Violet Hudson

UK workers are near the bottom of the wage-growth table compiled by the TUC, says the Independent. The average wage across 112 countries rose by 2.3 pc per year in the period 2008 – 2015. Meanwhile UK workers saw their wages fall by 1 pc. Great Britain comes 103rd in the table, ahead of the West Bank, Greece, Kenya and Iran and far behind France, Germany and Sweden. The lack of wage growth, coupled with soaring inflation, is likely to mean that many Brits find their disposable income will be squeezed to the point of non-existence. ‘[If the Government is] serious about the post-Brexit economy working for everyone, both decent wages and quality work must be the destination,’ said the TUC.

It’s inauguration day, and as the world watches with bated breath to see how President Trump’s first days in office pan out, the dollar is dwindling. Reuters reports that it fell 0.1 pc in the hours before Trump’s speech, which economists hope will shed some light on his economic policies. Hitherto, his pledges have been sketchy and inconsistent; some investors have paused trading to see whether he can adopt a more presidential tone in his speeches today. Anyone without their gaze glued to Washington will have been keeping a close eye on Davos this week, with the World Economic Forum closing today. Amid talks from renowned economic experts Shakira, Princess Beatrice and Matt Damon, Philip Hammond managed to get a word in yesterday.

Corporation Tax The Prime Minister will today pledge to match the lowest corporation tax rates within the G20 -- even if that means sinking to President-elect Trump’s 15 percent, says The Times. At her conference speech, Theresa May seemed to signal that she would be cracking down on big business which saw tax as ‘an optional extra’. She also criticised companies that use cheap foreign labour over British workers. But now she is softening her stance on businesses, and will tell the CBI Annual Conference today that she plans to make the UK one of the most vibrant economies in the world by keeping tax rates low. Corporation tax currently stands at 20 percent, and is due to be reduced to 17 percent by 2020 under existing plans.

One and a half million households, many of them poor families or pensioners, are not on the correct energy tariff for their consumption says the Daily Mail’s This Is Money. The big six power giants – British Gas, EDF, Eon, Npower, Scottish Power and SSE – are overcharging by a net amount of £440 million per year, the paper says. Frank Field MP, who chairs the Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee, has written to the Prime Minister to draw attention to the issue. He said that ‘as a next move in protecting the vulnerable human underbelly of British society, the Prime Minister should take the first available opportunity to oblige energy companies to place all of their customers on the cheapest available tariff.

A new day, a new Brexit consequence. Several papers lead with the possible stepping down of Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, who is reported to be considering quitting in 2018, five years into an eight year term. The Guardian discusses the criticism that Carney has faced due to his opposition to ‘leave’ during the Referendum campaign. Eurosceptic MPs Jacob Rees-Mogg and Lord Lawson, as well as arch-leaver Daniel Hannon MEP (who this morning scornfully described Carney as ‘a rockstar’), have been vocal in their denunciations of the governor. The week before last Michael Gove even went so far as to write an article comparing Carney to the Chinese emperor Ming.

Lloyds bank is to axe 3,000 jobs in the UK and close 200 branches in an attempt to save £400m by the end of 2017. Chief executive António Horta-Osório said that ‘a deceleration of growth seems likely’ following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union. Nevertheless, in the six months to June the group reported pre-tax profits to £2.45bn – more than double their 2015 earnings. The board of French energy company EDF will meet in Paris later today to discuss whether to approve the Hinkley Point nuclear power plant plans – and they are likely to give the green light, reports The Guardian. The power plant, in Somerset, will create 25,000 news jobs and provide 7 per cent of the UK’s electricity.

A month on from Brexit and the effects on the economy are beginning to show, says the Guardian in a study of the present state of the nation’s finances. It’s mostly bad news: the pound is at its lowest since 1985, down 12 pc against the dollar and 9 pc against the euro – meaning holidays are more expensive than ever. The weak sterling also means that imported goods will be more expensive; last week Unilver was the first company to admit that the cost will be passed onto consumers. The FTSE 100 is up higher than pre-referendum levels, possibly because of a number of sales of UK-listed companies. The sale of chip designer ARM to a Japanese company last week is a case in point. On the plus side, unemployment is at its lowest level for more than a decade.

Property prices in England and Wales have hit a record high, says the Guardian. Prices are 5.5pc higher than they were in June 2015, reports a study by rightmove.com. The average house now costs £310,471. Deals are also going through with unprecedented alacrity: it now takes 57 days to sell a property, compared to 65 this time last year. The capital bucks the trend, for once, with expensive boroughs actually seeing property price plummeting. Richmond on Thames has seen a 10.2pc drop in average price month-on-month, while sellers in Kensington and Chelsea are 9.4pc worse off. Unemployment in the UK is at its lowest rate since October 2005, says the BBC. The Office for National Statistics said that unemployment in February to April had fallen to 1.67 million.