UK Economics Chart Pack Recovery still looking sluggish The economy has bounced back somewhat since the weakness at the start of the year, suggesting that much of it was just a temporary response to the snow and VAT rise. But the housing and consumer... 31st March 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Bounce-back from snow may be short-lived (Mar 10) It is clearly reassuring that consumer spending has recovered somewhat after the snow and VAT rise pulled down spending at the start of the year. And in the near-term, spending should receive some... 25th March 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack MPC pauses – but not for long The Monetary Policy Committee voted to pause its programme of quantitative easing (QE) at its latest meeting. But both the Inflation Report - showing inflation undershooting its target further ahead -... 2nd March 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Recovery struggling to maintain momentum (Feb-10) The new year got off to a very weak start. Admittedly, temporary factors played some part in this. Not only did the snow discourage spending, but consumers may have pulled forward purchases of... 22nd February 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack UK crawls out of recession The UK finally emerged from recession in the last quarter of last year, but by the skin of its teeth. GDP posted a quarterly rise of just 0.1%, comparing poorly to the initial rises in output seen in... 2nd February 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack A reasonable end to last year (Jan 10) As we expected, consumer spending picked up pace towards the end of December. Not only do consumers tend to do their Christmas shopping later and later, but the VAT rise encouraged them to bring some... 22nd January 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack UK economy looking better-balanced The National Accounts published at the end of last year left the economy looking better-balanced than before. The balance of payments deficit should have recorded the smallest deficit last year since... 6th January 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Still time for an end-of-year surge (Dec 09) It does not appear to have been a spectacular run-up to Christmas on the high street so far. But with the Chancellor confirming that VAT will return to 17.5% on 1st January, we should see an end-of... 17th December 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Inflation heading for 3% October’s rise in CPI inflation from 1.1% to 1.5% marked the start of an upward trend which could see inflation rise to 3% or above early next year. (See Chart.) Energy base effects and the planned... 2nd December 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Heading for a strong end to the year (Nov 09) All of the main measures of retail spending were strong in October. And spending will receive further support in the next month or two as consumers bring forward some purchases ahead of the reversal... 19th November 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack UK one of the last to escape recession The news that the economy failed to emerge from recession in the third quarter highlighted that the recovery will be a long and painful process. Not only is this now the longest recession since at... 2nd November 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Mixed messages on high street spending (Oct 09) Although the various measures of retail sales gave conflicting messages about the strength of high street spending in September, conditions off the high street have unambiguously improved. And in the... 22nd October 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Attention focuses on looming fiscal squeeze Headlines over the past month have been dominated by the steps needed to reduce the public sector deficit, with Prime Minister Gordon Brown finally uttering the “c” word and talking about cutting... 2nd October 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Rising car sales of limited help to overall spending (Sep 09) The recent strength of high street spending has been impressive, but we may now be seeing the first signs of a slowdown. Even if the resilience lasts a bit longer, the outlook for next year looks... 17th September 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Deflation still a risk CPI inflation was unchanged in July and is still being slow to fall compared with other countries. However, this primarily reflects the impact of the lower pound and this effect should now be easing... 3rd September 2009 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Gradual improvement continues (Aug 09) Retail sales remain strong and the resilience shows no sign of fading anytime soon. What’s more, there have been signs of improvement in spending off the high street. So while consumer spending is... 21st August 2009 · 1 min read
