UK

From the growth point of view, Brexit can affect the economy in two ways. In the near term, uncertainty from Brexit and rising inflation from the reduction in Sterling trade since the vote could cause a modest demand-side shock. But that effect has been much smaller than expected. In fact, the economy has outperformed the non-Brexit scenarios. Of course, we do not know how the economy would have performed had the UK not voted to leave. That seems to be an absence of the short-term demand-side shock. I am confident that the UK can continue to enjoy a broad-base expansion over the next couple of years. I see probably 2% real GDP growth this year followed by 1.7% next year.

Now is not the time to raise interest rates, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said on Tuesday, warning that already weak wage growth risked a further loss of momentum as Britain prepares to leave the European Union.

In a speech to London’s banking community a day after Brexit talks started, Carney dashed any prospect that he might be close to joining the three BoE policymakers who last week unexpectedly voted to raise rates from their record low of 0.25 per cent.

Institutional investors in the UK and other developed markets are finally beginning to wake up to a truth that their counterparts in US, Germany and the Netherlands have long known: residential property is an attractive source of income that complements commercial property beautifully.

The bedrock of the appeal of residential is the shortfall of homes across most of Europe. Even if populations stay stable, there is already huge under-supply as a result of low development and this is exaggerated by the total number of homes required is growing, because the number of households is increasing: people are more likely to live alone and less likely have large families. In Germany, for example, the population has increased by only 12% since 1961, but the number of households has risen by 110%. Housing supply is notoriously unresponsive to changes in demand – certainly much less so than commercial property. Because of planning restrictions, particularly in countries in Europe with a strong tradition of preserving green open spaces, residential does not work like a free market. This supply constraint buoys rental incomes and, indeed, values.

One in five children in rich countries lives in relative poverty, according to a UNICEF report published on Thursday that put the US and New Zealand among the world’s worst performers for youth well-being.

The UN children’s agency UNICEF has warned that its report should serve as a "wake-up call" to the high rate of children in rich countries living in relative poverty.
The report makes clear that "higher incomes do not automatically lead to improved outcomes for all children," said Sarah Cook, director of the UNICEF research center Innocenti. Cook called on all governments to take action in eliminating inequality in child welfare.

Supporters of "hard" and "soft" Brexit tried to take advantage of the political chaos in Britain on Monday to promote their visions amid fears that their rivalry could revive old divisions in the Conservative Party.

Prime Minister Theresa May is in a weakened position after losing her parliamentary majority in last week’s snap election, leaving her vulnerable to both hardliners and moderates in her party.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May had called Thursday’s snap elections to strengthen her hand in Brussels, but the loss of her Conservative majority has plunged the Brexit process into disarray just over a week before talks are scheduled to begin.

The Tories won fewer than 320 seats, short of the 326 needed for a majority in Britain’s 650-member House of Commons. Labour, the main opposition party, gained more than 30 seats to top 260.

Billionaire tycoon George Soros has warned the EU it is facing an ‘existential crisis’ and that Brexit talks could last five years. If, during the divorce negotiations, the EU manages to successfully reform itself and attract wider support from its citizens, the U.K. will want to keep its European membership, Soros told an audience in Brussels.

"The divorce will be a long process taking as long as five years. Five years are a very long time in politics, especially in revolutionary times like the present," Soros noted.

British Airways, owned by International Airlines Group (IAG), faces a potential multi-million pound bill for the delayed passengers.

Three days of chaos caused by an IT glitch at Delta airlines last year was expected to cost the US carrier $150m in lost revenue. Many families have lost their holidays, while others have been forced to sleep on the floor of Britain’s two biggest airports since the computer crash on Saturday.