UK central bank warns that households will be squeezed this year as inflation rises faster than previously forecast * Carney: Real wages will fall this year * Carney: Inflation better than unemployment * UK interest rates unchanged after 7-1 vote * Bank warns that higher inflation will hit households * Growth forecast for 2017 cut 4.46pm BST Over in Athens, Greek finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos has felt the full force of protests today with communist-aligned demonstrators occupying his office ahead of next week’s vote on yet more austerity measures demanded by creditors in return for fresh bailout funds to avert default. Helena Smith reports: Barging their way into the finance ministry on Syntagma Square, scores of communist-aligned protestors hung a massive banner from the building’s façade exhorting Greeks to “rise up” and participate in the general strike that will coincide with parliament legislating further cuts and tax increases in exchange for emergency bailout loans next week. The protest, which kicks off a week of work stoppages, strikes and street demonstrations ahead of the vote, kept Tsakalotos locked out of his sixth-floor office for most of the day. Standing in front of the finance ministry, Yannis Hiotelis, a retired bank employee said his pension had been already been cut 60 percent. “How do they expect us to survive?” he asked of prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ leftist-led government. “Austerity only leads to unhappiness, disillusionment, bitterness and ultimately friction. We are talking about outright pillage. This government has made a mockery of its own so called leftist politics.” The protest came as the International Monetary Fund appeared to roll back on speculation that it would sign up to the Greek bailout programme before a comprehensive debt deal had been found for the debt-stricken country. Greece is expected to be the focus of talks when the G7 meet over the next few days. 4.26pm BST Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG, said: Today has been all about the UK, with a batch of hugely uninspiring data points giving way to a surprisingly volatile Bank of England meeting. The FTSE has suffered alongside its European and US counterparts, with a relatively stable day turning sour this afternoon. Gold producers Fresnillo and Randgold Resources are the top performers of the day, and it looks like investors are battening down the hatches for now. The downturn in UK economic data over recent months has been there for all to see, yet this morning provided a perfect overview of how British industry is struggling of late. Negative construction output, manufacturing production and industrial production in March goes to show how tough the current business environment is for firms. However, probably the most damning number was the trade balance for goods which showed that despite the boost of a weaker pound, we are seeing consumers continue to focus on imports over domestic products. Continue reading...
 |
| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.theguardian.com |
