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Eurozone real estate corporations are more indebted than before the 2008 global currency crisis, the European Central Bank (ECB) said, warning that the sector could suffer for years under the weight of high interest rates.
A real estate boom is brewing in countries such as Germany and Sweden, the ECB says in a report examining the effect of record 4% interest rates on the monetary zone.
It says eurozone banks hold about 10% of loans to the advertising real estate sector, which is suffering declining profitability as it faces “a higher likelihood of facing debt-servicing problems” in the residential market, which is underpinned by strong employment.
The ECB said advertising asset costs have been hit by economic weakness and high interest rates over the past year, affecting the sector’s profitability and business style.
The report adds that real estate advertising could simply “play a significant amplifying role in the event of broader market tensions” as large corporations grapple with debt levels “close to or above pre-global currency crisis levels. “
It comes as deep cracks have emerged in the asset market of the eurozone’s largest economy, Germany, where the structure of one of the country’s tallest buildings came to a halt halfway after the developer stopped paying its builder.
Signa Group, the Austrian real estate giant and owner of New York’s Chrysler Building, had made steady progress this year on the 64-story Elbtower skyscraper project in Hamburg, but the company, founded by René Benko, has defaulted on its payments.
Read the updates below.
That’s all for today here on the live blog. Tomorrow, Chris Price and I will be checking in on a live blog committed to the Autumn Statement that is now up and running. We inspire you to register with us.
In the meantime, here’s some more recent news from the Telegraph:
Ministers ‘should end Abu Dhabi’s takeover of the Telegraph’
Civil service tape is a £50bn tax on UK growth, says Tory colleague
China’s CO2 emissions may already be declining, a watershed moment for the world
Siemens Energy’s wind energy department said on Tuesday it would cut prices by 400 million euros after receiving a 15 billion euro bailout from the German government and an organization of banks. Last year, the troubled wind energy department became the sole property of Siemens Energy, but it still faces quality control issues that potentially affect 2,900 of the company’s 65,000 onshore turbines. The unit’s chief executive, Jochen Eickholt, said that so far the company has experienced “a limited number of blackouts” but that “I can’t say I know everything. “”Investors were unreassured by the magnitude of the rate cuts, fearing that the company would need to raise more capital. Siemens Energy shares plunged 7. 9%.
Reportedly, talks have begun between ousted CEO Sam Altman and OpenAI’s board members about his imaginable comeback.
According to Bloomberg, the move is due to pressure from shareholders of OpenAI, Thrive Capital, Khosla Ventures, and Tiger Global Management.
Meanwhile, in a podcast hosted through tech journalist Kara Swisher, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella expressed frustration with the case, in which Altman was fired without consulting with the software giant:
It’s even cash and capital. I mean, here’s an undeniable way to think about it. Sam chose Microsoft once. Sam has selected Microsoft twice. Does anyone want to think why? There is no OpenAI without Microsoft being deeply involved in partnering with this company on its mission.
The FTSE 100 was down 0. 19% today at 7,481. 99, while the FTSE 250 fell 1. 35% to 18,347. 63.
The company that rose the most on the FTSE was Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, up 4. 16%, followed by JD Sports, up 3. 95%. IAG, owner of British Airways, saw the biggest decline, down 4. 98%.
The FTSE 250 index saw some significant declines, adding Workarea Group – the most productive known for renting workspaces in London – which fell 7. 2%. Telecom Plus (owner of Utility Warehouse) lost 7. 05% after announcing the resignation of its chief executive, Andrew Lindsay.
Hargreaves Lansdown will fall from the FTSE 100 next week, according to index compiler FTSE Russell.
The retirement and investment company is expected to be replaced by Intermediate Capital Group, a stock company.
Hargreaves Lansdown’s expansion has been hurt by emerging bank interest rates on savings accounts and increased competition from cheap US Vanguard.
The company, which will be listed on the FTSE 250, has 1. 8 million users. But in a business report for the quarter ended at the end of September, the company said its visitor retention rate fell by about one percentage point to 91. 7 percent, while it was also gaining new consumers more slowly than last year.
Hargreaves Lansdown shares have fallen 17. 5% since January.
CRH has reached a $2. 1 billion deal to buy a network of 20 concrete plants in Texas after leaving its London board and moving to New York, writes Howard Mustoe:
The deal pushes the company to the U. S. , where it hopes to capitalize on expansion fueled by President Joe Biden’s windfall subsidies.
