When Will It Ever End?                                                              22 August 2025        

Data from Betterhomes show that the total number of July sales transactions surged by 20.5%, to 18.82k, with a total value, 10.6% higher, of US$ 13.98 billion; the July average price per sq ft climbed 3.3% on the month, to US$ 516. Average sale prices were at US$ 542k for apartments, US$ 886k for townhouses, and US$ 2.64 million for villas. The agency posted strong activity in off-plan and secondary sales as well as robust tenant demand in key communities – off plan sales were 3% higher on the month at 65%. The top-performing villa communities, by transaction volume, were The Wilds, Grand Polo Club & Resort, and The Oasis, while Jumeirah Village Circle, Business Bay, and Damac Riverside led the apartment segment. Betterhomes’ Off-Plan Sales Manager, Chirine El Sebai, commented that “the continued strength of Dubai’s off-plan sector shows enduring confidence in the city’s long-term growth”.

In July, the emirate’s residential market posted a 3.4% hike in rental transactions to 39.25k, with new contracts accounting for 40% of the total, compared to 37% a year earlier. The average rental price stood at US$ 19.6k for apartments, US$ 46.9k for townhouses, and US$ 69.5k for villas. The biggest rental growth for apartments and villas was Al Khail Heights, with a monthly growth of 1.5%, to an annual US$ 18.4k, and for villas, Jumeirah, with a 4.2% rental hike to US$ 135.7k. The most active villa leasing communities were Mirdif, Damac Hills 2 and Jumeirah, while Jumeirah Village Circle, Dubai Silicon Oasis, and Business Bay topped the apartment segment.

July saw 4.89k mortgage transaction volumes, 9.2% higher on the month, with many taking advantage of the lower interest rates. Property Monitor posted that there was a 2.3% monthly rise in new purchase money mortgages accounting for 45.6% of activity, with average loan amounts of US$ 490k, with the average loan-to-value ratio nudging up 0.2% to 73.7%. The consultancy does note that “price growth remains positive, and transaction volumes are on pace to break new records, yet the pace of new supply – particularly from the off-plan segment – raises questions about the market’s capacity to absorb this wave in a sustainable manner”. This concern is based on their estimate that 93k units have been launched in the first seven months of 2025, and that increase inventory sees buyer selectivity rising and that the persistence of lower loan-to-value ratios suggests that affordability pressures may start to shape demand more directly in the months ahead. Noting that the market continues to show a range of resilient lending, rising transaction volumes, robust off-plan demand and inventory supply still not meeting current demand, the short to medium term for the Dubai real estate market outlook is positive. Prices will continue their upward momentum, albeit at a slower pace.

Emirates Hills was the location for a record price – of US$ 71 million – for a single plot villa in Dubai’s ultra-prime property market. Spanning 50k sq ft, the seven-bedroom villa is located on Emirates Hills’ ‘Golden Mile’, with views over the lakes and the Address Montgomerie golf course.  It was sold by Eden Realty, who have been involved in two other mega deals in the ‘Beverly Hills of Dubai’ – both valued at around US$ 59 million.

Some eighteen months ago, the Dubai government, in a historic move, decided that designated plots and buildings owned by private investors in Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Jaddaf could be converted into freehold.  There was immediate action and a boom in freehold conversion around SZR – now it seems to be the turn of  Al Jaddaf, where there are three hundred and twenty-nine plots that could make the transition; this will allow property investors to buy their own home in the location, at prices that do not include the significant premiums that have occurred elsewhere in the emirate. Last week, Azizi Developments launched ‘Azizi David’ in Al Jaddaf, on land that was previously only open to GCC investors but now has been repurposed to being a freehold. (A week earlier, the developer had launched ‘Azizi Abraham’, in the Jebel Ali Free Zone area). Prices for one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments start at US$ 338k and US$ 436k. Recently, Harbor Real Estate said it was working as advisor to JAD Global Real Estate Development for one of the ‘first freehold projects launched in Al Jaddaf’ as part of the Dubai initiative to repurpose plots on SZR and in Al Jaddaf.  The area already has its fair share of developments through projects such as the D1 Tower which has studios and one-bedroom units selling on the secondary market at US$ 300k and between US$ 463k and US$ 600k, depending on size and views.

