BoE on inflation watch

Inflation watch

The Bank of England is keeping a close eye on the housing market, in case rising property prices have knock-on impacts for price inflation more generally. House prices have jumped 10.9% in the past year, according to the latest data from Nationwide. Inflation is currently at 1.5% and is expected to exceed the Bank’s 2% target for a few months as people start to go out and spend more.

Economic boom incoming

The UK economy is set to grow 7.2% in 2021 in the fastest growth spurt since WW2. That’s according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which previously thought the recovery would be a lot slower. It also forecasts 5.5% growth in 2022, bringing the economy back to pre-pandemic levels in the first few months of next year.

Ketchup’s coming home

Kraft Heinz plans to make ketchup, mayonnaise, and salad cream in the UK once again, for the first time in over 20 years. It’ll invest £140 million in Wigan’s Kitts Green plant to start producing the British favourites. The pandemic has squeezed the sauce maker, which had to step up production of sachets after the takeaway boom created shortages.

Cash crash

Just 7% of UK in-store purchases could be made in cash by 2024, according to a report by Worldpay. The pandemic has accelerated the switch to card and contactless payments; cash use in shops has more than halved since 2019. Other countries such as Sweden are forecast to be “almost cashless” within the next 3 years.