Bank of England draws closer to end of interest rate-cutting cycle after latest vote pred 2 urama in 45 minutami Another reduction expected next year but monetary policy committee is deeply divided over inflation prospectsBusiness live – latest updatesRachel Reeves has reason to be cheerful. After last month’s budget, the Bank of England cutting interest rates will come as an early Christmas tonic for the chancellor by lifting some of the pressure on hard-pressed borrowers.The City had been heavily betting on a sixth cut since August last year, and Threadneedle Street delivered with a reduction in the base rate from 4% to 3.75%. The question, however, is how much further the Bank can go to bring to an end its current easing cycle, after a painful hump in inflation over the past year. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Leeds £2.5bn tram scheme delayed to late 2030s after government review pred 2 urama in 50 minutami Business case must be submitted for mass transit system with lines connecting Leeds and Bradford before work continuesThe opening of the long-awaited Leeds tram system has been pushed back by at least two to three years, after a government review of the £2.5bn project.The West Yorkshire combined authority (WYCA) said its mass transit scheme, including new tram lines connecting Leeds and Bradford, would now be completed in the late 2030s. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Bavarian pensioner lays trap to catch phone fraudsters after his gold pred 2 urama in 53 minutami Second success for ‘exemplary’ 85-year-old who had already rumbled bogus police officer demanding €60,000An 85-year-old Bavarian has managed – twice – to ensnare telephone fraudsters trying to shake him down for cash and valuables.The German pensioner received an urgent call on Tuesday from a man posing as a police officer telling him a family member was in distress – a common trick used against elderly people. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US prices continued to rise despite Trump claims they are ‘rapidly’ falling pred 3 urami Longest federal government shutdown meant data was only collected for second half of NovemberUS prices rose 2.7% in the year to November, according to federal data released a day after Donald Trump claimed they were falling “very fast” on his watch.The latest consumer price index, released on Wednesday morning, was down from 3% in September, and short of economists’ expectations of about 3.1% for last month. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Crown court backlog nears 80,000 in new record high pred 3 urami in 2 minutama Data published on Thursday showed the open caseload was 79,619 at the end of September, up from 78,329 at the end of June.(London News)
US announces more than $10bn of arms sales to Taiwan pred 3 urami in 3 minutami Package includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, and has drawn an angry response from ChinaThe maps that show how China’s military is squeezing TaiwanThe Trump administration has announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10bn that includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, drawing an angry response from China.The state department announced the sales late on Wednesday during a nationally televised address by president Donald Trump, who made scant mention of foreign policy issues and did not speak about China or Taiwan at all. US-Chinese tensions have ebbed and flowed during Trump’s second term, largely over trade and tariffs but also over China’s increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing has said must reunify with the mainland. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
