The Prime Minister spoke at the Conservative Party Conference yesterday and asked MPs to get behind her, saying that splits in the party could halt Brexit. It seems there will be some pennies left for councils, as May announced that she is removing the cap restricting what local authorities can borrow to build homes. The cap was introduced by Margaret Thatcher, but that was when councils built some 10,000 homes per year. Now it is as low as 100.
We also learned that UK services PMI fell to 53.9 in September from 54.3 in August. This was slightly below expectations of 54.0 but nothing to worry about. However, new order growth eased and optimism over the future remains subdued. If the winner takes it all, there’s not much left for everyone else. Political uncertainty is not helping matters and neither are ongoing global trade tensions. Still, it could have been worse and we should be thankful for small mercies at the moment.
The only economic data release on the schedule today is new car sales for September. Last month, the figure hit a whopping 23.1%, although it is worth mentioning that this is down to savvy members of the public – who took advantage of some bargains in what is always one of the year’s smallest months. A drop will occur this time around, but the real measure will be how the reading compares to the same month last year.
