Beat the cost of living crisis – go on holiday
As inflation rages, energy bills soar and the pound tanks, what’s a good way to save money this winter? Go on holiday, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
What a thing it must be to unexpectedly find yourself prime minister – or chancellor. What a thing it must also be to find yourself in one of those situation when it’s all going wrong.
Prices in the UK are still rising fast (not just for households, companies are being hit by the energy bill madness too). Economists used to think inflation would peak around 10% – and that was considered a bit out there. Now forecasts of 20% aren’t considered out there at all (analysts at Goldman Sachs are forecasting 22% by next year). Interest rates are set to keep rising (perhaps to an almost historically normal sounding 4% or so). House prices are beginning to stall in response (flattish in July and August on the latest numbers from Halifax).
There could be a sterling crisis under way. The stockmarket isn’t exactly covering itself in glory: the FTSE 250 is down 21% year to date and the latest data from the Investment Association shows money pouring out of UK equities. Total outflows from UK open-ended funds by retail investors come to some £11.5bn this year already. We think there is significant value in the UK equity market (valuations are far from challenging). Clearly not everyone agrees.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Liz Truss would have known as she stepped through the door of No.10 this week that she hasn’t got much time to have a bash at sorting things out. In a sense that gives her a huge opportunity to be radical: with two years left to a general election and her party very behind in the polls what’s the downside (for her at least) to being radical? We look at her first attempts at this in politics, but are also watching to see what might come next.
A good time for a holiday
Tiny silver linings for you. First savings rates have risen a little – it is now possible to get 3.5% on your savings (a mere seven percentage points or so less than inflation!).
Second, the Daily Mail has come up with an utterly brilliant way for you to save money: leave the UK. Not for ever, of course, but for at least a few weeks of what looks like it will be an unpleasantly expensive (and angry) winter.
If you go to Valencia, you can apparently pick up a three-week cruise to Dubai for £775 a head all inclusive. That looks pretty good (too good to be true?) if you consider that the average monthly household budget in the UK based on 2.4 people is around £2,500 – and that’s before taking into account inflation. Otherwise there is a nice looking 17-night cruise from Genoa to Port Canaveral for £749.
Or perhaps, if you want to stay closer to home and cut the travel-to-boat cost, consider a ten-day round trip from Marseille (taking in Lisbon at one end and Sardinia at the other) for just £789. None of these will feel like the most luxurious trip you’ve ever been on (think cheap wine and an inside lower deck cabin), but I’m not sure staying at home is going to feel that good either.
Sign up to Money Morning
Our team, led by award winning editors, is dedicated to delivering you the top news, analysis, and guides to help you manage your money, grow your investments and build wealth.
Merryn Somerset Webb started her career in Tokyo at public broadcaster NHK before becoming a Japanese equity broker at what was then Warburgs. She went on to work at SBC and UBS without moving from her desk in Kamiyacho (it was the age of mergers).
After five years in Japan she returned to work in the UK at Paribas. This soon became BNP Paribas. Again, no desk move was required. On leaving the City, Merryn helped The Week magazine with its City pages before becoming the launch editor of MoneyWeek in 2000 and taking on columns first in the Sunday Times and then in 2009 in the Financial Times
Twenty years on, MoneyWeek is the best-selling financial magazine in the UK. Merryn was its Editor in Chief until 2022. She is now a senior columnist at Bloomberg and host of the Merryn Talks Money podcast - but still writes for Moneyweek monthly.
Merryn is also is a non executive director of two investment trusts – BlackRock Throgmorton, and the Murray Income Investment Trust.
-
8 of the best houses for sale with libraries
This week: the best houses for sale with libraries – from a five-storey Georgian townhouse in Bloomsbury, London, to a 15th-century property with a library in a medieval tower in Lozère, France
By Natasha Langan Published
-
Investors pull money from UK equities as government warns of “painful” Budget
The government’s post-election honeymoon period has been short-lived, and investors are shying away from UK equities as a result
By Katie Williams Published
-
UK wages grow at a record pace
The latest UK wages data will add pressure on the BoE to push interest rates even higher.
By Nicole García Mérida Published
-
Trapped in a time of zombie government
It’s not just companies that are eking out an existence, says Max King. The state is in the twilight zone too.
By Max King Published
-
America is in deep denial over debt
The downgrade in America’s credit rating was much criticised by the US government, says Alex Rankine. But was it a long time coming?
By Alex Rankine Published
-
UK economy avoids stagnation with surprise growth
Gross domestic product increased by 0.2% in the second quarter and by 0.5% in June
By Pedro Gonçalves Published
-
Bank of England raises interest rates to 5.25%
The Bank has hiked rates from 5% to 5.25%, marking the 14th increase in a row. We explain what it means for savers and homeowners - and whether more rate rises are on the horizon
By Ruth Emery Published
-
UK wage growth hits a record high
Stubborn inflation fuels wage growth, hitting a 20-year record high. But unemployment jumps
By Vaishali Varu Published
-
UK inflation remains at 8.7% ‒ what it means for your money
Inflation was unmoved at 8.7% in the 12 months to May. What does this ‘sticky’ rate of inflation mean for your money?
By John Fitzsimons Published
-
VICE bankruptcy: how did it happen?
Was the VICE bankruptcy inevitable? We look into how the once multibillion-dollar came crashing down.
By Jane Lewis Published