UK industry has struggled for years under the burden of relatively high electricity costs The stream of bad news about energy shows no sign of ending. Last month the regulator Ofgem confirmed that the cap on domestic bills will rise by another 4% in October, despite the temporary removal of VAT from the cost of … Continue reading Expensive energy, not Brexit, explains why Britain is stagnating
Tag: natural gas
Two scenarios: “TACO”, or “Trumpageddon”?
In the early stages of the Iran crisis the markets priced in a relatively benign scenario. The conflict was expected to be short, lasting days if not weeks, with limited fallout for energy prices and for the global economy. A month on, this has proved to be far too optimistic. Indeed, the future looks increasingly … Continue reading Two scenarios: “TACO”, or “Trumpageddon”?
Tumbling energy prices will provide just a little relief from a tariff war
President Trump’s tariff war has already had a large number of consequences – intended or otherwise – for the global economy. But the slump in energy prices is at least one result that we can welcome. On Monday the price of a barrel of Brent fell to US$64, down about 16pc from the average of … Continue reading Tumbling energy prices will provide just a little relief from a tariff war
Red Sea crisis is unlikely to blow inflation off course
The disruption to shipping through the Red Sea – and the possibility of a further escalation of the Middle East crisis – are serious threats to the global economy. Nonetheless, the wider fallout should be limited. UK inflation might sink a little more slowly than it would otherwise have done, but it should continue to … Continue reading Red Sea crisis is unlikely to blow inflation off course
Plain-speaking Economics 