Royal Bank Of Scotland

Faced with high unemployment, very low inflation and faltering growth momentum, the ECB has decided to act.ECB decides now is the time for actionThe European Central Bank cut its main interest rate...

The Eurozone recovery, already anaemic, has run out of steam without much impact on the region’s unemployment rate. Joblessness in the Eurozone equals more than half of Spain’s population....

Last week’s annual get-together of central bankers didn’t reveal a clear way forward for gauging labour market slack or when interest rates will rise – topics that have recently...

The UK labour market is more flexible than previously thought. The Bank of England now thinks employment can keep rising without causing inflation. So there’s no rush for rates to rise now. The...

The UK and the US are enjoying rosy growth outlooks. And so their central banks are considering when to start raising rates. But in the Eurozone growth is barely visible and inflation is worryingly...

For over a year now we’ve been spoiled by seemingly ever-improving UK economic data. That can’t last forever, so a slight cooling of some indicators, such as a slowdown in the growth of...

Six years on, UK economic output has at last surpassed the pre-crisis peak. Output would now be over 10% higher if the economy had followed the path of a typical post-World War II recession.It’s...

The demand for more labour and a surge in self-employment continues to drive the UK unemployment rate down. House price gains remain strong and inflation is still low. It’s been the story of the...

Confidence is up amongst UK firms. Profitability and the prospects for investment are improving – more positive news for the UK recovery. But it’s not all hunky-dory. The export sector is...

Last week provided a little food for thought on the UK economy. House prices are heating up but housing transactions are cooling. Productivity growth remains poor, giving little scope for wage rises....

The Bank of England last week announced measures that would check the housing market in future if household indebtedness rises towards levels that would threaten financial stability. We’re not...

The UK economy is at variance with itself. There’s little doubt about the strength of the recovery, increase in employment or the pace at which London house prices are rising. Yet productivity...

Last week, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said that the first rise in Bank Rate, “could happen sooner than markets currently expect.” Cue much alarm. Here, we examine what he...

As excited eyes turn towards the World Cup in Brazil, all the action last week was in Frankfurt, home of the European Central Bank (ECB). It tried again to accelerate growth and boost inflation....

China is synonymous with strong and secure economic growth. Indeed, so entrenched is this sentiment that commentators talk of Chinese exceptionalism; i.e.; that the usual rules of economics...

Mayor of London Boris Johnson once joked that his policy on cake eating was simple. He is both pro having it and pro eating it. UK borrowers may not be so fortunate. Minutes from the Bank of...