Nakheel has awarded Fibrex Contracting a US$ 708 million contract for the construction of the Bay Villas project at the Dubai Islands. The project, with six hundred and thirty-six luxury units, will comprise five distinct property types. Khalid Al Malik, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Holding Real Estate, commented that, “this development delivers on our vision of designing waterfront communities that prioritise wellbeing, luxury and privacy, all while offering residents an opportunity to enjoy the best of island living.” Nakheel is a member of Dubai Holding Real Estate.

According to Dubai Municipality’s regulations, on co-living tenants’ rights on ‘occupancy density standards’, residents in Dubai have now an individual five sq mt of co-living rental options – ‘minimum space’. Furthermore, any internal partitions or modifications, made by the landlord, need the double approval of both Dubai Civil Defence and Dubai Municipality. Those landlords that do not abide with the regulations, by trying to squeeze in more occupants, are now facing a ‘zero tolerance’ approach from the authorities.

Data from Henley & Partners indicates that nearly 10k high-net-worth individuals moved to the country, and bringing with them some US$ 63 billion of investable wealth, with the majority selecting Dubai as their base. This year, a further 7.5k HNWIs, including over two hundred centi-millionaires, and at least fifteen billionaires, are expected to make Dubai their home. It is expected that the current number of 72k resident HNWIs could jump to 108k over the next five years, and that 68% of wealthy global investors are planning to acquire homes in Dubai this year at an average intended spend of US$ 32 million.

H1 figures from the Dubai International Chamber show one hundred and forty-three new companies, including thirty-one multinational corporations – 138% higher, compared to H1 2024. Furthermore, it attracted a further one hundred and twelve SMEs, up 138% on the year. The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre reported over 1.1k new companies in H1, bringing the total number of companies to almost 26k, of which seven hundred are in its Crypto Centre, including global names like Bitcoin.com and Animoca Brands.

Almost two hundred family offices have established themselves in the Dubai International Financial Centre, over the past twelve months, bringing the total close to eight hundred; the main reason for this mainly exodus out of Europe are the tightening of regulations and higher tax regimes. Family-owned enterprises, which account for about 60% of the UAE’s GDP, are also turning to Dubai as a base for global expansion. The recently launched Dubai Centre for Family Businesses, acts as a conduit helping such entities to strengthen governance, prepare for succession, and access international capital. Dubai’s privacy, flexible structures, and favourable inheritance and ownership rules offer strong advantages to such entities, and this is probably the main reason why the country is home to 75% of all ME family offices, with assets under management projected to reach US$ 500 billion by the end of the year.

The Dubai International Financial Centre has enhanced its position as a hub for global capital and financial innovation and has seen several high-profile financial institutions either setting up shop in Dubai or expanding on their current status in the emirate.  The arrival of global wealth, in whatever form, has seen major international wealth management firms beginning to take Dubai seriously. Undoubtedly it has become a global magnet and the leading destination for the relocation of the ultra-wealthy.

There is no doubt that Dubai’s ecosystem is booming, with 2025 seeing the expanding inward movement of HNWIs, individuals, entrepreneurs, businesses and wealth. Dubai, being a regional hub, is fast becoming the choice destination for FDI and for companies looking for global growth. It has so many advantages, over its global rivals, including being a strategic connecting location, having a progressive and very much pro-business government, enjoying an enviable lifestyle and a world-class infrastructure.

