Warning lights flash as economy stutters
The manufacturing sector contracted in June at its sharpest pace since 2001 while house prices fell for an eighth straight month, according to figures on Tuesday that darkened an already bleak economic outlook.
Brown says judge me on my recordWorries about stuttering economic growth and rising inflation have already led analysts to downgrade their growth forecasts.
Some are now openly talking about the risk of recession.
"The news just goes on getting worse for the UK economy," said Michael Saunders at Citigroup.
"Yesterday saw plunges in consumer confidence and mortgage approvals. Today has brought another sharp fall in house prices plus signs that manufacturing activity is heading into recession."
The Nationwide building society said prices slipped 0.9 percent last month after a 2.5 percent drop in May which had been the sharpest fall since the series began in 1991. Prices were 6.3 percent down on the year, the biggest decline since December 1992.
Homebuilders and furniture retailers are already feeling the pinch.
Carpetright chairman Philip Harris, a 50-year veteran of carpet selling, warned on Tuesday that the coming year would be one of the most difficult he had ever seen.
Van hire company Northgate also delivered a profit warning in an ugly day for stock market traders as the top share index tumbled 2.4 percent.
MANUFACTURING CONTRACTS
- 1 RBS gets Chinese approval for Suzhou stake
- 2 June retail sales fall less than expected
- 3 Auction-rate buybacks add to worries
- 4 Pound hits near 12-year low
- 5 Miliband urges coalition against Russia in Georgia
- 6 Mortgage approvals hold near record low in July
- 7 Kazakhmys earnings down as bad weather hits
- 1 Could $100 oil turn dumps into plastic mines?
- 2 Era of exclusive video game deals ending
- 3 Auction-rate buybacks add to worries
- 4 Audit shows China mismanaged 3.7 bln pounds
- 5 Gold firms near 2-week highs on oil, physicals support
- 6 Investors lift stocks, keep exposure thin
- 7 Councils seek powers to offer mortgages
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- 1 June retail sales fall less than expected
- 2 Investors lift stocks, keep exposure thin
- 3 Gold firms near 2-week highs on oil, physicals support
- 4 Auction-rate buybacks add to worries
- 5 HIV spreads in NY at three times the U.S. average
- 6 Era of exclusive video game deals ending
- 7 Could $100 oil turn dumps into plastic mines?
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