Inflation

Global policymakers are battling elevated inflation caused largely by runaway energy bills following last year's invasion of Ukraine by major oil and gas producer Russia.

UK interest rates have been raised for the 12th time in a row in a further attempt by the Bank of England to slow the rising cost of living, increasing the Bank's base rate from 4.25 to 4.5 per cent.

EU officials are already discussing halting exports of sensitive technologies to eight Chinese companies over suspicions they are selling them to Moscow.

Australia's Labor government said on Wednesday the billions in cost-of-living relief unveiled in the federal budget for families and businesses will not worsen inflationary pressures and put more pressure on the central bank to lift rates further.

Markets are looking ahead to Wednesday's release of key consumer price data

"Making money off your home is ideal for people that don't have much time and want to generate cash to help with their bills," says Greg Wilson, CEO and co-founder of Quotezone.co.uk.

The Bank of England and its global counterparts have ramped up interest rates to tackle sky-high inflation.

U.S. stocks turned sharply lower and benchmark Treasury yields dropped on Tuesday as disappointing earnings and soft economic data stoked recession fears, sending investors fleeing riskier assets for safe havens.

In 2017-18 the figure was less than 500,000.

Just when it looked like we reached a turning point in the fight against inflation, figures from last-month show its impacts are still biting retailers. Inflation has taken food prices 8.9% higher than this time last year.

As UK CPI figures show a slight ease in inflation, businesses in the hospitality industry face a tough year ahead with food prices persistently high.

Although overall inflation has cooled to 4.3 percent in March, food inflation remains stubbornly high at around 10 percent year over year.

Sunak's Conservatives and the main opposition Labour party are jockeying for position ahead of a general election expected next year.

British businesses reported their busiest month in a year and consumers turned more confident.

Over a third of the organisations across the UK's critical national infrastructure (CNI) anticipate a rise in cybercrime as a direct result of the current economic crisis.

The dollar strengthened on Wednesday, lifted by rising Treasury yields, though the pound gained against the greenback after British inflation stayed above 10% in March and put more pressure on the Bank of England to keep raising rates.

Britain was the only country in western Europe with double-digit inflation in March after it fell less than expected, official data showed on Wednesday, bolstering bets that the Bank of England will raise interest rates again in May.

A hike in expected US inflation over the next year comes ahead of next month's federal reserve decision on interest rates. Meanwhile, OPEC cuts increase the price of oil.

Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said on Thursday that the latest data on the economy, including a stagnation of gross domestic product in February, is "somewhat disappointing" even if it remains better than forecast by the BoE late last year.

The Office for National Statistics reported that the "prices of food and non-alcoholic drinks rose at the fastest rate in more than 45 years in the 12 months to February 2023."

Sainsbury's, Britain's second-largest supermarket group, on Tuesday began offering lower prices on more than 300 items to the 18 million members of its Nectar loyalty scheme, rivalling a similar initiative at market leader Tesco.

A total of 153 pubs shut in the first quarter compared with 104 during the first three months of 2022

The International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday that lurking financial system vulnerabilities could erupt into a new crisis and slam global growth this year, but urged member countries to keep tightening monetary policy to fight persistently high inflation.

Despite the tough economic challenges that have rattled the UK in recent years, opportunities are ripe for UK SMEs to innovate and flourish like never before.

As both businesses and individuals suffer from the high cost of living and inflation of 10.4 per cent, employers can support their employees in many ways without breaking the bank.

A combination of sticky high interest rates and lacklustre global growth could push a number of emerging economies that are facing soaring refinancing needs into debt difficulties next year.

Global growth almost halved last year to 3.4 percent as the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine rippled through the world economy.

England and Wales are home to nearly four million Muslims, and just under 40 percent of them live in the most deprived areas, according to census data released last year.

The hospitality sector says energy price hike of £7.3 billion is unsustainable in the wake of reduced government support, as it also faces reduced consumer spending

European inflation presents a mixed bag, with eases in inflation when energy and food prices are included in measures, but persistence when excluded.