GEMS Education announced that it had recruited 1.7k new teachers ahead of the new school year and that it would be pursuing a “capital-light” growth strategy, as part of its future expansion, with a focus on its new Global Schools Management division. Its group CEO, Dino Varkey,  commented that the GSM model is a key part of the group’s strategy to diversify its portfolio, without the significant capital investment required for starting from scratch, and that “it is a part of the growth strategy because, again, the thing about a school management model is it is capital-light, and as a consequence, you can potentially accelerate its growth at a faster pace”. He confirmed that the UAE is still its main focus but that “adjacent markets in the GCC are going to be important”; he confirmed that the company is actively looking at Saudi Arabia, a market that is “too important to ignore”, given the kingdom’s transformation agenda, and emphasis on high-quality education. He also added that the group is re-imagining education for a new generation.

Worrying news for some UAE-based investors is the sudden closure of the DMCC-based Seventy Ninth Group office and its website. The UK asset management firm, which first opened it Dubai office in 2023, is facing a City of London police probe on suspicion of fraud and has been placed into administration in the UK. It is reported that the company sold structured loan notes secured against UK properties, promising investors annual returns of between 15% – 18%, claiming that funds raised were used to buy distressed properties, refurbish them, and sell them for profit to generate payouts. The group suspended payouts earlier this year, citing a moratorium while it sought to restructure. It is unclear the number of investors impacted, but some accounts suggest it could exceed 3k, with more than US$ 270 million at stake. Assets, including a former hospital in Northumberland and offices in Warrington, have been put up for sale. UK police, who had arrested four individuals earlier in the year, who were then released on bail, has urged investors to file reports through its Major Incident Public Portal. UK Finance has directed banks to freeze reimbursement claims under fraud compensation schemes until the police investigation is complete, leaving victims in further limbo.

The UAE has taken a great leap, jumping twenty-seven places to rank at number sixteen in the 2025 Government Support Index, a key indicator in the International Institute for Management Development’s (IMD) World Competitiveness Yearbook. This achievement is the result of the country’s ongoing drive to strengthen fiscal efficiency and align public spending with sustainable growth goals. The Government Support Index measures the value of government support as a percentage of GDP and serves as a benchmark for the effectiveness of public resource management. The Ministry of Finance is keen to see the UAE in the top ten in next year’s table.

The Government Support Index highlights a country’s ability to stimulate economic expansion through targeted spending policies that balance immediate needs with long-term priorities. For the UAE, the result underscores the effectiveness of reforms and strategies designed to ensure public financial management is not only prudent but also agile in responding to global economic shifts. It ranked well in several indicators used to measure performance including:

Position		Category
First		Venture Capital
First		Personal Income Tax Collected
Second		Corporate Profit Tax Rate
Third		Government Budget Surplus/Deficit
Fourth		Decrease in Indirect Tax Revenues
Fourth		Reduction in Consumption Tax Rate
Fifth		Capital and Property Taxes Collected
Sixth		Public Finance
Seventh		General Government Spending
Ninth		Government Consumption Expenditure – Real Growth

YTD to 31 May, the Central Bank increased its gold reserves by 25.90% to US$ 7.88 billion. Statistics showed that demand deposits also grew, by 0.05% exceeding US$ 317.96 billion by the end of May. Of this total, US$ 243.21 billion were in local currency and US$ 74.75 billion in foreign currencies.Savings deposits rose 13.26% to US$ 97.98 billion at the end of May, including US$ 83.25 billion in local currency and US$ 14.73 billion in foreign currencies.Time deposits exceeded US$ 276.07 million, (over AED 1.0 trillion), for the first time by the end of May, including US$ 167.53 billion in local currency and US$ 108.54 billion in foreign currencies.

The value of transfers executed in the country’s banking sector through the UAE Funds Transfer System (UAEFTS) reached US$ 2.60 trillion during the first five months of this year. According to Banking Operations Statistics, issued by the Central Bank of the UAE, the value of transfers by banks and by customers amounted to US$ 1.59 trillion and US$ 1.01 trillion. Over the period, the number of cleared cheques reached around 9.6 million, over two million off which occurred in May, valued at US$3.58 billion. The value of cash withdrawals from the Central Bank, during the first five months of 2025, reached US$ 27.19 billion, while cash deposits amounted to US$ 22.86 billion.

