However, the latest Rics survey shows a slight rise in buyer demand [...]]]> A growing proportion of surveyors and estate agents believe that economic uncertainty is holding back housing market activity.This was considered to be a bigger reason than the availability of mortgages and worries about house price falls, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) said.

However, the latest Rics survey shows a slight rise in buyer demand and sales in November with price changes continue to show regional variations.

New buyer enquiries “increased modestly” for a third consecutive month, the Rics survey showed.

The average number of sales per surveyor branch climbed to 15.4 in the three months to the end of November, compared with 15 a month earlier. This was the highest level since last September.

Slightly more surveyors expected sales to increase in the coming months than the number who expected sales to fall.

However, these slight rises were coming after a sustained period of subdued activity. More surveyors expect prices to fall in the coming months, than the number who expected prices to rise.

Annual house price changes

• England: down 0.2%
• Wales: down 0.5%
• Scotland: down 1.5%
• Northern Ireland: down 12.1%

“A meaningful recovery still seems some way off,” said Alan Collett, Rics’ housing spokesman.

On a regional basis, London registered a rise in annual house prices of 3.9%, whereas prices dropped by 4.6% over the same period in the north east of England.

It says the programme, which costs £400 million a year, is unsustainable.

The Support for Mortgage Interest [...]]]> Mortgage lenders have raised concerns about potential changes to the way support is given to those struggling to pay their mortgage.The government is reviewing the Support for Mortgage Interest Scheme, where homeowners who lose their jobs may receive financial help.

It says the programme, which costs £400 million a year, is unsustainable.

The Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) scheme, which helps people receiving some benefits, operates across the UK.

Under the SMI, those who lose their jobs receive financial help with mortgage interest payments. This comes 13 weeks after losing their job, a timescale previously cut from 39 weeks. However, the assistance only lasts for up to two years.

Chancellor George Osborne said in this year’s Budget that the scheme would operate until at least January 2013.

Support for Mortgage Interest is a UK scheme aimed at helping those with a sudden change of circumstances make mortgage payments rather than be thrown out of their home.

Some people on benefits are eligible and can receive help to make mortgage interest payments 13 weeks after losing their job.

Now Lord Freud, the minister for welfare reform, has launched a review of the scheme.

These changes could see a charge put on the property of anyone who receives the assistance, which is recovered when the house is sold.

The suggestion was welcomed by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Building Societies Association (BSA).

Two other proposals have raised worries from the CML, which represents those who give home loans.

The first is a plan to make the payment to the homeowners themselves, rather than straight from the government to the lender. Lord Freud said the current system did not encourage people to get on top of their own finances.

The CML is also concerned that the qualifying period may return to 39 weeks after somebody has lost their job.

The BSA is calling for the amount received in SMI payments to reflect the actual rate the borrower is paying, rather than a set standard rate.

The typical home now costs £165,914, the lender [...]]]> House prices fell slightly in August with values expected to stay the same or drift modesty lower for the rest of 2011 Nationwide says.The building society said that property prices were 0.6% lower in August than in July, and 0.4% down on the same month a year ago.

The typical home now costs £165,914, the lender said.

It also warned that prices could be pushed down further if more workers were laid off.

“For some time now the residential property market has been moving sideways, as weak demand for homes co-existed with a situation where relatively few homes were coming on to the market,” said Nationwide’s chief economist Robert Gardner.

“A further fall in employment would be likely to upset the relatively delicate demand-supply balance and put downward pressure on prices.”

However, he said that threats to UK economic growth meant that interest rates were expected to remain on hold until well into 2012, providing support for homeowners and domestic spending.

The Nationwide data is based on a sample of the lender’s own loans during the month.

Other house price surveys include figures from the Land Registry which, although they lag behind the Nationwide data, provide a regional breakdown of prices.

The most recently published Land Registry figures showed that prices in the North East of England fell by 8.8% in the year to July. There was also an annual drop in prices in every area of England and Wales, except London.

Unemployment among 16 to 24-year-olds stood at 963,000, with the jobless rate for [...]]]> UK unemployment fell by 17,000 in the three months to the end of February to 2.48 million- the first drop since last autumn official figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate of unemployment in the UK had fallen to 7.8%.

Unemployment among 16 to 24-year-olds stood at 963,000, with the jobless rate for young people remaining above 20%.

The number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance rose by 700 in March to 1.45 million, the ONS said.

It added that the number people in employment rose by 143,000 to 29.23 million, compared with a pre-recession peak of 29.56 million recorded for the three months to the end of May 2008.