Last year, more than $1 trillion worth of structural projects were initiated in the United States. Major infrastructure projects come with the expansion of New York’s JFK airport and California’s delayed and off-budget high-speed rail project. In Texas, major projects come with the world’s largest carbon capture project, as well as the expansion of Austin’s soft rail network and a series of giant solar farms.
The subsidies revealed by Biden have led to increased spending on green infrastructure in the United States, adding investments in wind farms, electric car factories and chargers. The president’s $369 billion Inflation Reduction Act went into effect last August. CRH, a member of the FTSE 100, said in March it would move its board to New York to seek infrastructure investments in the United States. The company said at the time: “Our exposure to [the United States] is likely to be an additional accumulation due to very significant increases in infrastructure financing, new dynamics of relocation of productive activity, and significant levels of substructure in the residential structures market.
Elon Musk would never have been successful in Britain or anywhere else in Europe, writes Jeremy Warner:
Musk is notoriously exclusive in many ways, a veritable weirdo who woos and revels in controversy: a drama queen and serial author of blockbuster companies.
But he’s also part of the army of high-impact marketers that the American economy has created over the past 150 years. That the United States can continue to foster such transformative wealth creators is a testament to its enduring qualities as an economic superpower.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the UK and Europe as a whole. What is this about? Too many taxes? Too much regulation? Not really. The most recent survey released through the World Bank on the “ease of doing business” places the United States in sixth place, scoring only higher than the United Kingdom.
Read the full track here. . .
The owner of fashion store Zara has reached the value of his shares since its IPO in 2001. Inditex, which is listed in Spain, bet today on 1. 43%, reaching just about 37 euros. This year, year-to-date, the stock is up about 50%.
Zara is well known as a fast fashion retailer, with much of its production closer to its European markets than other retailers. Thanks to its factories in Spain, Portugal, Turkey and Morocco, delivery times are reduced and the company can respond faster to visitor demand. .
Grace Smalley, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, said: “Inditex continues to outperform and gain market share, driven by the company’s continued widening gap [ability to protect its market position] and product differentiation and in-store experience from its peers. “
The stock market showed its displeasure with BA’s owner, International Airlines Group (IAG), causing inventories to fall to the current level of around 3. 9% (and up to 4. 4%).
The company had issued an announcement on the market this morning, ahead of an investor meeting, promising a “commitment to pay dividends once our balance sheet and investment plans are secured. “But, according to a Bloomberg report, investors were dissatisfied with the “lack of a concrete timeline. “”.
Nicholas Cadbury, IAG’s chief financial officer, said: “We need to consolidate the sector, but once we have looked at opportunities for inorganic expansion and any excess money we have, we will also look to give it back to our shareholders. “
IAG has paid dividends since 2019, and the dividend was canceled the following year due to the pandemic.
That’s it for me for another day. Alex Singleton will make sure you stay informed all night.
I’ll leave you with a review of the U. S. bond markets, which are not satisfied with any suggestion that interest rates would remain at record highs any longer:
The ten-year yield has fallen back below 4. 4%. Closed” through the bear market trendline of 4,437. . . The next line or resistance is 4. 34 and after that, our target is 4. 05. “- NatAlliance pic. twitter. com/lig26eyC4k
– Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) November 21, 2023
Sales of previously occupied U. S. homes fell in October at their slowest pace in more than 13 years, as loan rates and emerging costs weighed on the housing market.
Sales of existing homes fell 4. 1% last month from September to a seasonally adjusted annual figure of 3. 79 million, the National Association of Realtors said.
That’s slower than the 3. 9 million sales speeds economists had forecast, according to FactSet.
The last time sales fell so sharply was in August 2010, when the housing market was recovering from a severe crisis.
Sales fell 14. 6% from the same month last year. They have fallen for five straight months, held back by emerging loan rates and a limited supply of housing on the market.
In the U. S. , fewer existing homes are selling today than at any time since 2010. The annual rate of 3. 79 million is even lower than the lowest selling point of the 2020 covid closures (4. 01 million). pic. twitter. com/4OKlTAwroa
– Charlie Bilello (@charliebilello) November 21, 2023
A technology founded through an American billionaire has been confirmed to have won a £480 million contract to manage NHS patient data.
The Telegraph was the first to report that the contentious deal on the “federated knowledge platform” to aggregate medical data on fitness is expected to be announced shortly, after a series of delays.
Palantir, the technology founded through Peter Thiel, a donor to the U. S. Republican Party, has long been the front-runner for the deal.