This week the Central Bank of the UAE revoked the licence of Malik Exchange, struck its name off the Register and imposed a financial sanction of US$ 545k, pursuant to Article (14) of the Federal Decree Law No. (20) of 2018 on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Illegal Organisations and its amendments. An investigation had found that the Exchange House had made violations and failed to comply with the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Illegal Organisations framework, and related regulations.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank has suspended YAS Takaful PJSC’s licence, pursuant to article 33(2)(k) of Federal Decree Law No. (48) of 2023 Regulating Insurance Activities, with the firm having failed to comply with the regulatory framework governing insurance companies in the UAE. It will remain liable for all rights and obligations arising from insurance contracts concluded before the suspension.

The DFM opened the week, on Monday 18 August, on 6,126 points, and having shed eighty points (1.3%), the previous fortnight, closed flat (0.0%), to close the trading week on 6,126 points, by Friday 22 August 2025. Emaar Properties, US$ 0.29 lower the previous fortnight, nudged US$ 0.01 higher to close on US$ 4.00 by the end of the week. DEWA, Emirates NBD, DIB and DFM started the previous week on US$ 0.75, US$ 7.14, US$ 2.65 and US$ 0.47 and closed on US$ 0.76, US$ 7.08, US$ 2.66 and US$ 0.46. On 22 August, trading was at two hundred and thirty million shares, with a value of US$ one hundred and twenty-three million dollars, compared to one hundred and seventy-nine million shares, with a value of US$ one hundred and forty-three million dollars on 15 August 2025.

By 22 August 2025, Brent, US$ 4.09 lower (5.8%) the previous fortnight, had gained US$ 3.05 (4.6%) to close on US$ 67.61. Gold, US$ 9 (0.3%) lower the previous week, shed US$ 8 (0.2%), to end the week’s trading at US$ 3,331 on 22 August.

Since the 16 August start of the strike, hundreds of flights have been cancelled and nearly 500k Air Canada passenger have been impacted. A tentative agreement on Tuesday, ended it, with both parties expected to finalise the deal and return to normal operations. The action, which saw 10k Air Canada workers, represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, was the first such strike in forty years. The dispute centred on demands for higher wages and compensation for unpaid ground duties, such as boarding and deplaning, estimated to amount to thirty-five hours of unpaid work per month per attendant. Prime Minister, Mark Carney, expressed disappointment over the failure to reach an agreement, after eight months of negotiations, but added that “it is my hope that this will ensure flight attendants are compensated fairly at all times”. It does seem that the carrier’s CEO, Michael Rousseau, is at odds with the comments, expressing his amazement at CUPE’s defiance of a Canada Industrial Relations Board order declaring the strike unlawful, stating: “at this point in time, the union’s proposals are much higher than the 40%”.  It is estimated that the strike cost the airline US$ 60 million a day, with it suspending its Q3 and full-year 2025 profit forecasts due to the strike’s impact.

In the US, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are facing passenger lawsuits, filed by legal firm Greenbaum Olbrantz, claiming that they had been charged extra for window seats, even when not available. The lawsuits, on behalf of more than one million customers, are seeking millions of dollars in damages, claiming that the companies do not flag that the seats as windowless during the booking process, even when charging a premium for them. The complaints said some Boeing and Airbus passenger planes had seats that do not have windows because of the positioning of air conditioning ducts, wiring or other components. Both airlines describe every seat along the sides of their planes as a “window seat”, even when they know some are not next to a window. Other carriers, like American Airlines and Alaska Airlines, operate similar jets but disclose during the booking process if a seat does not include a window.

