The financial markets are nervous. Investors are demanding a higher yield for holding UK government bonds (‘gilts’) and the pound has continued to slide against the US dollar. It is still too soon to talk of a ‘sterling crisis’. Nonetheless, the heightened political uncertainty and large current account deficit could make UK assets particularly vulnerable … Continue reading Liz Truss may need to act quickly to reassure the markets – but this won’t be ‘Black Wednesday’
Tag: bond yields
How much should we worry about inflation?
Many people have written about how the ‘spectre of inflation’ has returned to haunt investors. In fact, the financial markets are still remarkably sanguine, reassured by dovish comments from central banks. This was reasonable in the depths of the Covid recession. Now it looks increasingly complacent. There has already been a sharp rise in government … Continue reading How much should we worry about inflation?
How much should we worry about UK government debt?
Another month, another set of scary numbers on the public finances: the UK government borrowed an additional £36 billion in September and total public debt rose to £2,060 billion, or around 103.5% of national income (GDP). But there is still no need to panic. For a start, the figures are entirely as expected. If anything, … Continue reading How much should we worry about UK government debt?
Plain-speaking Economics 