While the number of unemployed men fell by 31,000 in the three months to the end of February, the number of jobless women rose by 14,000.

Although the number of unemployed 16 to 24-year-olds rose by 12,000 over the quarter to 963,000, there had been fears the number could breach the one million mark.

The rate of unemployment among 50 to 64-year-olds was unchanged at 4.8%, while the rate for those over 65 fell to 1.9% from 2.5%.

Within the overall unemployment figures there were wide regional variations, with the North East generating 11,000 extra jobs but the East of England seeing 15,000 job losses.

The ONS figures showed that average earnings rose by 2% in the year to February, while earnings excluding bonuses grew by 2.2%.

Both measures were well below the rate of inflation, as measured by the CPI index, which stands at 4%. Analysts said this provided further evidence of the squeeze consumers were feeling in their spending power.

Despite the fall in the number of unemployed, analysts warned that the jobless number was likely to rise again as the government is starting to introduce spending cuts designed to bring down the budget deficit.

This [...]]]> UK economic growth- the main driver for property prices- will be slower over the next three months than previously predicted, according to a forecast from the OECD think tank.
In a survey of the G7 economies, the OECD estimated that UK gross domestic product would expand at an annualised rate of 1% in the second quarter.

This compared with an OECD forecast in November of 1.3%.

The OECD said the US economy was expected to expand by 3.4%, followed by France at 2.8% and Germany at 2.3%.

Japan’s economy would be held back by the disaster that struck the country last month, the OECD said.

Last month, the organisation cut its UK growth forecast for 2011 as whole to 1.5% from 1.7% , saying the economy faced “significant headwinds” such as spending cuts and rising commodity costs.

However, the OECD also called the UK government’s cutbacks “ambitious and necessary”, saying they were needed in order to achieve a sustainable recovery.

The latest OECD report said that the G7 group of the richest nations, excluding Japan, was expected to see average annualised growth of 2.9% in the second quarter of 2011.

Japan, however, is likely to suffer a drop in GDP in the second quarter as a result of the devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami.

The OECD estimates that Japan’s economy might contract by between 0.2% and 0.6% in the first quarter of 2011, and by between 0.5% and 1.4% in the second quarter.

The Japanese authorities themselves estimate the disaster wiped between 3.3% and 5.2% from its annual growth, the OECD pointed out.

Despite economic improvements for the G7 bloc as a whole, the OECD warned that unemployment and inflation remains a problem.

The CEBR calculated that UK house prices rose by 6.4% in 2010 compared with 2009.

However, regions [...]]]> Higher inflation and weaker employment prospects will lead to a fragile economic recovery, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) suggests.
This would push down house prices in 2011, followed by a slow paced recovery in subsequent years, it said.

The CEBR calculated that UK house prices rose by 6.4% in 2010 compared with 2009.

However, regions most prone to public sector job cuts would lead a fall in the value of properties in 2011, it predicted.

Although homes would become more affordable for first time buyers, the CEBR said demand for mortgage lending would remain low as householders took a low risk approach by repaying debts and rebuilding savings.

More relaxed lending criteria from banks, and greater consumer confidence would see some recovery, starting with a 2.3% increase in prices in 2012. This would accelerate to a 5.5% rise in 2015, it predicted.

Long term house price predictions are generally very difficult, owing to the number of variables involved in the calculation.

No commentators are predicting runaway house prices in 2011, but opinion is divided over whether they will rise or fall compared with 2010 prices.

Most observers are certain that mortgage borrowing, and completed sales, will stay at the very low levels seen currently.

Quantitative Easing (QE) is the Bank’s policy of putting new money into the financial system to try [...]]]> Last week the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to keep interest rates on hold with no increase in Quantitative Easing.But re-mortgager asks with rising unemployment and government cutbacks- should more be done to stimulate the economy?

Quantitative Easing (QE) is the Bank’s policy of putting new money into the financial system to try to stimulate the economy.

Mr Posen- a member of the MPC wants an extra £50bn to be added to QE programme.

Economists have warned that while putting up interest rates may help reduce inflation, it would also restrict the spending power of homeowners with tracker mortgages and people repaying other debts – further endangering the recovery.

Consumers’ spending power is already being squeezed, because pay packets are not keeping up with inflation – with a report by Vocalink on Thursday suggesting that the growth of take-home pay had fallen sharply in the past three months.

