Seven days in the Square Mile

The IMF cut its growth forecasts for the UK and the global economy following the Brexit vote, saying there would be a “substantial increase in economic, political and institutional uncertainty”, especially in Europe. The Bank of England signalled it will be announcing stimulus measures next month, though an outgoing member of its Monetary Policy Committee, Martin Weale, urged the Bank to wait for more evidence about the impact of the Brexit vote before cutting rates. Theresa May said that as part of her Government’s new “industrial strategy”, all foreign takeovers of UK companies will be scrutinised to check they’re in the national interest. The pledge coincided with controversy over the proposed sale of Arm Holdings to Softbank of Japan. May’s plan to make shareholder votes on executive pay binding, rather than advisory, won backing from Fidelity, one of the UK’S biggest fund managers. UK unemployment unexpectedly fell to 4.9%, its lowest level since 2005. Global stockmarkets continued their upward trend of recent weeks, with the FTSE 100 moving to an 11-month high. Turkish markets, and its currency, plunged in the wake of the failed coup. Football fans heading to France to watch Euro 2016 games helped to push up UK inflation by more than expected last month as the cost of airfares surged. There were warnings that UK house prices are stalling and may fall significantly, especially in prime central London.