One of the City’s foremost economists will call this week for the Bank of England to lift interest rates as early as next February, assuming that the recovery continues, reports the Independent.
Douglas McWilliams, chief executive of the Centre for Economics and Business Research, will suggest in a speech today that the Bank lifts its base interest rate from 0.5 per cent to 0.75 per cent next year.
The Bank has talked down the likelihood of such an early rate rise, but last week it had to bring forward the expected date at which it will consider a hike.
Aberdeen plans to take on US asset managers after Swip deal
Martin Gilbert’s Aberdeen Asset Management is plotting an audacious bid to steal business from US investment groups such as BlackRock and Vanguard after completing the biggest acquisition in its 30-year history on Monday, reports the Financial Times.
The deal to buy of Scottish Widows Investment Partnership for £550m in an all-share transaction boosts Aberdeen’s assets under management to £336bn ($543bn), propelling it past Schroders as the biggest listed investment group in Europe.
Reality check for US stockmarkets after day of record highs
American stock indices the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ended lower on Monday while the Dow failed to close above its milestone level of 16,000 as stocks were sold off late following cautious comments by the investor Carl Icahn on the equity market, reports the Guardian.
Property asking prices rising at fastest rate for six years
Property asking prices have surged at their fastest annual rate for six years this month and show little sign of easing, a leading property website said today, reports the Daily Mail.
Homeowners on average raised the asking price for their houses by 4 per cent in November compared to a year ago, marking the biggest annual rise since before the first stirrings of the financial crisis in 2007, according to Rightmove.
Big banks’ plea to double cash Isa allowance and devise ‘exit strategy’ for Help to Buy
The UK’s largest banks have told chancellor George Osborne to lay out “exit strategies” for Help to Buy while warning that more must be done to deliver new homes and dampen ever-rising house prices, reports the Daily Mail.
The British Bankers’ Association also told Mr Osborne to dismiss calls for a cap on the amount that can be paid into Isas and to allow savers to hold twice as much in cash without attracting tax.
Italy’s leader warns Germany of rise of anti-European sentiment
Enrico Letta, Italy’s centre-left prime minister, has urged Germany to spur economic growth in Europe rather than be left “alone in a desert” and watch the rise of anti-European sentiments in neighbouring countries, reports the Financial Times.
Graduate data reveal England’s lost and indebted generation
The earnings of recent English graduates have deteriorated so rapidly since the financial crisis that the latest class is earning 12 per cent less than their pre-crash counterparts at the same stage in their careers, reports the Financial Times. They also owe about 60 per cent more in student debt.