Consumers have also been faced with record petrol prices in recent weeks, and VAT rose from 17.5% to 20% on 4 January pushing up the cost of many goods and services.

Recent data has suggested that manufacturing is the only section of the UK economy to be showing signs of strength.

Official figures released on Thursday showed that growth in car production and food processing had helped manufacturing increase by 0.6% in November – a little faster than expected. However industrial output was slower than predicted, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Meanwhile, business group the CBI said the Bank would come under pressure to increase rates later this year “as its anti-inflation credibility comes under greater pressure”.

Figures show that the number of homes repossessed dropped from 10,600 in the last three months of 2009 to 9,800 in the first quarter of 2010. This was also lower than the 13,200 of the same [...]]]> The number of homes repossessed in the UK fell by 7.5% in the first three months of 2010, according to lenders.

Figures show that the number of homes repossessed dropped from 10,600 in the last three months of 2009 to 9,800 in the first quarter of 2010.
This was also lower than the 13,200 of the same period a year ago, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said.

But many homeowners remained vulnerable to falling into arrears, the CML said.

It added that it could revise its forecast of 53,000 repossessions in 2010 in the summer, describing it as “pessimistic” if there are no further economic shocks.

The number of homes repossessed was at its lowest in two years, down 7.5% on the previous three months and 26% lower than the first three months of 2009.

Low interest rates were the key to the dropping figures, allowing people – even those who have lost their jobs – to stave off the threat of repossession owing to low mortgage bills.

The figures also reveal that the proportion of mortgage holders getting into payment difficulties also fell in the first three months of the year.

The number of home loans in arrears equivalent to at least 2.5% of the outstanding mortgage balance stood at 186,300 in the first three months of the year.

This was down from 196,400 in the last quarter of 2009, and below the 206,800 of the first quarter of last year.

But the figures gave “no cause for complacency”, according to CML director general Michael Coogan.

Just 629 households have been helped under the mortgage rescue scheme in England, separate figures released by the Department for Communities and Local Government show.

When it was launched under the previous Labour government in January 2009, ministers said that up to 6,000 households could be helped by the scheme.

This scheme allows people to sell their property to a local authority or housing association and remain in it as a tenant, or to sell part of the home in a shared equity deal to reduce mortgage payments.

Another 1,849 applications were ongoing by the end of March. In these cases, lenders would hold off any repossession action.

The CML said government support for homeowners had helped keep a lid on repossessions, which are much lower than during the housing slump of the early 1990s.

It has called on the new government to maintain a commitment to those in difficulty – writing a joint letter with Shelter and Citizen’s Advice to the new Chancellor, George Osborne.

This would be particularly important as the government introduces cuts to tackle the fiscal deficit, lenders said.

The number of people out of work increased by 43,000 between December and February, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The number of “inactive” people in the economy, classed as those who are not working because they are ill, [...]]]> UK unemployment rose in February to over 2.5 million- the highest level in more than 15 years.

The number of people out of work increased by 43,000 between December and February, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The number of “inactive” people in the economy, classed as those who are not working because they are ill, studying or looking after children, also rose again, by 110,000 in the quarter, to reach a record high of 8.16 million.

Future unemployment figures could also be affected by the public sector, which is likely to shed nearly 600,000 workers over the next five years no matter which party wins the general election.

During the recession, public sector employment grew while private employers lost staff.

Economists predict that more than 250,000 jobs will be cut in local government , 100,000 in the NHS, 50,000 in quangos and at least 50,000 in the Civil Service, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

The level of unemployment is a key figure for the UK housing market as it is an indicator of the number of people who can afford their current mortgage and any future new mortgage debt.

Despite job cuts across the industry continuing at a sharp rate, a growth in new orders fuelled an upturn in construction activity and fresh optimism among the sector, according to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).

The CIPS/Markit Construction [...]]]> Construction activity grew in March for the first time since 2008 with a resurgence in housebuilding.

Despite job cuts across the industry continuing at a sharp rate, a growth in new orders fuelled an upturn in construction activity and fresh optimism among the sector, according to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).

The CIPS/Markit Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index, which measures construction activity, rose to 53.1 points in March, up from 48.5 in February and the first month it has grown since February 2008.

After two years of contraction, the rise was led by an increase in commercial property and housebuilding, which recorded a seventh rise in successive months.

Yet civil engineering, which is driven primarily by public spending, remained in decline and actually increased its pace of contraction during March.

David Noble, the chief executive of CIPS, warned against the longevity of the apparent turnaround. “The recession hit construction the hardest and because the industry is operating from such a low base, this upturn may be short-lived,” he said.

