This week has been dominated by Interest Rates…
On Tuesday we saw the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raising Interest Rates in Australia to 0.35%. This was the first time they increased rates since 2010 and the announcement came on the back of inflation sitting at 5%, during a contentious national election campaign.
On Wednesday, the US Federal Reserve announced plans to raise interest rates by a half percent. This was the biggest rise in over two decades with US inflation sitting at 8.5%, the highest in 40 years.
Yesterday, the Bank of England announced that it was raising rates to 1%, the highest since 2009. This is set against the backdrop of spiralling inflation in the UK where we are seeing it rise at the fastest levels in 30 years. The Bank warned that inflation could potentially reach 10% and that a recession could hit at the back end of the year.
Following the news yesterday from the Bank of England, the Pound Sterling experienced a significant drop against both the US Dollar and the Euro.
Against the Euro, the Pound is at its lowest level this year and against the Dollar it is at its lowest since the first few weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic.
With all this in mind, it’s interesting to note that figures released today show that house prices have continued to rise, up 10% over the course of the last year.
In some positive news this week, a new life saving test is being rolled out for unborn babies that will detect a rare form of cancer and allow them to be treated asap. It is expected to save around 50 infant lives a year.
