Politics

A March budget has been delivered – but still not a spring in the Tories’ step

Published

1 year ago

March 7, 2024

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If you were looking for pre-election fireworks in this budget, look away now.

There was neither soaring rhetoric to win the hearts and minds of the nation nor eye-catching policies to back it up.

Jeremy Hunt was true to himself, choosing fiscal responsibility over political excitement.

Politics Live: Hunt defends announcements after voters deliver scathing verdict

The shadow of Liz Truss’s mini-budget still looms large. Mr Hunt was taking no risks with the public finances in a budget that was far smaller in tax cuts and policy decisions than the autumn statement.

Normally, when insiders tell you that the chancellor is limited in what he can do – in the context of the economic backdrop and that this budget will be “a proof point” that the prime minister is delivering on his plan, rather than a “poll gamechanger”, a few months from an election – you take it with a pinch of salt.

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I wasn’t the only one, with senior Tories telling me they were still expecting more than the two percentage point cut to national insurance on the day.

When the chancellor didn’t offer up more, the verdict from some senior Tories was swift: “Terrible,” texted one former cabinet minister, “this won’t shift the needle”. Another told me that this budget would make “zero difference” and MPs would be unhappy: “They were hoping for more.”

What this does tell us is that when Rishi Sunak said his “working assumption” was for an autumn election, he meant it: this was not a budget trying to set the political weather, rather it was aimed at keeping a steady ship.

“Safety first,” is how one former Treasury insider described it, pointing out that the chancellor could have been more aggressive on tax cuts if he had decided to cut back on future spending commitments.

Ahead of the budget there had been lots of chatter that the chancellor was going to shave 0.25 percentage points off departmental spending plans after 2025 to raise another £5bn or so for tax cuts (this could have gone towards another 1 percentage point cut in national insurance) but decided not to do it.

Perhaps he was mindful of polling suggesting the public doesn’t much like the idea of cutting spending on public services, but his decision not to set this trap for an incoming Labour government has left some Tories pulling out their hair.

One told me: “He could have created a wedge issue by cutting spending assumptions, by a quarter point or even a half point to then use on tax cuts.

“Labour would then have to back tax cuts or spending cuts, and perhaps we could have then pressed them on higher tax question.

“But we’ve done just enough on tax cuts for Labour to accept it. They didn’t create a wedge and MPs were looking for that from an electoral perspective.

“Maybe he had one eye on the Kwateng mini-budget, so didn’t want to take on more risk when it came to the fiscal forecasts.”

Politically too, the tax-cutting chancellor is still facing the double whammy of the overall tax burden of GDP still going up and heading for a 70-year-high by the end of the forecast period (2028-9), while the Institute of Fiscal Studies noted in its budget wash-up that average households would still be worse off going into the next general election than they were in 2019.

Safety first when you are 20 points ahead (Sir Keir Starmer) makes some sense, you don’t want to squander your lead.

But when you’re 20 points behind, your party are clamouring for you to go all out and try to close the gap.

The chancellor and his prime minister have clearly decided that the route to better polling is steady as she goes: a January national insurance cut, followed by another cut in April when energy bills should be coming down too.

The interest rates could be falling, alongside inflation in the summer.

The hope will be then that the feel-good factor is on the up, and the financial forecasts are improving to perhaps give the government the option of more tax cuts.

But right now, this budget doesn’t look like a moment for renewal. A March budget delivered, but still not a spring in the Tories’ step.

Politics

Chancellor to hold tariff crisis talks with top City executives

Published

6 hours ago

April 8, 2025

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Chancellor to hold tariff crisis talks with top City executives

Rachel Reeves will seek to gauge the unfolding impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs blitz on Wednesday when she holds talks with some of the City’s top executives.

Sky News has learnt the chancellor will hold talks with bosses from companies including Hargreaves Lansdown, Legal & General, Lloyds Banking Group and M&G amid ongoing volatility in global financial markets.

Insiders said the talks had been convened to help frame the Treasury’s financial services growth and competitiveness strategy.

However, they acknowledged that the fallout from US tariffs, while not directly affecting most City employers, would feature prominently on Wednesday’s agenda.

“The chancellor will use this meeting to show leadership, building on her statement to the House earlier today, and reiterating that the government will act decisively to take the right decisions in our national interest and protect working people,” a Treasury insider said.

Ms Reeves would stress a commitment to working with international partners to reduce barriers to trade, while pursuing the best possible bilateral deal with the US, they added.

Charlie Nunn, the Lloyds boss; Antonio Simoes of L&G; and Dan Olley, Hargreaves Lansdown’s chief, will all attend the talks.

It will be the latest in a string of meetings the chancellor has held in recent weeks in a bid to boost economic growth.

Her budget last October sparked a furious backlash from the business community, while last month’s spring statement raised fresh fears about the possibility of further tax rises later this year.

None of the companies invited to Wednesday’s meeting would comment when approached by Sky News.

