Keeping up with the news can be tricky. Even the most eagle-eyed observer can miss a vital news story. We think being up-to-date on economic developments is key to the success of your startup.
Every Wednesday we provide the top 10 key bits of business news from the past week.
Airline industry profits ‘to jump 12% in 2016’
The International Air Transport Association has announced that global airline industry profits are expected to jump by almost 12% in 2016.
Lower oil prices will help airlines achieve profits of £27.3bn this year. North American airlines will account for more than half of the industry’s profits. However, the report also predicts a slowdown in passenger demand.
Shoppers’ credit card use unaffected by Brexit
A trade body representing the major banks says UK shoppers have been unfazed by the EU referendum result when spending on credit cards.
Credit card use for purchases in shops has been highlighted by the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) as the key to rising borrowing on cards. There were 168 million purchases on credit cards in July, the first full month since the Brexit vote. This was higher than in June and the average of the previous six months.
More than 1.5 million families are in extreme debt
According to a report by the TUC and Unison, around 1.6 million families in the UK are living with “extreme problem debt’.
They say that’s due to a drop in wages with millions paying out more than 40% of their income on repayments. Between 2012-2015 total unsecured debt went from £48bn to £353bn.
Post-Brexit property sales remain steady
Property buyers went through with sales in July irrespective of any uncertainty in the UK housing market following the Brexit vote.Yet the market is not moving at a pace seen a year ago, with 16,000 fewer homes sold in July compared with the same month in 2015.
A total of 104,200 properties were sold in July, the first full month since the UK’s vote to leave the EU.
Tourism ‘will hold up’ after Brexit
Tourism in the UK will “hold up well” in 2016 after the Brexit vote but fewer jobs than expected will be created in the longer term.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) is predicting growth in the sector of 3.6% in the UK over the year. This is higher than predicted global growth in the sector of 3.1%.
Investors pull £5bn from UK stock market funds after EU referendum
Investors pulled £5.7 billion out of UK-based stock market funds, preferring to put their cash into safe havens due to concerns over Britain’s vote to leave the EU.
Investors had already pulled more than £3 billion out of all UK funds in June.
Pound sterling slump after Brexit boosts tourist spending in UK
Tourists’ spending has increased significantly following UK’s vote to leave the EU as visitors made the most of the post-Brexit slump in sterling. International tax-free shopping spending rose 7 per cent overall in July, compared to the same month last year, according to retail tourism analyst Global Blue.
Visitors from Japan, Indonesia and the US accounted for the biggest increase with spending by Japanese visitors up 96 per cent compared to the same period in 2015.
Infrastructure spending falls by 20%
Spending on infrastructure in the UK has declined sharply since the country voted to leave the EU/
The first full month following the Brexit vote saw a decline in the infrastructure sector, with the value of construction contracts for July falling by 20 per cent to £1.5 billion.
Pfizer to buy cancer drug maker Medivation for $14bn
Pfizer announced on Monday that it will acquire cancer drug company Medivation in a deal worth nearly £10.6bn.
Both company’s boards have unanimously approved the deal; with Pfizer saying the takeover will propel the company into a leading position of oncology.
HSBC thinks Theresa May will go on a £50bn spending splurge
Economist at HSBC believe that the government could borrow an extra £50bn to go on an infrastructure spending spree in a bid to pep up the economy.
Theresa May and Chancellor Philip Hammond have both already scrapped George Osborne’s plan to abolish the budget deficit by 2020, giving them room to hike borrowing.
