At the start of the week the chancellor bowed to market pressure and agreed to bring forward publication of his “medium-term” fiscal plan, detailing how planned tax cuts — or those that remain — will be paid for. This will now appear on 31 October, ahead of November’s monetary policy meeting to set interest rates. Will it make for scary reading? Possibly. But it may all now be irrelevant. Kwasi Kwarteng is back in the UK for crunch talks with Liz Truss, who will front a Downing Street press conference later today. Will either of them be in a job next month? King Charles seems as exasperated as Truss’s colleagues. Dear oh dear indeed.
The Bank of England is under fire from all sides, but seems to have done little to help itself. At the height of the bond buyback frenzy this week the Bank was sticking publicly to its official line of ending its intervention today. Meanwhile, someone at the organisation briefed the Financial Times that it could be extended. A leading commentator described Bailey’s handling of the situation as “the shortest suicide note in history”, with many fearing a meltdown in gilt markets. As thing stand they have calmed somewhat, but does that hinge on a not-yet-formalised Kwasi Kwarteng u-turn? The chaos could re-ignite very easily.
Elon Musk is Under Investigation Again
The ongoing legal acrimony surrounding Elon Musk’s proposed $44bn takeover of Twitter rumbles on, with the social media platform revealing in a court filing that Musk is being investigated by federal authorities over his conduct during the process. It is perhaps not surprising that a former senior employee revealed Twitter staff are fed up and “battle-weary” with the never-ending back-and-forth. The company’s watercooler Slack channel (this is Silicon Valley after all!) has apparently been flooded with messages from staff, complaining about Musk’s libertarian politics, his plans to loosen content moderation, and worries about the working culture of long hours Musk encourages at Tesla.
US Inflation is Still Running Hot
US inflation is still a mixed picture. The headline figure dropped to 8.2% in September, down from 8.3% the month before. But this was less than the 8.1% predicted by many economic forecasters. The “core” inflation figure, meanwhile, which excludes food and energy costs, is also rising, up from 6.3% last month to 6.6% in September, the highest level for 40 years. The Fed is now expected to raise interest rates further than previously thought, leading to an initial sell off on US stock markets. Morningstar is still hopeful 2023 will bring relief on this front, but at the moment January feels very far away indeed.
We Have a New Pensions Minister
Alex Burghart is the new pensions minister, and he’s been given a new title to boot: undersecretary of state for pensions and growth. The undersecretary bit doesn’t look great as it’s a byword for “minister with no power” but the growth bit hints that pensions are more central to Liz Truss’s growth agenda than ever. Except that’s not entirely how pensions experts see it at the moment. Pension funds have shrunk quite dramatically in the last few weeks, and it’s not just the gold-plated final salary schemes affected. Defined contribution fund vales are also down significantly, and it’s those closer to retirement – or, God forbid, already in it – who have legitimate cause for concern. All this begs on question: should the DWP go ahead with plans to encourage pension funds to invest in UK infrastructure and other illiquid investments? As the last few days have shown, it’s all about risk.
Cheap Netflix and Chill is Here
Streaming giant Netflix will broadcast adverts on its platform for the first time next month with a budget option designed to stop cash-strapped viewers cancelling their subscription. The new “basic with ads” package costs £4.99 a month. Viewers will be limited to one screen and there will, initially at least, be a more limited choice of films and TV shows. This is less than the cheapest current option of £6.99 a month, although many UK households pay for the £10.99 HD option, which allows viewing on multiple screens. After 10 years of extraordinary growth Netflix has seen a decline in subscriptions this year – with accompanying questions about its business plan and revenue model.
Digital Pester Power is Here Too
Upmarket US clothing brand Hollister is allowing teenage customers to send their online shopping baskets to their parents so Mum or Dad can pay. Kids using the app can send a text to parents, and if this is approved the sale goes through. The company, which is owned by Abercrombie & Fitch, described this new payment method, Share2Pay, as creating a “seamless shopping experience” for its younger customers, who make up the majority of its customer base. The company says it hopes this will address the problem many online retailers have of shoppers loading up digital baskets but then abandoning them before check out. The new payment method is being marketed with the slogan “You shop, they pay. How’s that for convenience?” Parents may be less keen on this new, more convenient, pester power, though. And there’s also the problem that Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch are, well, sooooo 2010.
The Former Head of the Fed Has Won a Nobel Prize
The former chairman of the US Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke was one of three economists to receive this his year’s Nobel Prize for Economics for research into banking systems and how to make them more resilient to financial crises. The Royal Swedish Academy praised the work by Bernanke, Douglas Diamond and Philip Dybvig, saying it had helped strengthen worldwide financial systems, as well as guiding the economic and political response to recent emergencies, including the Covid-19 pandemic.
Shoppers Love “Wonky” Veg
Sales of wonky veg are up almost 40% this year, as shoppers look for value amid rising supermarket prices. Last month almost five million shoppers were buying ranges like Tesco’s “Perfectly Imperfect”, or Morrisons’ “Naturally Wonky”. These bags of misshapen carrots or randomly sized apples have been welcomed as a way of reducing food waste and ensuring shoppers have cheaper options. However, some growers have argued there should just be less distinction between regular and wonky veg, the latter of which is sold at a discount, as many crops have been hit by drought conditions this summer anyway. It all comes from the ground, after all.
United Ain’t For Sale
The Glazer brothers have rebuffed an offer by British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe to buy a stake Manchester United football club. The Ineos founder, who is a lifelong Red Devil, said it was clear the club was not currently for sale. However he is not putting away his chequebook just yet. Despite also having his bid for Chelsea FC rejected, Ratcliffe says that he would like to buy a Premier League club, or a leading European one. Ineos has an impressive track record of investing in sport, funding leading ties in cycling, sailing, rugby and motor sports, so it’s possible a different club will get Jim’s billions soon.
Correction: a previous iteration of this article priced Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter at $44 million; it has since been corrected to $44 billion