Politics

Crypto execs expect global banking push into Bitcoin by end of 2025

Published

11 hours ago

April 8, 2025

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Crypto execs expect global banking push into Bitcoin by end of 2025

Despite the ongoing market meltdown on US trade tariffs, executives at major cryptocurrency firms Messari and Sygnum are bullish on institutional Bitcoin adoption later in 2025.

Speaking on a panel at Paris Blockchain Week on April 8, Messari CEO Eric Turner and Sygnum Bank co-founder Thomas Eichenberger said they expect a significant shift in the banking sector’s involvement with crypto in the second half of the year.

According to the executives, the global banking push into Bitcoin (BTC) services has great potential to happen in the second half of 2025 as regulators embrace crypto, including stablecoins and crypto services by banks.

“I think we’re probably looking at a muted Q2, but I’m really excited for Q3 and Q4,” Messari’s Turner said during the panel discussion moderated by Cointelegraph CEO Yana Prikhodchenko, forecasting “really interesting” things coming to the crypto market in 2025.

Crypto adoption is not just about Trump

While some investors focus on the pro-crypto stance of US President Donald Trump, Turner emphasized that broader regulatory momentum is what matters most.

“When you look at the potential of having market structure regulation in the US, stablecoin regulation, and just the fact that across the board, not just President Trump himself, but the SEC and all these regulatory industries are really embracing crypto,” Turner said.

Banks, Paris, Bitcoin Regulation, Policy — Paris Blockchain Week’s panel with Cointelegraph CEO Yana Prikhodchenko, Bancor co-founder Eyal Hertzog, Sygnum co-founder Thomas Eichenberger, Messari CEO Eric Turner, AWS fintech leader Alex Matsuo and Near chief operating officer Chris Donovan. Source: Cointelegraph

Sygnum co-founder Thomas Eichenberger said international banks with US branches are also poised to enter the market once the legal landscape becomes clearer:

“I think it’s a matter of fact that US banks are preparing to be able to offer crypto custody and at least crypto spot trading services anytime soon.”

“I think by then I would agree with you, Eric,” he continued, projecting a continued phase of market uncertainty until the US establishes a clear regulatory framework.

Banks are no longer afraid of Bitcoin regulators

With the establishment of clear crypto rules for banks in the US, there will be a rush for crypto services by large international banks that are incorporated outside of the US but have a US-based presence, Eichenberger said.

“Some of them may have had their strategic plans in their cupboard to offer crypto-related services, but have been afraid that at some point they will be gone after by any of the US regulatory authorities,” he said, adding:

“Now I think there’s no one to be afraid of anymore in terms of regulatory authorities worldwide. So I think many of the large international banks will launch this year.”

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Politics

Trump tariff negotiations are ‘all about’ China deal — Raoul Pal

Published

13 hours ago

April 8, 2025

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Trump tariff negotiations are ‘all about’ China deal — Raoul Pal

Global trade tensions triggered by US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff measures may come to an end with a potential deal with China as investors remain concerned about escalation from both sides.

Trump’s April 2 announcement of reciprocal import tariffs sent shockwaves through global equity and crypto markets. The measures include a 10% baseline tariff on all imported goods, effective April 5, with higher levies — such as a 34% tariff on Chinese imports — set to begin on April 9.

However, the tariff negotiations may only be “posturing” for the US to reach an agreement with China, according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.

“In the end, almost all the other tariff negotiations and rhetoric are all about getting China to agree a deal,” Pal wrote in an April 8 X post, adding:

“That is the big prize and both China and the US understand it and need it. Everything else is negotiation posturing. China needs a weaker $ and the US needs tariffs.”

“Also, the US is trying to shut down China tariff arbitrage using other channels such as Mexico or Vietnam,” Pal said.

China retaliates with new tariffs

Considering China’s latest retaliatory measures, a resolution remains unlikely in the short term.

In response to US tariffs, China imposed a 34% tariff on all US imports effective April 10, media outlet Xinhua News reported on April 4. China’s foreign ministry also vowed to “fight till the end” against Trump’s tariffs, which it called “bullying” by the world’s largest economy.

China overtook the US in 2012 to become the world’s largest trading nation by the total value of exports and imports, surpassing $4 trillion in goods trade that year, according to The Guardian.

Crypto markets watch trade outcome closely

As the trade dispute continues to evolve, analysts say a potential agreement between the two global superpowers could serve as a key catalyst for recovery in digital asset markets.

Crypto markets have a 70% chance to bottom by June 2025 before recovering, Nansen analysts predicted.

Investor appetite for risk assets such as Bitcoin will depend on the global tariff responses from other countries, according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.

“We have reached somewhat of a local bottom in regard to tariffs and the impact on prices,” the analyst said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X, adding:

“Trump came out guns blazing, and we’ve mostly seen the worst from the US side, so we’ll see if other countries are willing to drop some of the tariffs because it’s very likely the US will do the same.”