The data is a welcome lift for the departing Gordon Brown, who yesterday formally asked the Queen to dissolve Parliament, setting the general election for May 6.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said that unemployment had not been as bad as had been feared. Many workers had proved to be flexible, accepting pay cuts and part-time work.

As [...]]]> UK unemployment figures published on Wednesday showed that the number of people unemployed in the UK had fallen again, leaving the jobless rate at 7.8%.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said that unemployment had not been as bad as had been feared. Many workers had proved to be flexible, accepting pay cuts and part-time work.

As a result – with interest rates low – borrowers have managed to keep up with their monthly mortgage payments, which has kept a lid on arrears and repossessions.

However, the CML said new lending was still expected to be limited in 2010 as banks rebuilt their finances. This was likely to mean limited mortgage availability for more “risky” borrowers, such as those without a large deposit and first-time buyers.

However, the Bank of England’s Trends in Lending report, published at the same time as the CML figures, found that prices had dropped for those who could get a mortgage and who offered a significant deposit.

“In recent months, the major UK lenders reported some downward pressure on mortgage pricing due to increasing competition to lend,” the Bank of England report said.

The general election is also likely to have an effect on the housing market.

The election is going to play on the minds of many prospective buyers and those people who are in a position to buy and would probably buy now if there was not a general election just around the corner, may well hold off making a decision until early summer.

The Bank of England report said that demand for other forms of lending, such as personal loans and credit cards, remained subdued as people looked to reduce their unsecured borrowing.

Interest rates on this lending remained high compared with the Bank rate as there was a heightened risk of people defaulting, the report said.

The number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance rose by 24,400 to 1.61 million in August — the highest since May 1997 and the eighteenth monthly rise in a row, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The [...]]]> British unemployment hit 2.47 million in July, its highest level since 1994, as 210,000 more people lost their jobs.

The number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance rose by 24,400 to 1.61 million in August — the highest since May 1997 and the eighteenth monthly rise in a row, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The recession’s impact on young people was also underlined by jobless totals among 16 to 24-year-olds reaching 947,000 — the highest level since ONS records began in 1992.

The jobless rate among young people also hit a record 19.7 per cent, meaning one in five is looking for work.

Unemployment is set to rise despite indications that British economy has returned to growth.

Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, said yesterday that there were signs that the British economy was growing again though he added that the strength of recovery remained “highly uncertain”.

Earlier in the week, a European Commission study concluded the economies of Britain and Continental Europe would return to growth by the end of the year while last week a study from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, a leading think-tank, said Britain was climbing out of recession.

However, both warned that, following the emergence from recession, a period of stagnation could follow.

The recent rise in property values is [...]]]> House prices will not return to the peak reached in autumn 2007 for at least another five years, according to Ernst & Young’s Item Club. 

The Dow Jones was up 62.13 points at 8,801.15 at midday in New York, the S&P; 500 was up 8.57 at 947.72, and the Nasdaq was up 11.48 at 1,864.56.

A Labor [...]]]> Wall Street ticked higher in early trades as the latest report on jobless claims turned out to be better than expected and retail sales improved.

The Dow Jones was up 62.13 points at 8,801.15 at midday in New York, the S&P; 500 was up 8.57 at 947.72, and the Nasdaq was up 11.48 at 1,864.56.

A Labor Department report showed first time jobless benefits claimants fell to 601,000, better than expectations. The Commerce Department said retail sales increased 0.5 per cent in May after two months of declines.

In the UK, RBS was the top riser among a buoyant banking sector on the back of news that it plans to hive off unprofitable business customers to a separate division. The sector in general enjoyed a rally on a note from JPMorgan that it remains overweight on investment and credit banks.

RBS was up 1.8p, or 5.75 per cent, to 39.7p. Barclays wasn’t far behind, up 16p or 5.55 per cent to 304.50p.

The FTSE 100 index closed up just 25.12 points higher at 4,461.87 as banking sector gains were offset by falls in commodities.

Oil companies retreated after recent gains, despite oil prices rising for a third day, above $72 a barrel and hitting an eight-month high in New York on the back of a larger-than-expected drop in US crude inventories.

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President Obama said that the move would stop the company being broken up, as it prepared to make the world’s largest industrial bankruptcy filing.

The United Auto [...]]]> The US Government will take a 60 per cent stake in General Motors (GM) as the carmaker files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection today, officials of the Obama Administration revealed.

