Bank of England keeps interest rates unchanged leaving home-buyers to wait for loan cuts
HOME-buyers were made to wait for loan cuts as Bank chiefs held steady on interest rates.
Borrowing costs were kept at 4.25 per cent yesterday as oil prices rise because of the Israel - Iran conflict and inflation remains stubbornly high.
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Businesses were also found to be increasingly reluctant to hire staff.
Six members of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee voted to stick with the same rate, with the other three calling for a cut of 0.25 per cent.
Bank Governor Andrew Bailey said: 'Interest rates remain on a gradual downward path, although we've left them on hold today.
"The world is highly unpredictable.'
Mr Bailey added: 'In the UK we are seeing signs of softening in the labour market.
"We will be looking carefully at the extent to which those signs feed through to consumer price inflation.'
The Tories last night said interest rates are staying higher for longer due to Labour' s Jobs Tax and borrowing which is driving up inflation and killing growth.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride Rachel Reeves has a secret plan to raise taxes.
"Make no mistake – more taxes are coming."
Chancellor Rachel Reeves told The Times CEO Summit that she wants the Bank to set the right policy for bringing down inflation to the 2 per cent target.
She added that double-digit inflation seen a few years ago 'was so challenging for businesses, but also family finances, which also has a knock on impact on business'.
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Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Slow rate hikes could cause wage-price spiral, BOJ paper says
TOKYO, June 20 (Reuters) - Hiking interest rates only gradually as raw material costs rise could heighten the risk of an upward spiral in wages and consumer prices, the Bank of Japan said in a research paper released this week. The paper's publication on Thursday comes as the central bank faces an increasingly complicated policy environment, with inflation at a more than two-year high and U.S. tariffs fanning economic uncertainty. While the staff papers do not represent the BOJ's official view on monetary policy, they provide hints on key topics of attention within the central bank in setting interest rates. The BOJ staff paper, using data from 2002 to 2024, analysed trends in Japan and Europe - which both rely heavily on imported commodities - to study the extent to which rising material costs led to second-round effects on inflation. In Japan, the pass-through of prices from rising raw materials was more moderate than in Europe, the paper said. The second-round effects were moderate but sustained in both Japan and Europe, it said. "Both in Japan and Europe, the initial effects of high raw material costs were the main cause of inflationary trends since 2020. The second-round effects may have heightened the sustainability of price rises," the paper said. Central banks typically raise interest rates to avoid second-round effects on inflation, or a state in which initial price shocks like higher energy costs trigger a spiral of rising wages and inflation that could lead to a broad-based, persistent inflationary environment. A closer look at Japan's data suggested the BOJ's slow pace of interest rate hikes could be enhancing the second-round effects on inflation, the paper said. Structural changes in Japan's labour market could also be making wages less rigid - or more likely to move flexibly reflecting a tight job market - and enhancing the second-round effects on inflation than in the past, the paper said. The analysis comes amid heightening attention within the BOJ board on how persistent rises in food and raw material costs could affect underlying inflation, and households' perception of future price moves. While uncertainty over U.S. tariff policy has put the BOJ on hold in raising interest rates, Governor Kazuo Ueda has signaled the bank's resolve to keep pushing up borrowing costs if Japan stays on course to durably hit the bank's 2% inflation target. Japan's core inflation hit a more than two-year high in May and exceeded the central bank's 2% target for well over three years, keeping it under pressure to resume rate hikes despite economic headwinds from U.S. tariffs.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
US weighs in with concerns over China's proposed ‘super-embassy' in London
A US intervention over China's proposed new embassy in London has thrown a potential resolution 'up in the air', campaigners have said, amid concerns over the site's proximity to a sensitive hub of critical communication cables. The furore over a new 'super-embassy' on the edge of London's financial district was reignited last week when the White House said it was 'deeply concerned' over potential Chinese access to 'the sensitive communications of one of our closest allies'. The Dutch parliament has also raised concerns about Beijing's ideal location of Royal Mint Court, on the edge of the City of London, which has so far failed to gain planning permission. The ultimate decision lies with the government, which has taken control over the stalled decision after permission was initially rejected on security grounds two years ago. Labour is expected to make a decision over the proposed 2-hectare (5-acre) site opposite the Tower of London after an inquiry was held earlier this year. Those who have long campaigned against the move over security concerns have criticised the row's revival, saying it has sidelined their views. 'They seem to be struggling to make the right decision,' said Dave Lake, the chair of the local residents' association and lead of the local campaign. 'It's got too political now. It was a straightforward inquiry but because of this, that and the other, particularly the Americans getting involved, it's made it all up in the air.' The intervention comes after the signing of a US-UK trade deal with Donald Trump at the G7 summit in Canada this week. Before the deal was signed, a US official told the Sunday Times: 'The United States is deeply concerned about providing China with potential access to the sensitive communications of one of our closest allies.' In the Netherlands, MPs have raised similar security concerns. A state department official said they had full faith in the UK to ensure the safety and security of their diplomatic mission in London. Nevertheless, for those who have long opposed the embassy site, what was once a campaign focused on security concerns from local residents and communities in exile has been overtaken by geopolitics. Lake has lived near the proposed site, bought by the Chinese government in 2018 for £255m, for 35 years. On Saturday he attended the latest demonstration there, fearing that building an embassy could attract further demonstrations and political attacks. Recent concerns have shifted to cables underneath the sites, which serve as an arterial link between the City of London and Canary Wharf, London's two financial centres. Lake said: 'We know there are cables running underground, and we know the capabilities of the Chinese. In the early conversations it was never part of it, it was just completely our security.' Charles Parton, who spent 22 years working in and on China as a UK diplomat and has advised the UK parliament's foreign affairs committee, said it was 'a big problem' if there were very sensitive cables running directly under the site. He said: 'There are two ways to be seen with it: one way is to say, well, you can't use the site; the other is to say reroute the cables. How difficult is it to reroute the cables? I don't know the answer to that question.' Parton said the British embassy had been wanting to rebuild its Beijing site for as long as he could remember. The building had not been fit for purpose for several decades, he said, and the wishes of both countries for newer embassies was 'normal diplomatic business' as relations had greatly expanded. