POSITIVITY IN THE US FOLLOWING DEBT CEILING DEAL CAN’T HIDE THE GENERALLY GLOOMY OUTLOOK
This week the biggest headlines have been about the deal to prevent the US government defaulting on its debts. When it came to the crunch, Congress and President Biden’s administration managed to achieve the basic function of government by keeping the lights on.
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RISING CORE INFLATION MEANS BANK OF ENGLAND IS EXPECTED TO KEEP RAISING INTEREST RATES
This week more doubt has been cast on the widely held view that central banks are about to bring an end to interest rate hikes. The decline in the UK’s headline rate of inflation was not as big as expected as food, housing and services continue to rise, leaving the Bank of England’s recent upward revision to its inflation forecast in doubt.
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ARE EQUITY MARKETS TOO OPTIMISTIC OR IS THE VIEW OF BOND INVESTORS TOO BLEAK?
This week has seen more optimism in equity markets, while bond investors continue to take a more gloomy view. In the US, negotiations over the debt ceiling appear to be making some progress and this helped the positive sentiment towards US equities.
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BANK OF ENGLAND RAISES RATES AND SIGNALS MORE TO COME AS INFLATION PROVES STICKY
This week Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill generated controversy when he said that to break the inflationary spiral people in the UK need to just accept they are poorer and stop pushing wages up.
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CENTRAL BANKS RAISE RATES AGAIN AS THE US FED SIGNALS IT IS REACHING THE END OF THE ROAD
This week Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill generated controversy when he said that to break the inflationary spiral people in the UK need to just accept they are poorer and stop pushing wages up.
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CALL FOR WAGE RESTRAINT IS BADLY RECEIVED AS BIG BRANDS HIKE PRICES TO PROTECT THEIR PROFITS
This week Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill generated controversy when he said that to break the inflationary spiral people in the UK need to just accept they are poorer and stop pushing wages up.
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PERSISTENTLY HIGH INFLATION INCREASES THE CHANCES OF FURTHER INTEREST RATE HIKES
This week has seen inflation take centre stage once more. US headline inflation fell as expected, but core inflation ticked up slightly.
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US INFLATION DATA PRESENTS A MIXED PICTURE BUT MARKETS STILL EXPECT RATE HIKES TO END SOON
This week has seen inflation take centre stage once more. US headline inflation fell as expected, but core inflation ticked up slightly.
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MARKETS LOOK PAST BANK STOCKS AS THEY ANTICIPATE THE END OF INTEREST RATE HIKES
The Bank of England has warned that households and businesses remain vulnerable to high borrowing costs and rising prices. The bank said corporate debt remains manageable overall but many smaller businesses are exposed to higher borrowing costs.
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THE CHANCELLOR TAKES FIRST SMALL STEPS TO ADDRESS UK GROWTH AS BANK CRISIS RATTLES MARKETS
This week the Chancellor delivered his first full budget; while the last chancellor made an ill-fated dash for growth, this time there were a few measures announced that actually addressed the underlying problem, low investment and a shrinking workforce.
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