President Obama said that the move would stop the company being broken up, as it prepared to make the world’s largest industrial bankruptcy filing.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union will take 17.5 per cent in shares and the governments of Canada and Ontario will lend $9.5 billion (£5.9 billion) and get 12 per cent equity and $1.7 billion debt in return.

The US Government will provide an additional $30 billion in financing to get the giant through bankruptcy.

“We intend for this to be a permanent resolution of the GM situation,” an official said early this morning, emphasising that there would be no further taxpayer cash. This is it for GM on a go-forward basis.”

GM will close 11 facilities and idle a further three. The US Government expects GM to be out of bankruptcy in 30 to 60 days.

The UAW will be able to put in one independent director, as will Canada and Ontario, but Obama Administration officials said that they expected a significant clear-out of the existing GM board by the time the company emerged from bankruptcy.

Mr Obama is expected to emphasise today that the Government will take a backseat, “hands-off” role on everything but corporate governance issues.

No government employee will serve on the board or work at the company and the Administration plans to offload its stake “as soon as practicable”.

An official said: “Our goal is to promote strong and viable companies that can quickly be profitable and contribute to economic growth and jobs without goverment involvement.”

The path to a bankruptcy was cleared when 55 per cent of GM’s unsecured creditors agreed at the weekend to accept equity of up to 25 per cent in a restructured group in return for giving up $27.2 billion of debt.

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The inflation report is the first since the introduction of QE in March and the report was eagerly awaited to assess the inflation projections in the UK. Mr King was downbeat in his assessment of the UK economy [...]]]> The UK’s Quarterly inflation report by the Bank Of England emphasising a slow and uncertain recovery.

The inflation report is the first since the introduction of QE in March and the report was eagerly awaited to assess the inflation projections in the UK. Mr King was downbeat in his assessment of the UK economy and emphasized the uncertainty in the economy stating “it would be extremely unwise for anyone to claim they know what the future is to hold” and he also intimated that there would be no end to credit easing and interest rates will remain low for the foreseeable future.

So not particularly cheery from Mr King and this certainly takes the shine off yesterdays “green shoot” declarations from various economic pundits for the UK- in fairness a conservative approach is sensible to avoid the market trading on sentiment rather than reality.

In other data from the UK we saw unemployment jump to its highest level since 1996 in a leaked report yesterday afternoon….the number of UK unemployed jumped by almost a quarter of a million in the first 3 months of the year taking the total levels to 2.2 million.

However manufacturing production fell by just 0.1% compared to expectations of a drop nearer to 1%- continued improvement in manufacturing production will be essential to drive growth and stop the rot of unemployment levels surging higher still…

Elsewhere, we saw China post a higher than forecast retail sales number but lower industrial output data….good news that the Chinese consumer is buying but they will hope to see an improvement in output soon. .

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In comments to a panel discussion on April 20, extracts of which were published on the “Mortgage Introducer” industry website, Ms Barker’s [...]]]> Kate Barker, the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member, was quoted today as saying it was right for banks to be cautious about lending in the face of rising unemployment and housing repossessions.

In comments to a panel discussion on April 20, extracts of which were published on the “Mortgage Introducer” industry website, Ms Barker’s future colleague, David Miles, due to join the MPC in June, said banks should also be required to hold more capital.

“Once the dust settles, it will be sensible for institutions to have substantially more capital than was thought necessary before the credit crunch,” Mr Miles was quoted as saying.

Ms Barker was quoted as saying that lenders “are right to be extra careful today in light of future uncertainties, with unemployment and repossessions continuing to rise”.

UK house prices have lost a fifth of their value in little more than a year as the credit crunch prompted banks to cut back on lending.

BoE policymakers have said restrictive lending practices pose the greatest threat to an economic recovery in Britain.

But borrowing costs for households and businesses are still high even though the central bank has slashed official interest rates to a record low of 0.5pc and started buying assets to get cash flowing around the economy.

A sharp slowdown in the economy and rising unemployment are also making people more reluctant to take on debt.

Barker also said the government should be flexible in its house-building targets, saying they looked very difficult to meet.

“The existing target of 240,000 new homes per year by 2016 is difficult, if not impossible, to meet,” she said.

“When the housing industry was booming, we still only achieved 200,000 new homes in one year, which raises the prospect of prices rising sharply again in the future.”

Mr Miles said the banks’ unwillingness to offer high loan to value ratios in mortgages for first-time buyers would mean people would get onto the home-ownership ladder later in life.