It appears that Boeing will snare a mega deal with China to supply as many as five hundred aircraft and that would be the plane maker’s first order since the 2017 days of Trump 1’s last visit to the country. The deal is contingent to the two leading trading nations agreeing to end their hostilities and cutting back their current tariffs on each other. There are other important, but lesser, points to settle including the types and volume of jet models and delivery timetables. Chinese officials are already in discussion with domestic carriers as to how many planes would be required. China’s central planners have already wrapped up a deal, still to be officially announced, with Airbus for a similar order quantity.

As noted in last week’s blog, the UK’s biggest bioethanol plant has closed operations with immediate effect from last Friday, after the Starmer administration decided against any state help and refusing to bail out Vivergo, with immediate effect; weekly losses were estimated at US$ 4.0 million. The government decided that it “would not provide value for the taxpayer or solve the long-term problems the industry faces”. The Associated British Foods’ company was badly impacted by the recent UK-US trade deal which virtually signed the company’s death warrant when tariffs were scrapped on US bioethanol imports. There was also some concern that a business owned by a FTSE 100 conglomerate, which last year made a pre-tax profit of almost US$ 2.70 billion, should be eligible for taxpayer support for one of its subsidiaries. Its MD, Ben Hackett, commented that the decision as a “flagrant act of economic self-harm that will have far-reaching consequences” and it “has forced us to cease operations and move to closure immediately”. The closure will not only see one hundred and sixty losing their job in Hull but will have “a huge impact on the thousands of livelihoods in the supply chain”, including farmers, hauliers and engineers.

There is a distinct possibility that Associated British Foods, also the owner of Kingsmill and Allinson’s bread, is considering acquiring its long-standing rival, Hovis, founded in 1890, for a reported US$ 102 million. If that were to happen, then it would create the UK’s biggest bread brand, surpassing Warburton’s, the current market leader in UK breadmaking. Demand for pre-packaged bread is declining as the likes of sourdough and ciabatta continue to take a bigger slice of the market. ABF also owns Primark, Ryvita and Twinings, and indicated that it would cut costs to make the two currently loss-making businesses profitable.

No doubt that 2024 was a good trading year for Shein Distribution UK Ltd, with impressive revenue and pre-tax profit, both surging by 32.3% to US$ 2.78 billion and by 57.0% to US$ 52 million. Last year, the Chinese fast-fashion giant opened two offices – in London and Manchester – launched a pop-up shop in Liverpool and ended the year with a Christmas bus tour across twelve UK cities. Founded in China, but now headquartered in Singapore, Shein focuses on keeping prices low, using promotions and rewards to encourage shoppers to keep buying. Originally a fashion outlet, it has since branched out into selling a wide range of other products from toys and games to kitchenware. The UK operation, with ninety-one employees, primarily provides expertise for the UK market Like its competitors, Shein is acutely aware of “higher inflation and increased cost of living may affect customer purchasing habits”., and that it may be impacted by import taxes after the UK government announced a review of the exemption for packages valued at less than US$ 183, (GBP 135). In June 2024, Shein had filed initial paperwork taking it a step closer to listing on the London Stock Exchange. However, it has faced global criticism over its working conditions in its Chinese factories, along with the environmental impact of its business model.

WH Smith, which last year divested its iconic and historic, two hundred- and three-year-old, high-street business, to focus more on its more expanding travel arm sector, has warned of a problem with its profits. It appears that it may have overstated them by over US$ 40 million, mainly to an accelerated recognition of supplier income, resulting in full-year headline profit before tax and non-underlying items to be some 33.7% lower on the at US$ 148 million. On the news of the accounting error, its share value slumped 41.7%, whilst its board requested Deloitte to undertake an independent and comprehensive review.

Marks & Spencer has announced that it is to construct a mega automated warehouse in Northamptonshire in order to double the size of its fast-expanding food business. The retailer announced that it would invest US$ 458 million in a 1.3 million sq ft food distribution facility. It estimates that the construction will create 2k jobs, whilst a further 1k permanent roles will be required once operations start, slated for 2029.

