Inflation figures due out this week are expected to show price growth in October back above the Bank of England’s target, endorsing calls for a cautious approach to cutting interest rates.

Forecasters say the consumer price index will come in at 2.2%, up from 1.7% in September when it slipped below the BOE’s 2% target for the first time in more than three years.

The latest figure will take into account the 1 October lifting of the Ofgem price cap for domestic energy prices, which has seen gas and electricity bills rise again. A further rise of £19 a year from January is predicted by Cornwall Insight when the regulator Ofgem announces the new price cap on Friday, 

Global oil prices have softened by around 10% over the month, but spot natural gas prices have surged by about 30%. Petrol prices have been falling and are significantly lower than in October 2023, but natural gas prices are around 14% higher than the same month last year.

Earlier this month the Bank of England cut the base interest rate by 25 percentage points to 4.75%. But a second cut that had been expected on 19 December is now less certain following the likely inflationary effects of the 30 October Budget.

The Bank of England now forecasts that the Budget’s new fiscal measures will add 0.50 percentage points to CPI and boost GDP by 0.75 percentage points.

Calnex Solutions

Scottish telecoms testing equipment supplier Calnex Solutions reports half-year figures on Tuesday when investors will be hoping for a positive update on new product launches.

In a trading statement in August the Linlithgow-based company said the market has remained challenging throughout the first four months of the financial year.

The board told investors at the AGM that while activity levels across the sector are generally expected to stay at subdued levels for the remainder of the year, the fundamental need for the company’s testing solutions remains strong.

It said it was encouraged by the early successes of Calnex’s new product launches, which are expected to underpin the company’s return to growth in H2 FY25.

The company’s new channel partner network is now operational, covering the group’s operations in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, as well as Asia-Pacific, including those which were previously covered by the Spirent relationship.

DIARY

Monday 18 November

• First-half results from Big Yellow and Sirius Real Estate
• Rightmove UK house price index
• G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro (first day of two)
• Offshore Energies UK releases latest decommissioning report

Tuesday 19 November

• First-half results from Calnex Solutions, CML Microsystems, Revolution Beauty, GB Group and Gear4Music
• EU inflation
• G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro (second day of two)

Wednesday 20 November

• Full-year results from Sage, Mitchells & Butlers and Tracsis
• UK inflation
• New Scottish Affairs Committee meets
• In the US, quarterly results from Nvidia

Thursday 21 November

• Full-year results from Britvic and Grainger
• First-half results from Jet2, Mitie, Speedy Hire, Norcros and Warehouse REIT
• Trading statements from JD Sports Fashion, Crest Nicholson and Breedon
• UK government borrowing
• US weekly unemployment claims

Friday 22 November

• First-half results from Workspace
• UK GfK consumer confidence
• UK retail sales
• Ofgen announces energry price cap