The company, best known for its collaboration with military and intelligence agencies in the U. S. The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services has made a joint bid with professional firm Accenture for the platform, as part of the largest IT contract in NHS history.
Our editor, Laura Donnelly, has the details.
Britain will begin negotiations on a new flexible industrial deal with South Korea as the king welcomes the South Korean president at the start of his state visit.
Her Majesty greeted President Yoon Suk Yeol with a Royal Guard of Honour after arriving in London for a three-day adventure commemorating 140 years of diplomacy between Britain and South Korea, before travelling in a horse-drawn carriage to Buckingham Palace.
Yoon, a conservative who has cited the “polycrisis” of demanding global situations as a reason to seek closer ties with like-minded partners, will appear in parliament today ahead of a state banquet in his honor.
On Wednesday he will meet with the minister and sign an agreement to strengthen diplomatic relations.
Announcing that negotiations on a new lax industry agreement (FTA) would begin on Wednesday, Rishi Sunak said: “I know that a future-proof lax industry deal will only generate more investment, thus keeping my promise to expand the economy and highly help professional jobs.
Wall Street’s main indexes opened lower as investors awaited synthetic intelligence chip leader Nvidia’s quarterly report and minutes from the recent Federal Reserve meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 46. 20 points, or 0. 1 percent, at the open at 35,104. 84.
The s
U. S. stock indexes are forecast to open lower as investors await quarterly effects from synthetic intelligence chip leader Nvidia, which will be released after markets close tonight.
A tech-fueled rally boosted the S
Nvidia is expected to release a new earnings forecast, but attention will focus on the effect of expanding US restrictions on sales of its high-end chips to China.
Stuart Cole, lead macroeconomist at Equiti Capital, said: “The market expects a recovery in earnings expansion in the third quarter, with even higher expectations for the fourth quarter. »
However, given potential headwinds, such as a slowdown in China, the company’s 2024 guidance may be critical to the stock’s long-term performance, he added.
Nvidia shares were flat in premarket trading, while other mega-cap stocks had mixed results.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0. 2%, the S
The German government announced a near-total freeze on new spending on Tuesday, and its rivals said Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, had destroyed the economy and his coalition was “finished. “
Our correspondent James Rothwell in Berlin has the news:
German officials said the freeze was a mandatory reaction to a court ruling last week that blocked government spending proposals for 60 billion euros (£50 billion) of the unspent pandemic budget. Prepare a resolution that plunged the budget into chaos.
The Constitutional Court’s decision to block the use of the budget that the government had earmarked for green projects had far-reaching consequences for the federal budget’s monetary plans.
It also prevents the German government from using a pandemic-era budget to help German corporations compete more in a weak economic environment, according to the Reuters news agency.
Read what the German said about the budget freeze.
Gas fell after Goldman Sachs cut its charge forecast amid crowded-than-expected garage sites.
The European benchmark contract fell 2% to less than €45 per megawatt hour, while the UK equivalent fell by the same amount to less than 114 pence per therm.
This comes as Goldman Sachs has lowered its price forecast for the winter from €47 to €43 and for the summer of next year from €45 to €41.
Samantha Dart, an analyst at Goldman, said falling fuel consumption and higher power generation from renewable energy resources had helped keep costs down this year.
It admitted that risks to winter fuel costs were “skewed to the upside” due to potentially cold weather conditions, shaking or increased energy consumption by consumers.
Readers of the Telegraph business blog are divided into two groups: those who are enthusiasts of the Telegraph Puzzles segment and those who are about to be enthusiasts of the Telegraph Puzzles segment.
We can’t determine whether Jeremy Hunt is a normal player of our Mini Crossword, Cross Atlantic, or games like PlusWord, but he hopes that tomorrow’s Autumn Statement will provide the answers needed to unlock economic growth.
In honour of this, the Telegraph’s Jigsaw Puzzle segment will include a number of themed games that will coincide with the Chancellor’s fiscal event.
Make sure you don’t miss the laugh here. The Autumn Declaration-themed games will be playable tomorrow.
An OpenAI executive says he is in “intense discussions” to unify it after nearly all of the ChatGPT creator’s workers threatened to quit.
Our senior reporter, Matthew Field, has the latest:
The Silicon Valley startup is struggling to ease tensions after its founder Sam Altman was fired 4 days ago, angering staff and investors, who are now preparing for its return.
