Shares rise by more than 30 points as China reports record economic growthCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe FTSE 100 has closed above 7,000 for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic triggered a collapse in global markets last year, driven by rising hopes for the world economy after record growth in China.The index of leading UK company shares ended the day up 36...
Sharp rise in consumer spending, falling unemployment claims and strong earnings from largest companies boost marketsUS stock markets hit record highs again on Thursday boosted by a sharp rise in consumer spending, falling unemployment claims and strong earnings from some of the largest US companies.The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 256 points in morning trading, passing 34,000 for the first...
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsLatest: FTSE 100 closes at one-year high near 7,000 pointsDJIA and S&P 500 at new peaksUS retail sales surged 9.8% last monthJobless claims lowest since first wave of pandemicEarlier:GSK shares jump as hedge fund Elliott builds stakeMid-cap FTSE 250 index hits peakCity vacancies jump 70% this quarterOnline job vacancies up; UK restaurant...
From trade wars and deglobalisation to ageing populations and populist politics, there’s no shortage of inflationary threats on the horizonThere is a growing debate about whether the inflation that will arise over the next few months will be temporary, reflecting the sharp bounce-back from the Covid-19 recession, or persistent, reflecting demand-pull and cost-push factors.Several arguments point...
Innovation by companies such as Amazon, Alibaba and Tencent presents big challenges In 2009, in the midst of the global financial crisis, Paul Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chair, famously observed that the only socially productive financial innovation of the preceding 20 years was the automated teller machine. One wonders what Volcker would make of the tsunami of digitally enabled financial...
The GOP says the $2tn infrastructure plan is too big. Democrats say Trump cut taxes and ‘spent like a drunken sailor’The response was as uniform as it was predictable. Related: Republican ‘attacks’ on corporations over voting rights bills are a hypocritical sham Related: On the House review: John Boehner’s lament for pre-Trump Republicans Continue reading...
If the president pushes through his proposed investments, he will revitalise the economy and make America great againThe dramatic scale and ambition of Joe Biden’s public spending and tax plans came into sharper focus last week. The emerging picture is breathtaking. As expected, the US president aims to repair the damage done by the pandemic. But huge, longer-term investments in jobs, education and...
Jeff Hyman and Chris Baldry respond to an article on how the US is strengthening its unions. Plus Keith Flett on the role Labour could playMartin Kettle’s review of Joe Biden’s approach to economic regeneration (In the US, Joe Biden is backing the unions. Britain can only look on in envy, 7 April) was welcome, but we question whether it went far enough in its endorsement or reach. The success of...
Rolling live coverage of business, economics and financial markets as US stocks hit record highUK construction expands at fastest pace since 2014 All-time high for US S&P 500 after Fed gives support Australia considering financial support for GFG steel companiesAsos triples profits as pandemic proves positive 3.11pm BST A central conundrum facing economists and politicians around the world is...
After Biden’s stimulus, the era of small states, low taxes and balanced budgets suddenly looks to be over A wealth tax to help pay for the cost of fighting the pandemic. An international agreement to prevent a race to the bottom on corporate tax. An insistence that recovery from the second severe crisis in just over a decade should be green and inclusive. A conviction that governments should spend...
Jamie Dimon says in shareholder letter economy on edge of ‘Goldilocks moment’ but upbeat news comes with caveatsThe US is about to enter a post-pandemic boom, according to JP Morgan boss Jamie Dimon, even though it has been “torn and crippled by politics, as well as racial and income inequality.” Related: Banks pledge to fight climate crisis – but their boards have deep links with fossil...
President proposes environmental measures and tax risesMississippi governor cites Green New Deal, a GOP bogeyRepublicans opposed to Joe Biden’s proposed $2tn infrastructure bill claimed on Sunday that it was effectively a partisan tax hike that allocated too much money to electric vehicles and other environmental initiatives. Related: Florida faces 'imminent' pollution catastrophe from phosphate...
To European eyes, the $2tn infrastructure plan may not be exceptional, but for America it seems revolutionaryFrom a European perspective, Joe Biden’s plans for a $2 trillion boost to spending on infrastructure is not a radical statement of intent. The money will be spread over eight years and raise the federal budget on capital projects by about 1 percentage point a year.And the US is starting from...
Under Trump, every week was infrastructure week but nothing got done. His successor is avoiding the big sell. It’s smart politicsJoe Biden is embarking on the biggest government initiative in more than a half-century, “unlike anything we have seen or done since we built the interstate highway system and the space race decades go”, he says. Related: Biden’s $2tn infrastructure plan aims to ‘finally...
Officer killed in attack identified as William ‘Billy’ EvansFull report: one officer and suspect dead after car rams into barrierCapitol police lifts lockdown two hours after vehicle attackVaccinated Americans can travel, CDC saysEconomy adds 916,000 jobs as vaccine rollout fuels hiring boomSign up to receive First Thing – our daily briefing by email 1.13am BST Thanks for reading along today....
Unemployment at 6% as businesses reopen and hire workersData shows 30% of Americans have had at least one vaccine shotThe US labor market went on a hiring spree in March, adding 916,000 jobs amid the fast-paced coronavirus vaccine rollout. Related: Biden set to talk up economic resurgence after promising jobs news – US politics live Continue reading...
The president is trying to show America – and the world – that government is still capable of doing big thingsPresident Joe Biden is governing like a man in a hurry. Three weeks ago, he persuaded the US Congress to pass his $1.9tn Covid stimulus package. This week, he began the task of building congressional support for an even larger jobs and infrastructure renewal plan. The package is worth at...
Liquidation of Bill Hwang’s Archegos Capital Management sparked a fire sale of more than $20bn assetsOpinion: banks will be prompted to check hedge fund exposuresFinancial regulators across the world are monitoring the collapse of the New York-based billionaire Bill Hwang’s personal hedge fund.The sudden liquidation of Hwang’s Archegos Capital Management sparked a fire sale of more than $20bn...
If economies recover and stimulus turbocharges pent-up demand, a lot of bank credit could result from central bank moneyThe increasing risk of a return of inflation in the US and Europe is beginning to galvanise debates among economists. One key source of inflation fears is the expectation that, once the Covid-19 pandemic has been overcome by vaccines, pent-up demand will explode in an orgy of consumption....
