Any assessment of government statements that have a bearing on the economy should answer two questions: will the measures announced boost growth in the short-term and will they strength the economy's growth potential in the medium- to long-term. On neither score was there much to get excited about in today's...
(1) Comments | Posted April 25, 2013 | 5:20 AM
The Chancellor can finally breathe a small sigh of relief following the release of today's GDP figures. The first estimate shows the UK managed to narrowly escape the much dreaded triple dip recession as the economy expanded by 0.3 per cent in the first quarter of the year....
(20) Comments | Posted January 25, 2013 | 3:43 AM
All the talk is once again of a triple-dip after today's GDP figures for the final quarter of 2012 showed the economy contracted by 0.3%. If GDP also shrinks in the first quarter of 2013, then the economy will be back in technical recession - the third recession...
(11) Comments | Posted December 5, 2012 | 6:00 PM
In keeping with the pressures of Coalition politics, the measures announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement have something for the Conservative backbenches and something for the Liberal Democrats, but rather less than either would have wished.
The Conservative backbenches get cuts in welfare spending. Measures to limit increases...
(42) Comments | Posted October 17, 2012 | 6:00 AM
The latest employment figures, published today, do little to resolve the conundrum over the UK's unusual combination of strong employment growth and no economic growth.
Over the last year, real GDP has fallen by 0.5%, while employment has increased by 510,000 (and private sector employment by 824,000).
...(0) Comments | Posted September 24, 2012 | 7:32 AM
It seems that the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, has secured a promise from the Treasury that it will back his idea for a state business back with £1 billion of taxpayers' money. He hopes that the new 'British Business Bank' will be up and running in 18 months, when it...
(0) Comments | Posted July 26, 2012 | 6:47 AM
The Office for National Statistics reckons that the UK economy shrank by 0.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2012. This is a preliminary estimate that is subject to revision, but if it is right, it suggests the economy has contracted by 0.3 per cent over the last two...
(2) Comments | Posted May 8, 2013 | 8:07 AM