“Reduced loan-to-values will bring about an increase in the age of the average first-time buyer, as we return to a culture of saving for deposits,” he was quoted as saying.

He said this would probably mean the private rental sector would need to expand through private buy-to-let landlords or professional investors.

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The number of people out of work rose by 177,000 to 2.1 million in the three months to February, official figures showed today, as Alistair Darling prepared to outline his “Budget for jobs.”

New jobs data [...]]]> Jobless numbers swell to the highest since Labour came to power in 1997 as 73,700 more people joined the dole queue.

The number of people out of work rose by 177,000 to 2.1 million in the three months to February, official figures showed today, as Alistair Darling prepared to outline his “Budget for jobs.”

New jobs data from the Office National Statistics (ONS) was much better than expected with the number claiming benefits rising by 73,700 to 1.46 million in March. The figure is a major improvement on February when the number of people claiming jobseekers’ allowance rose by a record 138,400 to 1.4 million.

The figures were unveiled as Mr Darling prepared to unveil a Budget that will include a £2.5 billion package to guarantee work or training for every young person out of work for more than a year.

Thousands more Civil Service jobs will be lost over the next four years as departments struggle to find £45 billion in “efficiency savings” by 2013-14.

Alistair Darling will claim to be introducing a “Budget for jobs” today with a £2.5 billion package that includes a guarantee of work or training for every young person out of work for more than a year.

The Chancellor will also back recommendations by five external advisers to find savings by cutting office space, selling property, privatising assets and sharing purchasing contracts across the Government.

The advisers recommend savings starting at £5 billion a year and rising to £15 billion annually by 2013-14. Suggestions include cutting office space by 30 per cent, through hot-desking, halving the size of the Land Registry and preparing the Royal Mint for whole or partial sale.

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Yesterday we saw unemployment levels rise to 8.6% as the powerhouse of Europe comes under real pressure- this will heighten the cause for more action from the ECB tomorrow.

Today, news from [...]]]> German retail sales for February have fallen 0.2% against the consensus of a rise of 0.2% this morning reinforcing the weak sentiment in Germany.

Yesterday we saw unemployment levels rise to 8.6% as the powerhouse of Europe comes under real pressure- this will heighten the cause for more action from the ECB tomorrow.

Today, news from G20 participants will dominate although there is a raft of data from the US later the most interesting of which will be the ISM survey. The question that needs to be answered is, does a scenario of very easy monetary conditions translate quickly into an improvement in underlying confidence.

I think that given what has gone before, this will not readily happen and that this type of statistic will disappoint for some time to come.

Overnight, the Japanese Tankan was released. The results were mixed but one has say, erred on the weaker side. Business sentiment for both manufacturing and non-manufacturing companies were marginally worse with large and small enterprises both anticipating conditions to deteriorate further during the coming 12-months. the Nikkei remained buoyed however by yesterday’s announcement of additional stimulus measures to be pushed through.

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Figures from the Office of National Statistics released today show 138,400 people joined the dole last month, pushing the number [...]]]> UK unemployment last month jumped at the fastest pace since records began, driving the number of Britons without work to above 2 million for the first time since the Labour Government came to power in 1997.

Figures from the Office of National Statistics released today show 138,400 people joined the dole last month, pushing the number of unemployed to 2.03 million.

In a blizzard of terrible data, the number of people who began claiming jobless benefits in January was revised higher to 93,500 from 73,800. City economists had expected a jump of 84,800 for February and the month’s increase is the fastest since records began in 1971, and leaves the unemployment rate at 6.5pc.

“Horrendous,” George Buckley, an economist at Deutsche Bank, said of the numbers. “This is probably going to persist for a while as long as that kind of growth continues.”

“Sharply rising unemployment, along with slowing income growth, seems highly likely to increasingly depress consumer spending over the coming months,” said Howard Archer, chief UK economist at Global Insight.

The UK is likely to lose more than a million more jobs over the next 12 months, according to a report from consultancy company Oxford Economics, with the north and the Midlands hit hard. Economists are worried that rising unemployment will sharpen the recession as those still in work cut their spending.

The Bank of England’s David Blanchflower, the most prominent economist to deliver an early warning about the threat of recession, said last month that unemployment could top 3 million, or 10pc in 2010. He recommends the government spends billions of pounds on public works to create jobs.

Rising unemployment is being mirrored across the world’s major economies, with an unemployment rate of 7.9pc in France, 7.2pc in Germany, 6.7pc in Italy and 7.6pc in the United States.

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