UK Economics Focus MPC may need to let high street spending slump The outlook for consumer price inflation hangs crucially on the strength of activity in the high street. If retail spending continues to grow at recent solid rates, retailers will pass on previous... 25th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Is the UK economy finally set to rebalance? The rise in official interest rates seen over the last year, coupled with the recent turmoil in the financial markets, may finally provide the trigger for some unwinding of the UK economy’s imbalances... 10th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Pre-Budget Report 2007 Now we know why the Prime Minister chose not to go to the country early. The economic and financial position has worsened such that it would now only be possible to give some significant pre-election... 9th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus UK Pre-Budget Report 2007 Now we know why the Prime Minister chose not to go to the country early. The economic and financial position has worsened such that it would now only be possible to give some significant pre-election... 9th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus UK Pre-Budget Report Preview - A pre-election splash? Make no bones about it, this year’s Pre-Budget Report (PBR) will have one aim and one aim only – to ensure that Gordon Brown wins a general election. We expect some fairly large tax cuts purely... 4th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus UK Pre-Budget Report Preview - A pre-election splash? Make no bones about it, this year’s Pre-Budget Report (PBR) will have one aim and one aim only – to ensure that Gordon Brown wins a general election. We expect some fairly large tax cuts purely... 4th October 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Is household saving really as low as it looks? Official figures show that households are saving the lowest share of their income since records began in 1960. The situation is not quite as bad as this if saving is adjusted to account for factors... 17th September 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Is household saving really as low as it looks? Official figures show that households are saving the lowest share of their income since records began in 1960. The situation is not quite as bad as this if saving is adjusted to account for factors... 17th September 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Is private equity good for the economy? By overcoming the shortcomings of the publicly quoted market, private equity is promoting efficiency throughout the economy. Admittedly, private equity’s stellar returns to investors are also driven... 3rd September 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Resilient housing market could delay spending slowdown. So far, there have been only tentative signs that consumer spending growth is weakening in response to the rises in interest rates over the past year. But a look at the past two tightening cycles... 29th August 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Resilient housing market could delay spending slowdown. So far, there have been only tentative signs that consumer spending growth is weakening in response to the rises in interest rates over the past year. But a look at the past two tightening cycles... 29th August 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus What will 6% interest rates do to the economy? The Monetary Policy Committee has made it clear that it is prepared to do whatever is necessary to protect the UK’s low inflation environment. But the costs of doing so might be rather higher than the... 14th August 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus What will 6% interest rates do to the economy? The Monetary Policy Committee has made it clear that it is prepared to do whatever is necessary to protect the UK’s low inflation environment. But the costs of doing so might be rather higher than the... 14th August 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Is imported deflation at an end? The rise in UK import prices in the last three years is a one-off and does not mean that imported deflation has come to an end. The UK is likely to benefit from the lower level of costs in countries... 2nd August 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus UK inflation might not fall after all The recent further increase in oil prices and the potential stickiness of food prices suggest that previous expectations of a sharp fall in UK consumer price inflation over the coming months may now... 16th July 2007 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Employment growth to pick up as profits recover A variety of factors has been put forward to explain the recent weakness of employment growth. But the only one that seems to stand up to scrutiny is the recent squeeze on firms’ profits growth from... 12th July 2007 · 1 min read
