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Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy. Nationwide, the building society, is kicking the day off by reporting that UK house prices have risen by 0.9% in March compared with the prior month, and by 2.2% on an annual basis. The sharp rise in global energy prices in response to developments in the Middle East represents a significant shock to the global economy, clouding the outlook. In the near term, UK economic growth is likely to be slower and inflation higher than previously expected, although ultimately the impact will depend on the duration of the shock as well as the policy response. The outlook for interest rates is particularly uncertain and dependent on whether the demand or supply side of the economy is more adversely affected. Towards the end of March, three interest rate increases were priced in over the next twelve months, compared to two rate cuts being anticipated before the strikes on Iran. This shift has resulted in a sharp rise in longer term interest rates (swap rates) that underpin fixed rate mortgage pricing. If sustained, this could reverse some of the improvement in housing affordability that has taken place in recent years. With consumer sentiment also likely to be dented by the uncertain outlook and the prospect of rising energy costs, housing market activity is likely to soften. The longer-term impact hinges on the intensity and length of the conflict. That said, one mitigating factor is the amount of equity in the system and the fact more homes are now owned outright than with a mortgage.” In an uncertain world we have the right economic plan. The decisions we have taken have put us in a better position to protect the country’s finances and family finances from global instability. We were the fastest growing European economy in the G7 last year and now we’re going even further by using regional growth, AI and a closer relationship with the EU to get our economy growing.” GDP growth for Q4 was unchanged at 0.1% q/q, suggesting that the economy entered the current crisis with very little momentum, even though growth in 2025 as a whole was revised up slightly. Of course, backward looking is an understatement for Q4 data, the outlook for growth is now materially weaker for this year and 2027 as higher energy prices will squeeze real incomes and further weigh on an already weak employment market. 8am BST: Kantar grocery inflation figures 10am BST: Eurozone CPI for March Continue reading...

PM says decision by union to reject offer including thousands of extra training posts and 7.1% pay rise without putting it to members for a vote is ‘reckless’ Keir Starmer has threatened to withdraw an offer of thousands of extra NHS training posts if resident doctors do not call off a six-day strike after Easter. The prime minister has given the doctors’ union, the British Medical Association, 48 hours to ditch its plans for industrial action or the government will pull the current offer from the table. Continue reading...

A torn page bearing Dylan’s lyrics for the 1967 song I’m Not There is set to go under the hammer in April when it could fetch £40,000 Almost 60 years after it was first typed out by Bob Dylan, a torn page of lined paper bearing a draft for the lyrics of I’m Not There has been discovered, tucked inside an Allen Ginsberg paperback. During the summer of 1967 in New York, just outside Woodstock, Bob Dylan wrote and recorded more than 100 songs with his then-backing group The Band, including I’m Not There. A small collection of these tapes would be released eight years later by Columbia Records, while more songs, including I’m Not There, would only be released over the following decades. Continue reading...