Wages jump at fastest pace outside of Covid-19 but inflation erodes finances for 18th straight month June 13, 2023 Workers in Britain have pocketed the largest pay increases on record outside of the Covid-19 pandemic, but inflation is still sharply eroding their finances, official figures out today reveals. Numbers from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the average worker in the UK received a 7.2 per cent wage increase in the three months [...]
Bank of England policymaker warns further interest rate hikes ‘cannot be ruled out’ June 12, 2023 Further interest rate rises “cannot be ruled out” amid decades-high inflation in the UK, a Bank of England policymaker said. Jonathan Haskel, writing in The Scotsman, spoke of the “difficult judgments” the Bank has to make to bring inflation down to its two per cent target. The economist, an external member of the seven-person Monetary [...]
Why did HSBC withdraw mortgage deals for new borrowers? June 9, 2023 HSBC has temporarily withdrawn mortgage deals for new borrowers as the turbulence that has engulfed the UK mortgage market over the past few weeks continued. The bank removed products for new residential and buy-to-let products on Thursday, with new more expensive deals becoming available on Monday. HSBC had originally set a deadline of 5pm on [...]
Pound on course for highest level against US dollar in over a year, City analysts bet June 7, 2023 Pound sterling could end 2023 at its highest level in more than a year, strengthened by the Bank of England continuing to hike interest rates and the Federal Reserve taking its foot off the brake, analysts have told City A.M. The UK’s currency may strengthen to $1.30 toward the end of this year, driven by [...]
House building tumbles to lowest level in three years in blow to homeownership dreams June 7, 2023 House building has tumbled to its lowest level in three years in another blow to the homeownership dreams of millions of Brits, a closely watched survey out yesterday revealed. According to S&P Global and the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply’s (CIPS) latest construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI), the rate of new houses being rolled [...]
Investment slump amid higher interest rates risks finally sparking UK recession June 6, 2023 A mix of factors are buffeting the UK economy right now. Spending power is being crushed by high inflation eroding family finances. House prices are coming off their heady heights as sellers drop prices to source buyers amid higher mortgage rates. External demand is thinning in response to weak consumer confidence amid a global cost [...]
House prices to stutter after Bank of England interest rate hikes June 4, 2023 House price growth is poised to stutter, new figures out this week are expected to show, as prospective homeowners are gradually priced out of the market by the Bank of England’s successive interest rate rises.
Pound records strong week as London markets expects Bank to hike rates further June 2, 2023 The pound has recorded its strongest week against the dollar in half a year as investors expect the Bank of England to keep hiking rates after the Fed has paused. Across the week, the pound gained more than 1.5 per cent against the dollar to trade at over $1.2530 on Friday afternoon. The pound performed [...]
HSBC leads banks’ plans to hike savings rates – and analysts say they could go up even further June 2, 2023 HSBC UK is boosting the interest rates on some savings accounts with increases of up to 0.75 percentage points, the bank has announced. The increases will come into effect next week, on Thursday June 8. They include a 0.75 percentage point increase on the bank’s mysavings and premier savings youth accounts, taking rates to 5.00 [...]
Record £9bn pumped into ISAs as Brits capitalise on higher interest rates June 1, 2023 Brits are yanking cash out of high street savings accounts and piling it into products that tie up their money for a longer period in exchange for a better interest rate, official figures out today show. Savers dropped £3.6bn into banks and building societies in April, nearly all of which went into fixed savings accounts [...]