A memo sent to employees on Monday by Anna Makanju, head of global affairs at OpenAI, who said the company was exploring “mutually agreeable” features with Altman, was first reported via Bloomberg.
It’s not yet clear if this means OpenAI will try to bring M. Altman back to the company after reaching an agreement to sign up with Microsoft.
OpenAI has already named Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear as its new boss; News of his appointment prompted 95% of workers to threaten to resign in a letter to the board on Monday.
Find out how key investors are putting pressure on OpenAI’s board of directors.
Jeremy Hunt had to pay a £7. 5bn interest bill in October alone as higher borrowing prices meant the chancellor spent more than expected servicing the £2. 6bn national debt .
Our Deputy Business Editor, Tim Wallace, has the details:
The monthly charge is 50% higher than the £4. 9bn the Office for Budget Responsibility had expected when it presented its forecast at budget time in the spring, due to higher interest rates and sustained inflation. About a quarter of the national debt is tied to the burden of living.
This is a jump of £6. 4 billion in the same month of 2022 to the Office for National Statistics, and is the largest debt interest payment recorded in October.
At the same time, the Treasury had to send £9. 1 billion to the Bank of England to cover losses incurred on the portfolio of bonds purchased in quantitative easing programs between 2009 and 2021. The backlog peaked at £895 billion.
It has since fallen to £748 billion when the Bank stopped replacing bonds as they matured and sold government securities on the market.
Martin Beck, chief economic adviser at the EY Item Club, said the Chancellor’s main hope is that pressure on debt repayment can begin to ease now that inflation is falling and interest rates may start to fall next year, which may only allow for additional tax cuts.
“Interest rates are higher than expected by the OBR, but they have reached a lower level than feared a few months ago. Markets are pricing in three rate cuts a year, which will reduce interest on debt as well as inflation,” he said. saying.
The British pound rose as the governor of the Bank of England said investors are “underpricing” inflation risks.
Sterling rose 0. 3% against the dollar to $1. 25 after Andrew Bailey said interest rates would remain at peak for an “extended period. “
The British pound rose 0. 2% against the euro to 87 pence.
Bank of England Deputy Governor Sir Dave Ramsden said sectoral inflation is expected to remain above 6% until spring and warned that it will need to fall, especially for headline inflation to reach the 2% target.
He, the Treasury Committee:
It is a very varied sector but it requires a significant amount of money and we know that wages are around 7% for the entire economy.
As the labor market slows, we will see a decline in wages and services.
We expect inflation to decline over the next year.
And he wants to ease policy until next year, because inflation above 6% does not bring headline inflation back to the 2% target.
Andrew Bailey said it was “important for the OBR to be fully engaged in this process,” when asked if he was concerned that the fall would be inflationary.
The governor said the OBR’s involvement ahead of the chancellor’s fiscal event contrasted with the mini-budget presented during Liz Truss’s brief tenure as prime minister.
This triggered a crisis in the pension and bonus market, which led to the fall of his position as prime minister.
Mr Bailey told MPs: “I am glad to hear that we are now in a procedure in which the OBR is involved. “
Bailey told MPs that the government’s pledge to halve UK inflation by the end of the year had nothing to do with the Bank of England’s target.
This comes after the prime minister said last week that the government had “delivered” on its inflation promise, which fell to 4. 6% last month.
Dame Angela Eagle MP requested a Treasury Committee consultation with Bank policymakers: “There have been claims in some places that the Prime Minister is personally guilty of halving inflation, do you agree with that?
Bailey said: “The government and the Prime Minister have pursued a target, it’s our goal, I have to be very transparent about that.
“Any comment I make on this is purely factual, I can tell you where the numbers are, but I can tell you it has nothing to do with our goal.
When asked who was to blame for falling inflation, he replied: “It’s very clear, the Bank of England is to blame for it. »
The Bank of England governor told MPs that policymakers “don’t see a collapse” in borrowing despite the dubious economic backdrop.
Andrew Bailey on the Treasury Committee:
Both in the sector and in the family sector, lately we are seeing some symptoms of a slight recovery in delinquencies and a certain weakening of the demand for credit, although from a low level.
We are witnessing a collapse in the demand for credit or in the capacity of the monetary formula to offer credit.
We’re constantly tracking quantitative tightening, but so far I haven’t noticed any effect that alarms me in terms of the impact on broader credit situations or broader fitness of the business sector or the customer sector. households.