There are indications that metals tycoon, and owner of Liberty Steel’s Speciality Steel UK (SSUK) arm, Sanjeev Gupta is considering a so-called connected pre-pack administration of his steel plant. This would involve a highly contentious arrangement to rescue his remaining UK steel operations and avert their collapse into compulsory liquidation by potentially selling the remaining assets to parties linked to him at a net price – after shedding hundreds of millions of pounds of tax and other liabilities to creditors. The Starmer administration had also been in a hurry to be ready when the winding up petition, for the country’s third largest steel maker, was approved on Wednesday. SSUK will be likely to enter compulsory liquidation within days, with special managers from consultancy firm Teneo appointed by the Official Receiver running the operations. The government has agreed to cover the ongoing wages and costs of the plant while a buyer is sought.

Reports seem to show that Gupta will try for another adjournment of the winding-up petition to buy him additional breathing space from creditors. There is no doubt that a connected pre-pack will be strongly opposed by some of the major stakeholders, including HM Revenue and Customs, and UBS, the investment bank which rescued Credit Suisse, a major backer of the collapsed finance firm Greensill Capital – which itself had a multibillion-dollar exposure to Liberty Steel’s parent, GFG Alliance.

The Indian entrepreneur is also in trouble from other fronts of his business empire. Reports indicate that he was preparing to call in administrators to oversee the insolvency of Liberty Commodities, whilst the HMRC has filed a winding-up petition against Liberty Pipes earlier this month.

Late last week, CongresswomanElise Stefanik, requested the US attorney general to probe Standard Chartered over alleged terrorist payments. The end result is that its shares faced an 8.0% sell-off on the London Stock Exchange in late Friday trading last week, shedding over US$ 2.80 billion and were trading 4.0% lower in overnight trading in Hong Kong.

SoftBank has taken an almost 2.0% stake, with a US$ 2.0 billion investment, in Intel in attempts to turn around the struggling US chipmaker. The agreement saw the Japanese technology investor paying US$ 23.00 per share that makes it the company’s sixth-largest investor. YTD, it has invested US$ 30 billion in ChatGPT maker OpenAI and was the lead in financing Stargate in a US$ 500 billion data centre project in the US. Intel’s chief executive was a former board member of SoftBank. Masayoshi Son, chairman of SoftBank, commented that “for more than fifty years, Intel has been a trusted leader in innovation. This strategic investment reflects our belief that advanced semiconductor manufacturing and supply will further expand in the United States, with Intel playing a critical role”.

A day later, on Tuesday, the White House confirmed the possibility that the US could take up a 10% stake in the chip giant, with press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, commenting that “the president wants to put America’s needs first, both from a national security and economic perspective”. According to US Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, any deal would involve swapping existing government grants for Intel share equity, according to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Such financing will boost Intel’s attempt to compete with rivals like Nvidia, Samsung and TSMC, particularly in the booming AI chip market. There is no doubt that the White House is becoming more concerned about developments and investment in the country, and only last week, both Nvidia and AMD agreed to pay the US government15% of their Chinese revenues, as part of an unprecedented deal to secure export licences to China.

In July, Japan’s total exports dipped 2.6%, in value terms – the biggest monthly fall since the 4.5% drop posted in February 2021, with the main driver being the impact of Trump tariffs; July exports to the US fell 10.1% from a year earlier. This was the third consecutive monthly decline and followed June’s 0.5%.

Although the country’s July core inflation rate slowed for a second straight month, it was still above the central bank’s 2% target, with the nationwide core CPI, which excludes fresh food items, rising to 3.1% on the year; the previous month saw the figure at 3.3%. The fall was attributable to the base effect of last year’s increase in energy prices; they fell 0.3%, the first year-on-year drop since March 2024, whilst food inflation, excluding volatile fresh products, rose 0.1%, on the month, to 8.3%.

The German Q2 economic output contracted by 0.3%, on the quarter – more than expected by the market – and was revised downwards from the preliminary data last month which had showed a 0.1% dip. Q1 initial figures had also been revised downwards by 0.1% to 0.3%. In H1, government spending exceeded revenues, in relation to total economic output; preliminary figures show the deficit of the federal government, federal states, municipalities and social security was a comparatively low 1.3%.

