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Wage growth has slipped to 2.8%, official figures show, as unemployment falls. No comment yet.
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The car firm said its Solihull factory would now be used to build new Range Rovers and Range Rover Sports.
Graham Watson's insight:
Bad news for the local economy - with JLR moving the manufacture of the Land Rover Discovery to Slovakia, from Solihull. Negative multiplier, anyone?
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Factory output dropped 1.4pc in April compared to March, indicating the economy got off to a bad start to the second quarter of the year.
Graham Watson's insight:
Ooops.
Where is the UK economy heading? Discuss.
Could future examination questions really ask this sort of thing? Or might they look at how we use data.
The latest datasets about the UK economy aren't entirely one thing or another. Which reminds me of a New Zealand bowler, called Bob.
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Pumping £5bn into a new plant in north Wales as a way to fight climate change is a solution at odds with the rest of the world, says environment writer Fred Pearce
Graham Watson's insight:
The Guardian doesn't seem to make much of Britain's latest supply-side policies. This time, it's the commitment to build new nuclear capacity that's under intense scrutiny.
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This go-ahead is the worst decision taken by a UK government in modern times, says Simon Jenkins, Guardian staff columnist
Graham Watson's insight:
Simon Jenkins argues against the expansion of Heathrow.
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Amazon is ploughing further investment into the UK by creating 2,500 jobs in a nationwide hiring spree.
Graham Watson's insight:
Good news for the economy: Amazon is still hiring. Another 2,500 jobs - but might you question the types of job being created? And are they indicative of underemployment?
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British farmers say they are facing a shortage of workers to pick fruit and vegetables as recruitment companies say they can't find enough to fill vacancies.
Graham Watson's insight:
I suspect you heard it here first - however, that doesn't mean that it isn't newsworthy. Brexit has had an adverse effect upon the supply of European fruit pickers willing to come to the UK.
Of course, this has both Macro and Microeconomic effects - and I hope that you've already thought about what the likely implication of this is for the labour market for fruit pickers, and, by definition, the price of strawberries, for example. But what if the domestic labour supply is highly inelastic, because people don't wat to work as fruit pickers?
And what of the wider macroeconomic costs if this also applies to other sectors dependent upon migrant labour?
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Ministers say "the time for action is now" with MPs set to vote on expansion in the coming weeks.
Graham Watson's insight:
Plans to expand Heathrow have been given the ministerial go-ahead although, given the time it's taken to get that far, the notion that "the time for action is now" is laughable.
Thus, campaigners on both sides will swing into action - those in favour emphasising the productivity benefits and those against the environmental costs. It will not be easy squaring this particular circle, not least because of the difficulties associated with monetising both benefits and costs.
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Ministers reach initial agreement with Japanese firm Hitachi over new Wylfa plant
Graham Watson's insight:
The Guardian notes that the announcement that the UK is planning to invest in a nuclear power station on Anglesey indicates a change of tack as regards energy policy. The interesting issue here is that the investment will require taxpayers money, something that is controversial in current circumstances.
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Energy secretary Greg Clark tells MPs the UK government is considering investing in Wylfa Newydd
Graham Watson's insight:
Good news for the UK's electricity generating capacity and, by definition, good news for the supply-side too.
That said - be warned - price elasticity of supply is very low in the sector.
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Treasury chooses only man on the shortlist to join the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.
Graham Watson's insight:
The Bank of England have selected another member of the MPC - Male Policy Committee? However, far from blaming the Bank, I has to say that I side with Diane Coyle, who offers a typically sensible assessment that the appointment speaks of a wider problem, and should be seen as such.
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Editorial: The growth in e-commerce is just one reason why well-known retailers are struggling. Taxing online firms is not the whole solution – but it is a start
Graham Watson's insight:
Simpler Guardian solution to the high street's current woes: a fairer tax system for online retailers, whose online presence is largely untaxed.
One downside - if such changes were straightforward, they would have already been implemented. And the first mover, faces the biggest risk of all - get the taxes wrong and some stores might leave, and it will also allow other nations to refine their tax systems in relation to the first mover.