According to Bailey, the increased wage expansion and the greater difficulty in getting their homes back have limited the number of anti-social loan holders.
The governor of the Bank of England also said that tougher affordability tests kept the number of people struggling lower, and claimed there had been “some increase”.
Lieutenant Governor Sir Dave Ramsden added that finalists contact borrowers before their loan contracts end because it is not in their best interest to have to repossess a property.
According to him, the main difference from the credit crisis of the 1990s is the decline in unemployment today, which the Bank forecasts will be just 5 percent, compared to more than 10 percent three decades ago.
Workers at the Cammell Laird shipyard are going on strike over wages and operating conditions, unions have announced.
Unions Unite and GMB said more than 400 employees had voted to strike at the Birkenhead site near Liverpool, which makes the Royal Navy’s Dreadnought submarines and Type 26 frigates.
Workers, including welders, electricians, installers, cleaners and administrative staff, voted by a majority of 96 percent in favor of a strike, after a turnout of approximately 75 percent.
Unite Secretary Sharon Graham said:
Cammell Laird has signed contracts worth millions with the UK government to build its ships, but he believes he can get away with cutting our members’ wages in real terms.
Unite will tolerate such behavior or any attempt by control to intimidate, harass or discriminate against our members.
GMB organiser Albie McGuigan said: “These are professional staff who make important paintings for the Royal Navy and the advertising sector.
Bank of England officials had an exchange with Conservative MP John Baron after he informed them that policymakers were “behind the curve” in raising interest rates.
Governor Andrew Bailey and his colleagues were quick to point out that the Bank of England had raised rates before the U. S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank, insisting that “these are the facts. “
Deputy Governor Sir Dave Ramsden claimed headline inflation was 5. 4% when the Bank began raising rates from record lows of 0. 1% in December 2021, but said “it’s just not true that we were the curve. “
He pointed to facility inflation, which represents 45% of overall inflation, which at the time was 3. 2%, and stated that fuel inflation was 23. 6%.
His colleague Jonathan Haskell said the Bank “sees the underlying figures as a much bigger guide” to the inflation outlook than the headline figures.
Money markets are barely changed, Andrew Bailey warned, investors are “underestimating” how long interest rates will remain high.
Traders will think that the next interest rate cut will come in June and the peak likely in May.
At the same time, the yield on the British 10-year bond fell to 4. 11%.
Bond yields fall when markets expect interest rates to fall in the future.
Markets are “underestimating” how difficult it will be to bring inflation down, Bailey said.
Senior journalist Eir Nolsøe observes the Treasury Select Committee hearing:
The governor of the Bank of England told MPs that market expectations for how inflation would temporarily come down were too optimistic.
He said: “We are concerned about the potential patience of inflation as we move towards 2% and I think the market is underestimating it. »
It comes as the governor warned last night that it is “too early” to communicate on rate cuts despite a more-than-expected drop in inflation in October to 4. 6%.
Interest rates must be raised again to prevent inflation from becoming “stuck” above the 2% target, a hawkish Bank of England official has said.
Catherine Mann, who has consistently voted for steep interest rate hikes since inflation began to rise in 2021, told Treasury Select Committee MPs that “greater rigor is vital to solidifying our commitment to the 2% target. “
In his annual pre-hearing report, he stated:
To me, the prospect of more persistent inflation implies the need for tighter economic policy.
While I recognize that the stance of financial policy has begun to become restrictive, it has only recently and not so restrictively.
Dr. Mann added that when it comes to keeping market interest rate expectations in check, “actions speak louder than words. “
His colleague Sir Dave Ramsden, deputy governor of the Bank of England, said he would “not rule out” further rate hikes and that “restrictive policy for an extended period would probably be warranted”.
In early November, Sir Dave voted with a majority in the Monetary Policy Committee in favour of keeping rates unchanged, while Dr Mann advocated a quarter-point increase.
The governor of the Bank of England said the sharp fall in inflation in the UK in October was “good news”, although it was not unforeseen for policymakers.
Andrew Bailey’s MPs at a Treasury Committee session:
This is surprisingly smart news; We were largely waiting for news.
As we indicated in the Monetary Policy Report, we expect to see a bit more of what I would call the easing of last year’s external shocks.
However, we may not have another one like last week; This is the last of those basic effects to appear.
Food costs are expected to fall further, he added.
The Customer Value Index (CPI), a measure of inflation, slowed to 4. 6% last month from 6. 7% in September, official figures showed.