Australia’s jobless rate dipped 0.1% to 4.2% last month following a four year high posted in June; employment rose by 24.5k. This sends a clear message to the RBA indicating that the labour market remains tight, whilst justifying their cautious approach to policy easing.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has launched legal action against superannuation giant Mercer,  with allegations that it failed to report serious issues, whereby it charged members insurance premiums after they had died,; it is also accused that it provided false or misleading information in reports to the corporate watchdog, which understated the number of members who were impacted, created member accounts, without default insurance cover, and failed to process updates to member information. This is the latest case brought by the corporate watchdog, following two recent ones involving Australian Super – the former for failing to process thousands of death benefit claims “efficiently, honestly and fairly”, between July 2019 and October 2024, and the latter for delays in processing more than 10k death and disability payments. The US$ 45.6 billion Mercer Super, with 950k members, is the seventh-largest super fund in the country. In summarising ASIC deputy chair noted that, “we allege a pattern of longstanding and systematic failure by Mercer Super to comply with the law”. She concluded that Mercer Super’s alleged conduct falls well below what ASIC expects of a trustee of its size and market position. Last August, in a separate case, Mercer Super was fined over US$ 7 million after it admitted making misleading statements about the sustainable nature and characteristics of some of its superannuation investment options.

The Business Council of Australia estimates that there is more than nearly US$ 72 billion in ‘red tape’ burdens and has called for a 25% cut in regulatory compliance burdens by 2030. Consequently, it has proposed that nuisance regulatory burdens, be removed, other regulations be nationally consistent and to and a “better regulation minister” be appointed to fight the accumulation of compliance measures. The business body commented that years of accumulated regulations – that have built up with little oversight – have led to a compliance burden needlessly costing billions in wasted funds. It is over eleven years ago that the Abbott government carried out any type of significant audit and there is no central agency tasked with preventing the build-up of rules duplications and inconsistencies. The BCA added that “the only way to sustainably lift living standards and grow real wages is through faster productivity growth,” and that any reduction in red tape will help with improving the work process. It has already identified sixty-two discrete examples that would improve the work environment; they include, to:

• harmonise disparate schemes requiring businesses to comply with eight different regulatory regimes across states and territories
• relax trading and delivery hours for retailers
• fix licensing rules for tradespeople, so that qualifications are recognised across border
• remove ageing laws holding up housing, resources and renewables projects, widely viewed as “broken”

(Even Rachel Reeves has got into the act, with plans to strip back environmental protections in a belated attempt to boost the economy by speeding up infrastructure projects).

Last week the Reserve Bank of Australia revised down it expectations for future productivity growth, as this national alliance of some thirty industry groups said productivity growth over the last decade was the worst it has been in sixty years, and that has also led to the slowest decade in income growth, over that period. It commented that even a 1% in the compliance burden would equate to a US$ 650 million saving, with its chief executive asking “are there opportunities to consider overlaps, and where there are overlaps dispense with one of the overlaps? Do we really need, for instance, thirty-six different licences in Victoria in order to pour a first cup of coffee”?

On Monday, the Federal Court of Australia fined Qantas Airways US$ 59 million for illegally sacking 1.82k ground staff and replacing them with contractors during the Covid pandemic; US$ 33 million of the fine will be paid to the Transport Workers’ Union, which brought the case on behalf of the sacked staff. This comes after Qantas and the TWU agreed on a US$ 78 million settlement for the sacked workers. In imposing the fine, which was near to the maximum allowed under the legislation, the judge said it was to ensure it “could not be perceived as anything like the cost of doing business”, adding that “my present focus is on achieving real deterrence (including general deterrence to large public companies which might be tempted to ‘get away’ with contravening conduct because the rewards may outweigh the downside risk of effective remedial responses”.