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Business activity fails to recover as much as forecast from ‘beast from the east’
Graham Watson's insight:
The Guardian writes about the fate of the British economy post-Brexit. And revels in its distress. |
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Downturn evidence mounts as poll has employer pessimism at highest for six years
Graham Watson's insight:
Do I detect the slightest hint of glee emanating from Guardian Towers? I think so.
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Weak figures prompt a fall in the pound as expectations of an imminent rise in interest rates recede.
Graham Watson's insight:
Ah, the interconnected nature of macroeoconomic variables: the pound falls in response to disappointing economic data, and the market view that there's little prospect of an immediate rise in interest rates.
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After years of engineering upgrades, the stage was set for a vastly improved service: instead, two franchises are crippled
Graham Watson's insight:
The Guardian looks at the railways - attempting to work out what has gone wrong with the sector. What should have been a time of triumph has become a farce.
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Northern MPs should not vote for a third runway if it pushes back plans to revitalise our neglected rail system, say Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, and Richard Leese, leader of Manchester city council
Graham Watson's insight:
More critical comment about the expansion of Heathrow, this time from our friends in the North, Andy Burnham and Richard Leese, who argue that the expansion of Heathrow might have a significant opportunity cost.
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Two-thirds of its UK workers have found new jobs since the liquidation, National Audit Office says.
Graham Watson's insight:
The National Audit Office does great work - and this is its latest instalment: a report into the collapse of Carillion.
Rarely, I quote the opening two sentences: "The collapse of construction giant Carillion will cost UK taxpayers an estimated £148m, the National Audit Office has said. There will also be wider costs to the economy, Carillion's customers, staff, the supply chain and creditors, the NAO said in a report."
Who won't be bearing the cost? The former Directors and auditors of Carillion. Draw your own conclusions.
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Farmers concerned by Michael Gove’s recent environmental overtures welcome Defra vow
Graham Watson's insight:
More on Brexit and farming, with the government promising to maintain profitable farming in the UK post-Brexit. But is there any real substance to this, or is it merely an attempt to reduce the cost of heating polytunnels?
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Faster than expected growth in the UK's key services sector renews talk of a rise in interest rates.
Graham Watson's insight:
Make of this what you will...
Lots of intertwined macroeconomic variables, allowing for the drawing of relatively few conclusions.
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Builders get back to work after bad weather earlier this year, but new orders continue slide
Graham Watson's insight:
More on the current slowdown in the construction sector, suggesting that the state of the high street has a role to play.
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Both petrol and diesel jumped 6p a litre in May as oil increased and the pound weakened, the RAC says.
Graham Watson's insight:
I'll put this here - the inflationary implications of this are perhaps the most significant consideration here. However, the article flags up the fact that there are two factors driving inflation. Demand-side and supply-side factors are both at play - and you should be able to draw a diagram to show this.
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Every region has been hit, says GMB – with London, Scotland and north-west worst affected
Graham Watson's insight:
The changing nature of the UK labour market is flagged up by this Guardian article that highlights the fact that manufacturing employment has declined by 600,000. Of course, at the same time, the total number of jobs has increased, so it might be argued that this is of little consequence.
However, again, it's an interesting example of the importance of sources - this study was undertaken on behalf of a trade union, the GMB, who have a vested interest in the sector because it's among the most heavily unionised.
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Car output rises on the back of investment in new models, but the industry's trade body repeats Brexit concerns.
Graham Watson's insight:
More push me, pull me. Cars sales fluctuating - down in March, up in April.
One of the dangers of looking at a snapshot of an economy's health.
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Two former members of Bank of England’s interest rate-setting committee examine why UK growth lags its EU rivals
Graham Watson's insight:
The Guardian's monthly tussle between David Blanchflower and Andrew Sentence. One wondets which of them is more in tune with the Guardian's editorial tone. |
C'est plus ca change, as they say 'en France' and as far as regards unemployment in the UK. That said, the slowing of wage growth - even if it is only a blip - seems to contradict the idea that the labour market is tightening.