Shares in the UK’s leading companies have closed at a post-pandemic high after hopes of economic recovery and calming words from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) boosted the optimism of investors.The FTSE 100 index rose by 86 points to 6,823 points, a level last seen in early 2020 before the Covid-19 virus arrived in Britain, while the more br...

Plans are being rekindled and bookings made in the diary. From the high street, the shops, pubs and restaurants of Britain may remain largely in darkness, but preparations are accelerating behind the scenes for the easing of lockdown.After more than a quarter of the year with no customers coming through their doors, non-essential shops and hospital...

The chancellor has borrowed an unprecedented amount of money. Who is lending it to him, and where did they get it?Sean Boyle, LondonPost new questions below or send them to nq@theguardian.com. Readers replyMuch of it is coming from the Bank of England (BoE) – in effect it’s printing money. This is not as bad as it seems as money has been “destroyed...

From a European perspective, Joe Biden’s plans for a $2 trillion boost to spending on infrastructure is not a radical statement of intent. The money will be spread over eight years and raise the federal budget on capital projects by about 1 percentage point a year.And the US is starting from a very low base. Congress levies federal taxes that amoun...

There can be few people who have not at some stage in their lives felt that they had been “taken for a ride” or conned. Yet that, I think, will be the dawning realisation of a fair proportion of the 37% of the electorate who – without, in most cases, having the faintest idea of the implications – voted on 23 June 2016 to leave the European Union.No...

The US labor market went on a hiring spree in March, adding 916,000 jobs amid the fast-paced coronavirus vaccine rollout.The unemployment rate edged down to 6% as businesses across the country started opening up and rehiring.The surge in hiring was the highest since August last year and was fueled by “the continued resumption of economic activity t...

The mighty US dollar continues to reign supreme in global markets. But the greenback’s dominance may well be more fragile than it appears, because expected future changes in China’s exchange-rate regime are likely to trigger a significant shift in the international monetary order.For many reasons, the Chinese authorities will probably someday stop ...

Factories across the world reported surging orders in March as the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines accelerated and the $2tn of public investment announced by the Biden administration lifted confidence in a sustained global recovery. The likelihood of interest rates remaining at historic lows, and the prospect of consumers unlocking some o...

Approximately 2 million of the UK’s lowest-paid workers will receive a raise from Thursday after increases to statutory minimum wage rates. However, many workers are unlikely to feel better off as the pay rise comes on the same day as inflation-busting increases hit household bills.Workers aged 23-24 are expected be the biggest beneficiaries after ...

Joe Biden will unveil an expansive $2tn proposal to rebuild the country’s infrastructure, confront climate change and curb wealth inequality, part of a sweeping spending package that could define the president’s economic legacy.Biden’s plan, which he will lay out at a speech in Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon, includes “historic and galvanizing” ...