S&P Global’s flash US Composite PMI Output Index for August increased 0.3, on the month, to 55.4 – its highest level since December 2024; the main driver behind this improvement was the manufacturing sector seeing its strongest growth in orders since the beginning of 2024. The flash PMI surged by 3.5 to 53.3 – the highest since May 2022 – with many analysts looking to a second month of contraction. This robust set of figures indicates an economy that is expanding at an annual rate of 2.5%, almost double that of the average 1.3% expansion seen over the first two quarters of the year. The improvement came largely from the manufacturing sector, where the flash PMI surged to 53.3 – the highest since May 2022 – from 49.8 in July and defying economists’ expectations for a second month of contraction. Meanwhile, the services sector dipped 0.3 to 55.4, with economists forecasting a much lower figure of 54.2. Trump tariffs were mainly responsible for a 1.0 hike, to 62.3, of prices paid by businesses for inputs, with both the services and manufacturing sectors reporting higher costs.  The survey’s measure of prices charged by businesses for goods and services rose to a three-year high of 59.3 – a sure sign that companies are increasingly passing along the higher costs to consumers. The composite employment index for both manufacturing and services rose from July’s 51.5 to 52.8.

Last month, Donald Trump said pharmaceuticals and semiconductors were not covered by the US-EU ‘handshake trade deal’ which would have meant respective tariffs of 250% and 100%. Now it seems that both tariffs will be limited to 15%, in line with most other sectors in the trade deal; the EU will have to reduce their car tariffs from 27.5% to 10.0%. Both sides noted that this was a “first step in a process” that could be expanded as the relationship develops.

Reports indicate that the Starmer administration is becoming increasingly concerned that UK semiconductor companies could be charged up to an unlikely 300% in Trump tariffs. Whitehall is awaiting an executive order from the United States “which will provide clarity” on reports of plans to impose “significant tariffs” on chip imports. It has also contacted industry companies in the country for their feedback on the potential impact of any change in the trade regime and for “any suggestions you would like to share with the negotiating team”.  Last Friday, the US President announced that “I’ll be setting tariffs next week and the week after, on steel and on, I would, say chips — chips and semiconductors, we’ll be setting sometime next week, week after. I’m going to have a rate that is going to be 200%, 300%”.

According to Rightmove, the August average UK asking house price fell 1.3% to US$ 499.3k. There appears to be a glut of properties for sale, and this follows “bigger than usual falls in June and July”. Although house prices typically decline  in the month of August, buyers have been tempted by large reductions in asking prices from sellers trying to  ‘escape’ from a declining marketThe number of house sales agreed last month rose 8.0% on the year, making this July the busiest in terms of sales since 2020, when the post-lockdown “race for space”, fuelled by the stamp duty holiday, began.

The last time government borrowing had reached so low was in July 2021, at the height of the pandemic. The Office for National Statistics posted that July 2025 net borrowing was at US$ 148.23 billion, (GBP 1.10 billion), driven by increases in tax and national insurance receipts. Despite the welcome good news for the Chancellor, borrowing was still US$ 8.09 billion higher in the first four months of the UK fiscal year, ending 31 July. The amount of interest paid on government debt was at US$ 9.57 billion – 2.8% higher on the year – with the cost of borrowing having risen in recent months, down to the increased interest rate investors demand on loans via UK gilt bonds.

Rachel Reeves received another body blow this week, with news that the headline rate of inflation had nudged 0.2% higher in July to 3.8% – its highest level in eighteen months and towards the end of the Sunak government. The main drivers behind the upward movement were increasing transport costs, particularly air fares, and rising food price inflation, as coffee, meat and chocolate posted the biggest rises.  Core inflation – which excludes energy, food, alcohol and tobacco prices – was 0.1% lower at 4.2%, whilst services inflation remained flat at 5.2%. It seems highly likely that the inflation rate could hit 4.0% in September – another problem for the Chancellor to surmount in her October budget. She must be asking herself – ‘When Will It Ever End’?