The government is worried that would-be first-time buyers are not getting onto the housing ladder and those frustrated purchasers complain they are worse off than past generations. But was it really easier to buy a home in the past? Let’s look at the facts.
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George Osborne has two current bugbears. First that the banks won’t lend money to British business; second that UK companies have so much cash they should spend it. The chancellor needs to work out wants he wants.
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Housing was a leading indicator of the last recession; is it now heralding the double dip? Chancellor George Osborne could find the property market undoes his best efforts to keep the economy growing.
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If credit-card rates are at a 12-year peak but card usage is at record levels, why do we think interest rates are a tool for controlling the economy and inflation? Consumers appear insensitive to rates.
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When will UK interest rates rise? Not before the general election but they could well be increased before the end of the year. And if there is a run on the pound, the pressure will be for higher rates sooner rather than later.
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There has been a stream of stock markets for small companies over the past three decades, but with the latest, the Alternative Investment Market (AIM), in decline, is it time for another go at this problem?
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It’s a funny old world where Tesco (LON:TSCO) is the answer to a monopolies problem.
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Instead of shackling lenders, the reform of the mortgage market should concentrate on regulating borrowers. They were just as greedy and ignorant but liable to lose much more than the banks.
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What’s worse, low wages or no wages? Shouldn’t the minimum wage rise due in October be suspended for people prepared to accept less if the company pledges to employ more?
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Have the laws of supply and demand been repealed? Interest rates have come down, yet borrowing has fallen.
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