According to the governor of the Bank of England, inflation may simply be due to the dangers of the tight British labor market and the Middle East conflict.
Appearing before the Treasury Select Committee, Andrew Bailey said it was “reasonable” to keep interest rates at 5. 25% in the face of “bullish” dangers to inflation.
He said:
My opinion is that it is reasonable, based on what we have observed so far, to keep the rates where they are.
However, I have to say, and this is where I emphasize, that the threat remains bullish.
He added: “We don’t think the hard work market is working as successfully as it used to. This is one of the reasons why we are seeing more wage tension than we thought.
Deliveroo riders will be represented through a union for the purposes of collective pay bargaining, the UK Supreme Court has ruled.
The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) had tried to form an organization of Deliveroo delivery drivers to negotiate wages and with the company, what is known as collective bargaining.
The union first denied the permit in 2017 on the grounds that passengers were not “workers” under UK labour law and has since lodged a series of appeals.
The IWGB took its case to a British court in April, arguing that the refusal of the IWGB’s application to be identified through Deliveroo for negotiations over pay and situations amounted to unlawful interference with human rights corridors.
But the Supreme Court unanimously rejected the IWGB’s appeal.
Announcing the court’s decision, Judge Vivien Rose said Deliveroo delivery staff had an “employment relationship” with Deliveroo and were entitled to mandatory collective bargaining.
Royal Mail has struck a deal with TikTok for its parcel delivery service on the social network’s grocery shopping platform.
TikTok Shop sellers will be able to integrate the Click service
Patrick Nommensen of TikTok Shop said: “Partnering with Royal Mail will make life easier for our merchants and bring huge advantages to consumers through optimisation and the fulfilment process. »
Nick Landon, Chief Commercial Officer at Royal Mail, said:
People love shopping online and on social media, and TikTok Shop is a wonderful example of this.
People also like to receive deliveries through their Royal Mail mail.
This gives them the confidence to re-order and everyone from this growth.
We are excited to collaborate with the TikTok store, help them grow, and provide exceptional service to all of their customers. Sellers can rest easy knowing that their deliveries are in smart hands.
The rise of the economy due to long-term ailments has come under the supervision of the government, said Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall.
Ella Sky News:
It is very appealing to see Rishi Sunak denounce the fact that millions of people have been left out of work due to long-term illness, saying that it is a scandal that they have been dismissed. Well, who did that?
Being unemployed is bad for people. It’s bad for business and bad for the economy, but it happened under his leadership.
And we have yet to see the scale of ambition we want for Britain to recover.
Kendall accused the government of “desperately wiping its hands for the last thirteen years for which it is responsible. “
. @leicesterliz criticises the government for “the increased number of people leaving work due to long-term health problems” and says “ambitious reform” is needed to get people back to work. ? https://t. co/PAiZ4D1jU3 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic. twitter. com/lsl7nPnjtO
– Sky News (@SkyNews) November 21, 2023
Ofcom has fined Shell Energy £1. 4 million for breaching the regulator’s regulations after failing to inform some 73,000 more people about the termination of their contracts.
The watchdog said Shell Energy had committed a “serious breach of our hedging rules. “
The company, which supplies broadband as well as fuel and electricity, said it was “extremely disappointed” that it had disappointed its consumers.
Ofcom investigators said they had exposed a series of failings at the company. Regulations require other people to be informed about when their broadband contracts expire and what deals they can opt into instead.
Some consumers were not informed at all about the end of their contract, others won or the information was incomplete, Ofcom said. In total, 72,837 consumers were affected between March 2020 and June 2022.
AO World benefited again and brought forward its outlook for the year as employers focused on their monetary results.
The electric power warehouse made a half-yearly profit of £13 million after suffering a £12 million loss last year by eliminating unprofitable sales and introducing tariffs on all deliveries.
The company also tightly controlled its advertising and marketing spending and reduced warehouse costs by 18% to £25. 5 million.
As a result, bosses raised the company’s pre-tax profit forecast to between £28 million and £33 million, up from previous estimates of around £28 million.
First, the stock rose as much as 6. 6% but has since fallen 3%, with the company also reporting a 12% drop in its turnover to £482 million in the six months to September.
The Chancellor is facing stagnant UK labour force output as he tries to come up with an autumn declaration “for growth”.
Output fell 0. 1% in the three months to September, according to initial estimates from the Office for National Statistics.
It reported that its working hours were down 0. 3% from a year earlier and only 2. 5% more than before the pandemic.
