Landlords feel the force of UK Autumn Statement (+ video)

After yesterday’s Autumn Statement, renting landlords and second home buyers will feel the force of new changes of up to 3% in surcharges. In theory, this could lead to high rental prices that move consumers towards buying their first properties rather than paying unaffordable rents.
 
The Help to Buy scheme has also been extended by a further year, so does the Chancellor have this in mind? Sterling reacted positively against the euro throughout the day after Mr Osborne said that the UK economy is now expected to grow more than expected over the next two years; that the unemployment rate is expected to fall further; and that gross domestic product (GDP) (when adjusted for inflation) is also on track to grow faster than first thought.
 
Tomorrow’s GDP figures are the only ones worth mentioning before close of play ahead of the weekend.
 
Interest rate rises make for a special Thanksgiving
 
With Thanksgiving today in the US, Wednesday was the last day for investors to listen out for any information regarding the potential interest rate in December. US Durable Goods Orders were up 3% versus 1.5% month-on-month, although last week’s Initial Jobless Claims were 260,000 versus 270,000, but the US ended trading closer to the 1.50 marker than some investors were expecting.
 
But Richard Curtin, the man in charge at the University of Michigan’s Survey Research Centre, has given a thumbs up for an interest rate rise. No doubt he too is encouraged by job market sentiment and signs that consumer spending is on the up, as well as that fearful global economic outlook settling down somewhat. The Thanksgiving holiday means there won’t be any data out of the US today and Friday.
 
Eurozone: No “realistic” Insee reading until next month
 
After a quiet week in terms of Eurozone data, investors were keen to see if France’s National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies’ (Insee’s) index number of 96 in October had changed after the devastating Paris attacks. The Insee’s index is a key indicator of French consumer confidence, and although it’s been showing a steady recovery since 2014 it hasn’t yet reached its long-term average of 100.
 
With a reading of 96 being produced again this month, and mainly based on data collected before the attacks on 13 November, it is expected that December’s release will be a more realistic reading.
 
This morning we have the German GfK Consumer Confidence Survey and tomorrow we’ll get Germany’s retail sales data.

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