We start here in the uk, where figures out earlier show the uk economy grew by 0. 2 between april and june following a rebound from an extra bank holiday for the kings coronation. Growth injune alone was stronger than expected at 0. 5 . High inflation remains a problem. The Bank Of England has raised the cost of borrowing 1a times since the end of 2021 to try and rein in soaring prices. So where is the Economy Heading . Were nowjoined by victoria scholar, who is the head of investment at interactive investor. Lovely for tojoin us lovely for to join us here on the programme. Not. 2 . Essentially, thatis programme. Not. 2 . Essentially, that is stagnation, isnt it . Actually, these figures are a bit better than analysts were expecting, both in the Second Quarter and in june we saw particular strength in the construction. Injune we saw a bounce back in manufacturing, publishing, so things like books and magazines also fare pretty well, and car sales have been benefiting from the fact the
more than 3/10 of a percent. this is what they call a bull run. the market s been on the upswing since october 2022, and it s thanks to a few tailwinds. among them, an outperforming tech sector and a resilient labour market. the federal reserve has a role too. so far it s been able to cool inflation without tipping the economy into a recession. that s called a soft landing and it s buoying wall street. stocks are rallying in anticipation of interest rate cuts that the fed has signalled this year, which would let interest rates fall from a 22 year high. when interest rates go down, it makes it cheaper for businesses and individuals to borrow money. so spending increases and usually that makes stock prices go up. meanwhile, it s a different story for the chinese stock markets, which have been struggling in the new year. chinese premier li qiang pledged to take forceful and effective action to support market confidence. shares in mainland china and in hong kong have been hoverin
among them, an outperforming tech sector and a resilient labour market. the federal reserve has a role too. so far it s been able to cool inflation without tipping the economy into a recession. that s called a soft landing and it s buoying wall street. stocks are rallying in anticipation of interest rate cuts that the fed has signalled this year, which would let interest rates fall from a 22 year high. when interest rates go down, it makes it cheaper for businesses and individuals to borrow money. so spending increases and usually that makes stock prices go up. meanwhile, it s a different story for the chinese stock markets, which have been struggling in the new year. chinese premier li qiang pledged to take forceful and effective action to support market confidence. shares in mainland china and in hong kong have been hovering at their lowest points in as many years. this comes despite somewhat upbeat signals at the end of last year. for more on what we can expect from china,
we begin in the us in what could become the largest product liability settlement in history. the pharmaceutical s giant, johnson &johnson has proposed paying almost $9 billion to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits that allege the company s talcum powders causes cancer. the new move seeks to resolve all current and future claims and follows a decade long legal battle between plaintiffs lawyers and johnson & johnson. my colleague samira hussain with the details. johnson &johnson johnson & johnson has johnson &johnson has been dogged for use by claims that its talcum powder causes cancer. in 2021 it settle a lawsuit in newjersey brought by 21 women who blame the company for that very cancer and is set aside another 2 billion to try to settle all future claims in what could add up future claims in what could add up to thousands of lawsuits. now the company says it will increase the potential size of all settlement to 8 $.9 billion. the company stopped selling it talcum product
we start here in the uk where investors are now betting the cost of borrowing will have to keep rising because inflation remains stubbornly high. that s despite a pledge by the government to bring it down, and a barrage of interest rate rises by the bank of england attempting to get it under control. just a few weeks ago, we were assuming that after 11 increases in a row, the bank would not have to raise rates much further. but on wednesday, there was a major rethink on financial markets, which are now pricing in three more rises this year, with rates hitting 5%. here s why. prices in the uk are still rising much too fast, with inflation at 10.1% in the year to march. that s a bit less than the 10.4% recorded in in february, but was still much higher than expected. economists were predicting inflation would fall into single figures. one of the biggest factors the soaring cost of food and drink. it s up over 19% in the past year. it s the fastest rise in 45 years accordi