News in Review

“The fight against inflation is carrying a heavy cost in terms of heightened recession risks” Early S&P Global/CIPS UK Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey data for August has highlighted that weaker household spending and increasing interest rates contributed towards a decline in demand for both services and goods during the month. The key business survey, monitoring […]

IHT goes mainstream

Inheritance Tax (IHT) receipts have been consistently rising, with new data from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) showing takings for the 2022-23 tax year totalled £7.1bn, up a massive £1bn from the previous tax year (£6.1bn 2021-22). According to HMRC, this huge uplift can be attributed in part to ‘a combination of the recent rises […]

Residential Property Review – August 2023 

Demand down but activity remains robust  The residential sales market experienced further negative indicators in July, according to the latest UK Residential Survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), with new buyer enquiries and agreed sales volumes continuing their decline.  At the national level, new buyer enquiries recorded a net balance of -45% […]

News in Review

“Inflation has fallen rapidly over the past six months” The latest inflation data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has shown that the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) measured 6.8% in the 12 months to July 2023, down from 7.9% in June, the lowest rate since early 2022. Prime downward contributors during the month derived […]

Wealth planning – striking a balance 

While recent financial challenges have taken their toll on everyone’s pockets, it comes as no surprise that parents are putting concerns about their children’s finances above their own, as highlighted in a recent survey of advisers1.  Over half (55%) of the advisers surveyed noted that adult children were taking priority in clients’ wealth planning at […]

It’s your retirement – don’t do it a disservice 

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has warned that 90% of those currently in their 30s and 40s are saving less than they need to if they want to have a decent standard of living in retirement. Whilst the IFS researchers found that the current generation of pensioners is doing better than any before it, […]