uninspiring: The Spring Statement wasn’t much to get excited about March 15, 2019 Who has time to care about a Spring Statement when the unfolding Brexit process feels like watching a cross between Saw 3 and a monster truck rally? This has been a problem for two and a half years – the Brexit black hole has sucked time and resources away from almost every other area of [...]
Brexit vote live: MPs vote to delay Brexit by extending Article 50 beyond 29 March March 14, 2019 Hello and welcome to City A.M.’s Brexit live blog for the second of potentially three huge votes on the UK’s departure from the EU. Prime Minister Theresa May was defeated in the House of Commons in a second vote on her Brexit deal on Tuesday, losing by 391 votes to 242. Last night, MPs voted [...]
Hammond has the cash to end austerity, IFS says March 14, 2019 The improved public finances announced in yesterday’s Spring Statement give the chancellor Philip Hammond the power to bring austerity to an end, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said today. The think tank also said Britain’s relentless focus on Brexit has stopped it from addressing important economic and financial challenges in its analysis of the Spring Statement. [...]
Spring Statement 2019: How investors can profit March 14, 2019 By Jemma Jackson from interactive investor. There were no bunnies in the chancellor’s hat, but here are the ways investors can benefit this spring. As predicted, Brexit uncertainty torpedoed any chance of good news for the UK’s savers and investors in Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Spring Statement. We hear there’s a ‘deal dividend’ of £26.6 billion, [...]
UK house prices: Ongoing Brexit uncertainty will hurt housing market, says RICS March 14, 2019 UK house prices will continue to plunge this year as prolonged Brexit uncertainty weighs on the market, according to the latest forecasts. Read more: UK house prices: Experts cast doubt on 'volatile' price hike Buyer enquiries, agreed sales and instructions to sell have fallen for the sixth month running, according to the Royal Institute of [...]
Spring Statement: Hammond warns against no deal as UK slashes 2019 growth forecast March 13, 2019 The UK chancellor Philip Hammond slashed the 2019 growth forecast in his Spring Statement and said future spending and economic wellbeing are dependent on an orderly Brexit. Hammond announced that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had cut the country’s 2019 growth forecast to 1.2 per cent, down from the 1.6 per cent predicted in [...]
DEBATE: With just 16 days to go until Brexit, is there any point to the Spring Statement? March 13, 2019 With just 16 days to go until Brexit, is there any point to the Spring Statement? Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG, says YES. While Brexit is likely to dominate minds again this week, and continue to bring a fog of uncertainty over the outlook for the UK economy, the Spring Statement is still important. [...]
TSB to pay former boss £800,000 this year despite IT meltdown bonus ban February 1, 2019 TSB’s former boss could be paid £800,000 this year after resigning in the wake of the bank’s IT meltdown, while other bankers miss out on last year’s bonuses. Paul Pester, who stepped down in September, will receive the previously agreed notice payments in monthly installments, the bank’s annual accounts showed today. Read more: TSB swings to [...]