The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) increased UK interest rates by another half point this week, as most had expected, taking them to 4%. But it also hinted that rates may not rise much further - if at all. I think the MPC has got this about right. The decision to raise interest rates was … Continue reading The MPC should now pause for breath
Category: financial markets
A quick ‘thumbs up’ to the ‘Edinburgh Reforms’
The ‘Edinburgh Reforms’ are a sensible package of measures which should improve the competitiveness of the UK financial sector and boost growth across the whole economy. Fears that a ‘bonfire of regulations’ will lead to a ‘race to the bottom’ are misplaced. Many of the rules introduced after the global financial crisis went much further … Continue reading A quick ‘thumbs up’ to the ‘Edinburgh Reforms’
The Treasury should look again at a simple option to save on debt interest
The latest monthly data on the UK’s public finances included the first of many payments from the Treasury to cover losses made by the Bank of England’s Asset Purchase Facility (APF). This may seem like an arcane subject, but the sums are huge and at least partly avoidable, so bear with me. First, the technical … Continue reading The Treasury should look again at a simple option to save on debt interest
The Autumn Statement (or ‘Revenge of the bean-counters!’)
If you believe that there is a £55 billion ‘black hole’ in the public finances, and if you believe this has to be filled with tax increases and spending cuts in order to reassure the markets, then Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement was a reasonably fair way to go about it. But there are some mighty … Continue reading The Autumn Statement (or ‘Revenge of the bean-counters!’)
Plain-speaking Economics 