United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Real Gross Domestic Product
Gross Domestic Product, Chained, Quarterly Annualized Change, %, SA
Real Gross Domestic Product measures the change in the inflation-adjusted value of all goods and services produced in the economy. It comprises private consumption and investment, inventory buildup, government spending and net exports. Markets watch this indicator to gauge the strength and composition of growth.
United Kingdom
Unemployment Rate
Unemployment Rate, Aged 16 and Over, %, SA, Updates Monthly
The Unemployment Rate measures the percentage of the labor force currently not working but actively seeking employment. Markets monitor the unemployment rate to assess the cyclical health of the economy and the likelihood that wage demands may increase inflationary pressures.
United Kingdom
Claimant Count Change
Monthly Change in Unemployment Claims, Thousands, SA, Updates Monthly
The Claimant Count Change records the monthly difference in the number of people claiming unemployment‐related benefits. The series has been used as the main indicator of labour market conditions in the United Kingdom since the 1970’s and figures are derived from records of claimants held at Job Benefit Offices. ‘Claimants’ include the severely disabled claimants, but exclude students seeking vacation work and the temporarily stopped.
United Kingdom
Consumer Prices
Consumer Price Index, Annual Change, %, SA, Updates Monthly
The Consumer Price Index is a measure of the change over time in the average prices paid by consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. As the most widely used measure of inflation, changes in the index are closely followed by policymakers, financial markets, businesses, and consumers. The Office for National Statistics reports both an ‘All Items’ number that includes all categories in the calculation basket, and a ‘Core’ number that strips out highly volatile food, energy, alcohol, and tobacco prices.
United Kingdom
Trade Balance
Total Trade Balance, 12-month moving average, billions GBP, SA, updates monthly
Measures the difference in value between imported and exported goods and services over the reported period. A positive number indicates that more goods and services were exported than imported – generating a trade surplus – and a negative number indicates a deficit. Trade imbalances may reflect fleeting differences in growth rates or more permanent factors in the composition of growth or the endowment and price of natural resources.
United Kingdom
Policy Rate
Bank of England Bank Rate, %
The Bank Rate is an overnight interest rate that the Bank of England targets in order to influence monetary variables in the economy, including consumer prices, exchange rates, and credit growth. The Bank adjusts the target for the Bank Rate on eight fixed dates each year.
United Kingdom
Money Supply Growth
M4 Money Supply, Annual Change, %, SA
M4 Money Supply, sometimes known as a “broad money aggregate”, is a measure of outstanding currency that includes notes and coin, funds in bank accounts: sterling deposits, commercial papers, bonds, repo trades, estimated holdings of sterling bank bills and other categories. Markets don’t typically respond directly to reported changes in M4, but growth in the money supply can influence inflation, interest rates, and exchange rates over longer time horizons.
United Kingdom
Central Bank Assets
Total Assets, Millions GBP, Updates Monthly
The Bank of England’s assets consist primarily of government bonds, commercial paper and corporate bonds, foreign exchange reserves, reverse repurchase agreements, and other instruments. Its liabilities are mostly currency in circulation, commercial bank reserves, and collateralized reverse repurchase agreements. The balance sheet is used to influence interest rates – when officials want to stimulate the economy, it expands, and when they wish to tighten financial conditions, it shrinks.
United Kingdom
Debt Ratios
Credit to General Government, Non-Financial Corporate, and Household Sectors, % of Gross Domestic Product at Market Value, Updates Quarterly
Aggregate Debt Ratios measure the total borrowing of the general government, non-financial corporate, and household sectors, expressed as a share of gross domestic product. Total debt is followed by investors as a gauge of the vulnerability of an economy to financial shocks. An overly fast pace of debt growth is also frequently associated with a buildup of unproductive investment and excessively high asset valuations.
United Kingdom
Net International Investment Position
Net International Investment Position, Millions USD, Updates Annually
The Net International Investment Position is the difference between the external financial assets and liabilities of a nation. A nation with a positive position is a creditor nation and is generally considered a safe haven in financial markets. A nation with a negative position is a debtor nation, with deeper balance of payments vulnerabilities.
United Kingdom
Currency Reserves
Official Reserve Assets, Foreign Currency Reserves (in Convertible Foreign Currencies), Billions USD, Updates Monthly
Currency Reserves show external holdings that are freely usable for settlement of international transactions, and are readily available to and controlled by monetary authorities for meeting balance of payments financing needs, for intervention in currency markets to affect exchange rates, and for other related purposes. Developed markets with widely used, freely tradeable international currencies typically provide reserve assets rather than engaging in reserve accumulation.
Latest Analysis
Latest Analysis
More talk than action
13 October, 2024
• Consolidation. Quiet end to last week. US S&P500 hit another record. Bond yields ticked up while the USD remained range bound.• China stimulus. More positive rhetoric but no specifics about the next...
Easing Hopes Unwind Further, Putting Pressure on Currency Markets
11 October, 2024
The dollar is recovering, ten-year Treasury yields are pushing higher, and risk sentiment is worsening as traders further downgrade odds on rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, forcing investors to brace...
Expectations matter
10 October, 2024
• Partial reversal. US equities consolidated, bond yields eased, & base metal prices rose. After a negative run AUD & NZD a bit firmer.• US inflation. Headline & core CPI a touch higher than...
Inflation Prints Higher, Further Reducing Easing Bets
10 October, 2024
Consumer price growth accelerated in the United States last month, reducing the Federal Reserve’s scope for manoeuvre as it eases policy settings, and further depressing odds on a second outsized rate...
Currencies Stall Ahead of Inflation Print
10 October, 2024
Currency markets are losing momentum as investors brace for this morning’s September consumer price index numbers out of the United States. The dollar is holding steady after racking up an eight-day winning...
US inflation & the USD
09 October, 2024
• Mixed fortunes. Equities in China tumbled, while the US S&P500 hit a record. US bond yields rose, supporting the USD. AUD lost ground.• RBNZ cuts. RBNZ slashed rates by 50bps. The harsher NZ economic...
Diminished Rate Cut Hopes Weigh on Risk Appetite
09 October, 2024
The dollar is heading toward an eighth day of gains as fixed-income traders pull back on monetary easing expectations and brace for hawkish undercurrents in this afternoon’s Federal Reserve meeting minutes....
AUD/NZD: RBNZ delivers
08 October, 2024
The RBNZ has followed through and crystalized the built-up market expectations by delivering a 50bp interest rate cut at today’s monetary policy review. The move, the second interest rate reduction this...
Markets Steady As Payrolls Tumult Subsides
08 October, 2024
The dollar is consolidating near a seven-week high against its major counterparts as yield differentials normalise and safe-haven demand fades. Treasury yields are moving in opposing directions across...
USD revival
07 October, 2024
• Stronger USD. A positive US jobs report has seen US rate expectations reprice higher, supporting the USD. AUD has fallen to mid-September levels.• China reopening. Financial markets in mainland China...