By Greg Smith on Monday, June 27th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Uncertainty continues as growth slows The main theme of uncertainty within the global outlook remains and we expect volatility to continue across most markets. The markets are now shifting expectations towards a slowdown in growth with potential peaks in inflation and interest rates. Last week, we saw the PMI data steady and consistent […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, June 20th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Bank of England hike 0.25% but remains cautious Last week, the Bank of England hiked rates by 25bps for the fifth time in a row. Although the BoE started hikes earlier than many central banks, their steady pace of hikes and emphasis on the balance between growth and inflation leave it looking more […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, June 13th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Bank of England to hike for 5th consecutive time This week we will see the latest Bank of England policy update with another rate hike expected. This will be a fifth consecutive 25bps hike to leave the base rate at 1.25%. There is likely to be a split in voting with differing views […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, June 6th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Sunak increases support as PMI surveys show a slowdown The most recent PMI surveys suggested a slowdown in business activity in May. On the Services reading, this was particularly large, dropping from 58.9 to 51.8. This is expected to be due to the war in Ukraine and China’s lockdowns, as well as […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, May 23rd, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – PMIs to show solid growth even with inflation at 9% Uncertainty high inflation (now 9%)and the impact on growth continue to be the main theme across most markets. The Bank of England has been raising rates at each meeting, but it is unclear whether it will do again in June. Comments from BoE […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, May 16th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Inflation and Cost of living squeeze This week, the inflation report for April will show a large rise to 9% as the energy cap moves higher. In March, we saw inflation rise to 7% with higher food prices and energy contributing to driving a higher rise. Inflation is rising outside of these areas, […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, May 9th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – BoE hike to 1%, but dovish on further moves The big news last week was the Bank of England raising rates again. The BoE felt they had to respond to inflationary pressures despite prospects of softer economic growth. This was the fourth consecutive hike by 25bp to a 13-year high of 1%. The […]
By Greg Smith on Tuesday, May 3rd, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Bank of England to hike to 1% The Bank of England meeting will be eagerly watched this week. A fourth consecutive rate hike is widely expected by the markets. The BoE’s message will likely be that they need to strike a balance between inflation and growth risks. We expect a further 25bps increase […]
By Greg Smith on Monday, April 25th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Consumer confidence and sterling fall Last week, we saw another fall in consumer confidence which fell to -38 in the GfK survey. The last time we saw such a low level was at the time of the global financial crisis. This also fed into retail sales which fell more than expected in March. […]
By Greg Smith on Tuesday, April 19th, 2022
in Blog, Market Insights
GBP – Inflation rise continues, wages following Last week, we saw a further sharp rise in inflation to 7% in March. Both headline and core inflation were higher than expected, with the potential for headline inflation to get close to 9% in April. Meanwhile, unemployment fell to 3.8% with wage growth accelerating, which suggests a […]
