Will British Gas Price Hike Push Bank To Increase Rates?
While the consensus for this week's Bank of England meeting has for some time been a 'no change in interest rates' stance there is a growing concern that the recent rise in energy prices by British Gas may force the Bank to increase rates to combat inflation. Even though the increase has nothing to do with inflation, and more to do with the price of oil and energy prices in general, there is a feeling that the Bank of England may look to stamp their authority on the situation.
Many observers believe that the Bank has been looking for an excuse to raise rates and the move by British Gas may be the chink of light they were looking for. By claiming that they are looking to combat inflation this will take some of the pressure off the Bank and allow them to step forward as the people's champion. As the immediate direction of the economy is still uncertain this prolonged period of confusion needs to be sorted sooner rather than later.
A sharp rise in interest rates would hit the consumer very hard and push many businesses over the edge but it may allow the economy to bottom out and start to rebuild.
Share this..
Related stories
UK fraud costs £600 per member of the population!
Figures revealed by the National Fraud Authority suggest that fraudulent activity in UK is costing each and every person in the country around £600. It is estimated that fraud accounts for £30 billion of losses each and every year with the vast majority coming from tax scams while around £10 billion is lost in the private sector. But how accurate are these figures? Despite the fact that the...
Read MoreEnergy bills set to rise in the future
In another blow to UK consumers and businesses, it has been revealed that UK energy prices will have to rise in the future in order to "pay for investment into nuclear energy". It is no secret that the UK government has been looking to expand the nuclear side of the power generation system in the UK with little or no success to date. However, a government minister has confirmed that the cost of in...
Read MoreCBI suggests finance sector job losses on the rise
The CBI has today come out to warn that there will be a significant increase in finance related jobs losses over the coming months. This is an area of industry which has attracted much positive and negative attention over the last few months but it is a sector which seems to be coming under more and more pressure. While many observers will sit back and mock the loss of jobs in the traditionally hi...
Read MoreRoyal Bank of Scotland fears EU ruling on state aid
As we covered in one of our recent posts, the European Union is looking at state aid given to the Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds bank by the UK government. While it seems almost certain that both companies will be asked to reduce their market share in the UK by around 20%, the Royal Bank of Scotland fears that the EU may use the UK issue as a yardstick and a warning for others.
T...
Stamp duty holiday set to end in UK property market
The UK government is set to end a stamp duty holiday on properties valued at between £125,000 and £175,000 which have been exempt from the 1% stamp duty since September 2008. The scheme has already been extended once but many people believe that as of 31 December the extension will end and average priced properties in the UK will again attract additional stamp duty charges.
While...