The on again-off again nature of the summer, followed by a short-lived early Autumn heatwave, mirrored some of the economic news of the last months. Growth has edged up, then down, as has inflation, with interest rates still high before an expected slow decline later in the year. By mid-September the average rate of wage increases had finally caught up with inflation and those higher interest rates have been filtering down to savers.
Our feature for this edition of our newsletter highlights these changes while considering the broader investment landscape – government bonds are also showing much more positive returns. For investors and those looking for income from their capital, market conditions have created more options.
The latest figures published by HMRC show how many more people are affected by the on-going tax threshold freezes and static level of personal allowance. You may be caught up as the number of higher rate taxpayers is predicted to increase yet again in 2023/24 to a likely 18% of all those paying tax, up from 13.9% in 2020/21.
Our other stories include:
- Beyond a minimum retirement
- The dividend or bonus decision
- Managing your pension legacy