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion 'There are many things we should worry about with the Chinese,' said Parton, mentioning Beijing's geopolitical agenda and strangle on rare earth exports. 'But we need to choose the important ones and not the unimportant ones. And all goes back to the nature of these cables. What is crucial is the security issue. If that is resolved satisfactory, then why shouldn't we both go ahead and build new embassies?' The government, which has said it is committed to 'robust' and 'evidence-based' decision-making, is expected to issue its verdict by 9 September. Among those worried that the embassy plans will go ahead is Rahima Mahmut, a leading Uyghur activist. 'It is really unbelievable when not only the US government but also the Dutch government express their concerns,' said Mahmut, who lives in exile in the UK. Also concerned over increased surveillance and espionage is Simon Cheng, the founder of Hongkongers in Britain and a former Hong Kong consulate worker. Cheng, who in 2023 had a bounty issued for his arrest, said: 'The UK government need to think twice because it's not only just the closest ally that has given a warning and grave concern, but also that to many other people, especially us as part of the exile community … we have concerns about our security here.' A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy said the planning application had taken UK policy into consideration as well as the views of all relevant parties. Building a new embassy would help them 'better perform' the responsibilities of 'mutual beneficial cooperation' between the two countries, they added. The spokesperson said: 'Anti-China forces are using security risks as an excuse to interfere with the British government's consideration over this planning application. This is a despicable move that is unpopular and will not succeed.'
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Rachel Reeves and the Bank of England cannot change the long course of history
Questor is The Telegraph's stock-picking column, helping you decode the markets and offering insights on where to invest. The economy's near-term outlook remains highly uncertain. Although GDP growth surged to 0.7pc in the first quarter, which was up from an expansion of 0.1pc in the prior period, recent interest rate cuts are likely to take many months to have their full impact on the economy due to the existence of time lags. When combined with the potential for sticky inflation over the coming months, as well as the possible ill effects of higher costs for businesses caused by changes to employer National Insurance contributions, investors may naturally seek to avoid UK-focused stocks. However, in Questor's view, the long-term return prospects for UK-listed companies are highly appealing. Crucially, an uncertain near-term economic outlook means they trade on low valuations which in many cases are significantly below their intrinsic value. This provides scope for significant capital gains, both from upward re-ratings as investor sentiment gradually improves, and as a result of a faster pace of earnings growth as the full impact of monetary policy easing becomes apparent. Indeed, history shows that GDP growth and the stock market's performance are cyclical. Even though various chancellors and investors have previously claimed otherwise, often during periods of economic expansion and bull markets, the economy and equity markets are inherently boom-and-bust entities that simply refuse to go in one particular direction ad infinitum. Just as interest rate rises between 2021 and 2023 led to a stifling of economic activity, and acted as a drag on company profits, thereby prompting relatively downbeat stock market performance, the current period of sustained monetary policy easing is highly likely to do the opposite. Investors who are able to look beyond short-term economic uncertainty to a period of relatively fast-paced growth and buy shares that are grossly undervalued, are therefore likely to generate high returns over the long run. Of course, stocks purchased amid the current challenging economic climate must be able to ride out short-term difficulties in order to produce high capital returns in the long run. Companies with solid financial positions are well placed to do so, with modest levels of debt as a proportion of net assets and generous headroom when making interest payments from operating profits likely to be key considerations for investors. Sound finances also provide scope for a business to reinvest in its operations in order to strengthen its market position for the long run. A solid balance sheet may further allow it to make acquisitions that bolster its financial prospects as the economy's performance gradually improves. Companies that benefit from having a competitive advantage may also be in a relatively strong position to overcome prospective near-term economic difficulties. A solid competitive position may, for instance, be derived from having a significant amount of brand loyalty that means customers are more likely to reduce spending elsewhere before cutting back on their consumption of a specific company's products. Lower costs vis-à-vis rival firms also equates to a competitive advantage. It allows for price cuts that enhance the appeal of a company's products amid a challenging financial period for consumers. A strong competitive position further bodes well for a firm's long-term financial and share price performance. For example, it may enable a company to build its market share during an economic downturn, thereby allowing it to occupy a stronger position through which to capitalise on rising demand as the rate of GDP growth improves. Clearly, it is impossible to state exactly when the economy and stock market will deliver consistently strong performance. Indeed, it may only become clear after the event, when multiple quarters of strong GDP growth and attractive share price gains have already been posted. Therefore, it may be logical for long-term investors to seek to move ahead of the curve in terms of buying shares in high-quality companies at attractive prices while their peers continue to do the opposite. While this may entail paper losses in the short run, a willingness to go against the investment herd has proved to be a highly worthwhile approach in the past. In Questor's view, it is likely to remain so over the coming years.
