Market Buzz
Tuesday newspaper round-up: NAO, BRC, Apple, ITV
High inflation could cost the British Government tens of billions of pounds in extra interest payments because so much of its debt is index-linked. More than one-third of gilts – excluding those bought by the Bank of England – are linked to the retail price index measure of inflation, so if inflation is one percentage point higher over the next five years, payments on those bonds will rise by £26bn, the National Audit Office has warned. - Telegraph.
Monday newspaper round-up: Paradise papers, Glencore, bubble fears, living wage
The world’s biggest businesses, heads of state and global figures in politics, entertainment and sport who have sheltered their wealth in secretive tax havens are being revealed this week in a major new investigation into Britain’s offshore empires. The details come from a leak of 13. 4m files that expose the global environments in which tax abuses can thrive – and the complex and seemingly artificial ways the wealthiest corporations can legally protect their wealth.
Friday newspaper round-up: Volkswagen UK bank, Capita, Gym Group, Apple
Europe’s largest carmaker is looking at opening a British bank to help to fund sales of its cars in the UK after Brexit. Talks with the Bank of England are expected to lead to Volkswagen making a formal application for a banking licence that will allow it for the first time to take savers’ money. - The Times.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Pay gap, Barclay brothers, Facebook, HSBC
Women around the globe may have to wait more than two centuries to achieve equality in the workplace, according to new research. The World Economic Forum, best known for its annual gathering in the Swiss resort of Davos, said it would take 217 years for disparities in the pay and employment opportunities of men and women to end. This is significantly longer than the 170 years its researchers calculated a year ago. – Guardian.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: UK property market, North-South divide, Bitcoin
The UK’s property market will take this week’s expected rise in interest rates in its stride, according to ratings agency Moody’s, but it warned that the outlook for the buy-to-let market has worsened significantly. The agency, which along with Standard & Poor’s was widely condemned for awarding triple-A ratings to sub-prime mortgage books before the 2008 financial crisis, said the British property market is more resilient than is widely believed. – Guardian.