The initial estimate of UK output based on employees for the third quarter (July to September) of 2023 is 0. 1% lower than the same quarter last year. It uses our adjusted labour market estimates and takes into account revisions to the national accounts. ➡️ https://t. co/jfq4DUvddz pic. twitter. com/hZ8npIlIuY
– Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) 21 November 2023
The FTSE 100 index declined slightly as lower-than-expected government borrowing boosted sterling.
The large-cap index fell 0. 2%, while the mid-cap index gained 0. 2%; according to official knowledge, Britain borrowed less than expected through the OBR’s budget forecasters ahead of this week’s autumn statement.
Sterling rose 0. 3% against the dollar on the news, adding pressure to the major export benchmark, where most companies post earnings in dollars.
Oil prices also fell in early trading, hurting energy stocks, reversing strong gains made in the past two sessions, as investors have turned cautious ahead of an OPEC meeting on Sunday where the manufacturing organization possibly talk about intensifying source cuts.
Shares of energy heavyweights fell as much as 1%, tracking oil prices.
Cranswick shares rose 4. 3% to the FTSE 250 high after the meatmaker forecast an annual profit at the high end of current market estimates.
The company said it expects a “very busy” Christmas as demand for UK red meat and poultry remains resilient.
“Now they can communicate about tax cuts” after the economy has turned around, Treasury Chief Secretary Laura Trott said.
When asked about the common adjustments to National Insurance, he told Times Radio:
A year ago we were in a very, very complicated situation.
The Prime Minister and the Chancellor have had to make incredibly complicated decisions, decisions that I don’t think any government would need to make, and no Conservative government would need to make.
But we have reached a milestone. Inflation has fallen by half. It’s vital for other people at home. We know how complicated things have been.
Real wages have been, for three months, ahead of inflation; Again, this greatly influences how others feel.
Now we can communicate about tax cuts and about growth, and that’s what we’re going to do.
Trott added that the resolution to freeze tax thresholds, which has pushed others into higher tax brackets, is “really difficult. “
The FTSE index fell at the open in a tight session ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States.
The benchmark UK stock index fell 0. 2% to 7,483. 86, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 index gained 0. 2% to 18,605. 24.
Michal Stelmach, senior economist at KPMG UK, said the latest borrowing figures show it will be more about balancing the books with public finances than halving inflation.
He said:
The short-term results in this year’s fiscal scenario will likely prove unsustainable over the next five years.
While we expect the OBR to lower its borrowing forecast for 2023-2024 to around £22bn, the prospect of persistently higher interest rates will more than offset any medium-term windfall.
Despite recent strength in tax revenues, we expect a slowing labor market and slowing inflation to limit revenues going forward.
The current plans are already accompanied by a restrictive fiscal policy that will especially weigh on the expansion next year. Added to this is the ongoing financial adjustment and erosion of excess savings, leaving families vulnerable to a further squeeze on disposable income.
As part of the autumn statement, the Chancellor will most likely claim that he has exceeded his budget mandate on debt by five years.
However, such forecasts may be unrealistic if they are based on consolidation plans that are not followed. In fact, borrowing has been higher than expected in each of the past 20 years, underscoring the gap between fiscal pragmatism and politics. reality.
Although the Treasury borrowed more than expected in October, economists said the excess “should be of too much concern to the Chancellor,” according to economists.
Ruth Gregory, Deputy Lead Economist at consultancy Capital Economics in the UK, said:
We continue to expect the OBR to reduce its borrowing forecast for 2023/24 to around £16bn. And the OBR will most likely judge that the Chancellor has a decent cushion against his major fiscal rule, perhaps around £25bn.
On the eve of the elections, the chancellor will not be able to resist the temptation to reveal a pre-election glow.
That said, even if Hunt spends the maximum of the cash at his disposal, much of the planned £39 billion (1. 3% of GDP) adjustment, revealed after the Truss/Kwarteng mini-budget, will apply.
Therefore, it will not be a primary fiscal easing, but a partial reversal of the planned adjustment.
And any pre-election impact in 2024 will almost be followed by large tax increases in 2025 after the election.
This fiscal tightening in 2025 is another explanation for why when interest rate cuts occur, they will be faster and larger than investors have been anticipating lately.
Although public finances are in a better state than expected, official knowledge recommends that everything is better.
The £14. 9bn of net borrowing by the public sector and banking groups in October was above consensus forecasts and the OBR’s March forecast of £13. 7bn.
