YesGood morning.
With confidence among British consumers falling to their lowest level since the 2008 financial crash, there are more signs that the cost of living crisis is taking a toll.
An index compiled by PwC fell to minus 20 in March, representing a 30-point drop from the previous June. Concerns about low income and rising bills were cited as the main concerns.
This comes after the energy price cap jumped by more than 50pc last week, raising average household bills by £693. Tax hikes and sustained inflation are also putting pressure on the household budget.
5 things to start your day
1) 50 percent increase in the price of a pint of milk, warns the industry Dairy owners from the UK and Europe flew to Brussels last week for crisis talks on rocket feed, fertilizer and fuel costs
2) Government pressures video game companies to ban children from buying ‘loot boxes’ Ministers are understood to have told companies that a failure to self-regulate would mean new laws to deal with the use of controversial items
3) German gas plans could cause ‘structural damage’ to its industrial position, Deutsche Bank warns Vladimir Putin has threatened to cut gas supplies to Germany following Berlin’s refusal to pay in rubles.
4) Government urged to introduce skilled refugee visas to address UK’s technical skills shortage The meeting between Zopa Bank and ministers took place after the lender had promised to hire 50 professionals from Ukraine
5) What’s going on at Barclays? Fresh scam raises new concerns A new man at the top, but the bank’s second major embarrassment in six months
what happened overnight
Shares in Asia were mostly higher this morning as Wall Street profited from a strong end last week.
Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul went ahead while Shanghai was closed for a holiday. Oil prices edged higher and US futures remained virtually unchanged.
coming today
- Incorporated: Belvoir Group, Impax Environmental Markets, Provident Financial (whole year)
- Economics: factory order (UK)