This came as public sector net debt reached £2. 6 trillion, according to the Office for National Statistics, representing around 97. 8% of the UK’s annual gross domestic product (GDP).
This figure is 2. 3 percentage points higher than in October last year and remains at levels last seen in the early 1960s.
Public sector debt stood at £2,643. 7 billion at the end of October 2023, provisionally estimated at around 97. 8% of the UK’s annual gross domestic product. ➡️ https://t. co/3pz6P3drkT pic. twitter. com/hoUqfxruOo
– Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) 21 November 2023
Outsourcing giant Capita has announced it could cut up to 900 jobs as part of its cost-cutting efforts.
The company, which collects television license fees from the BBC, plans to save £60m a year from the first quarter of next year.
The organisation said it “continues to industrialise in line with its expectations” having won contracts totalling £2. 9 billion so far, above its £2. 6 billion total. British pounds for 2022.
Capita, which also manages outsourced IT for a major component of the NHS, posted a pre-tax loss of £67. 9 million for the first six months of the year, compared with a profit of £100,000 a year earlier.
Managing Director Jon Lewis said:
We are announcing the accelerated realisation of the efficiencies announced in our half-year effects with an increase from £20 million in overhead relief to £60 million on an annualised basis from the first quarter of 2024.
As a component of the organizational review underpinning the program we’re announcing today, we continue to identify more profitability spaces and will pursue them in 2024.
While government borrowing fell short of expectations in the first seven months of the monetary year, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said:
We have delivered on our commitment to halve inflation, but we will need to continue calling on the Bank of England to reduce inflation to 2%.
Being guilty of the nation’s finances.
Tomorrow in my fall, I’ll focus on how we can spur business investment and get others back to work to generate the expansion our country needs.
Loans were £16. 9 billion less than expected official figures in the first seven months of the year, raising hopes that the chancellor will announce tax cuts in tomorrow’s autumn return.
Non-bank public sector borrowing amounted to £98. 3 billion in the first seven months of the year, £21. 9 billion more than at the same time last year, according to the Office for National Statistics.
However, this is £16. 9 billion less than the £115. 2 billion forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in March.
The company will release revised borrowing figures on Wednesday, on the occasion of the Chancellor’s autumn statement.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said he would deliver a proposal aimed at “boosting business investment” after being “responsible for the country’s finances”.
Ruth Gregory, deputy lead economist at consultancy Capital Economics in the UK, said the latest insights would mean Hunt “will not be able to resist the temptation to reveal a pre-election event”.
However, during the month of October, overall net borrowing of the public sector, the public sector banks, stood at £14. 9 billion, up from £14. 3 billion last month and ahead of analyst forecasts of £12. 8 billion.
This is the second-highest borrowing in October since monthly records began in 1993.
Net borrowing of the public sector, public sector banks, was £14. 9bn in October 2023, £4. 4bn more than in October 2022 and the second highest borrowing in October since monthly records began in 1993. ➡️ https://t. co/ 3pz6P3drkT picArraytwitter. com/9e5524XQ9g
– Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) 21 November 2023
Thank you for joining mi. Se Chancellor Jeremy Hunt expects to announce tax cuts in the autumn after official figures showed borrowing fell short of estimates in the first seven months of the monetary year.
Non-bank public sector borrowing stood at £98. 3 billion in the period, £16. 9 billion less than the £115. 2 billion forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in March.
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Asian stocks hit fresh two-month highs following a rally on Wall Street, while the dollar languished near its lowest point in 2-1/2 months on expectations that the U. S. Federal Reserve will most likely stop raising interest rates.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan rose 1% to 510. 11 after touching 511. 05, the highest level since September 18.
The index is up 7% on the month and on track to post its biggest monthly gain since January.
Tokyo stocks ended up falling as investors adjusted their positions and locked in gains following recent earnings and the U. S. Thanksgiving holiday.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0. 1 percent, or 33. 89 points, to 33,354. 14, while the broader Topix index fell 0. 2 percent, or 4. 81 points, to 2,367. 79.
China’s blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0. 6%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0. 8%, as reports of Beijing’s new stimulus rollout for the asset sector increased the appetite for threats.
On Wall Street, the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index hit its highest point since April 2022 on Monday, rising 1. 1%, boosted by a rise in Microsoft and Nvidia shares.
Meanwhile, the S
The yield on the globally influential 10-year U. S. Treasury note fell 0. 43%.
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