Schuh Group Wealth Advisers’ Post

With the federal budget being released on April 16th here is a quick read on the current state of the nations finances and how that might impact the budget. https://lnkd.in/gMfmxXqH

The IFS are the go-to-guys on Budget day. The plan had been to borrow an average of £59 billion per year over the next four years. With this Budget that rises to £85 billion. Reeves hopes that the benefits – from more funding for public services in the next couple of years, and from more public investment throughout the parliament – will more than offset the costs which include higher debt servicing costs but also, according to the OBR, higher inflation and higher interest rates than we’d otherwise have seen. As Paul Johnson says: “A lot now hinges on how well the government spends the money. The additional investment is extremely front-loaded, which doesn’t fill me with confidence on how efficiently it will be spent - if indeed it is spent in that timescale.” That, to me, is a not-so-subtle thumbs down.

Spring Budget 2024 – a policy ‘spring clean’? The Spring Budget this year felt curiously low key given the continuing speculation (including by some Labour frontbenchers) that an election could be called as early as May. In reality, much of the coverage focused on the absence of any pre-election ‘big bang’ announcement or ‘giveaways’ as had been called for by many Conservative MPs, notwithstanding the second successive cut to National Insurance and further support for families – this time child benefit.   The backdrop provided by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) showed that the overall economic and fiscal outlook is similar to the position at the time of the Autumn Statement in November. While growth has disappointed since then – the so-called ‘technical’ recession – a steeper fall in inflation and interest rates should support a stronger recovery and enable a faster recovery in living standards. Even so, the OBR sees the medium-term economic outlook as remaining challenging. See Edward Clarke's full blog here: https://lnkd.in/eBeV_KKs

🧾 Australian Federal Budget 2024-25 Summary 🧾 "Surplus and cost of living relief take the spotlight in the Australian Federal Budget, yet deficits are projected ahead and small businesses seem to lack support. Dive into CPA Australia’s analysis of Treasurer Jim Chalmer’s Budget 2024." Check out the CPA's summary below if you haven't read it yet, need a refresher, or just want some bedtime reading! 📚 ⬇️⬇️⬇️ #FederalBudget #CPAAustralia #BudgetAnalysis Alex Da Silva, CA Craig Youngson

Here's our round-up of yesterday's Spring budget summary! https://lnkd.in/ed-UUvH4 #Budget2024 #springbudget2024

Budget 2024: Fairness for Every Generation has been tabled. Dive into our analysis, encompassing key commitments, forecasts, and political reactions to Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland's fourth federal budget. Read now: https://bit.ly/3JkRg3t #federalbudget #cdnpoli

Insights on the 2024-25 Federal Budget The 2024-25 Federal Budget forecasts a surplus of $9.3 billion for 2023-24, with projected deficits in the subsequent years, specifically $28.3 billion next year. With its mix of immediate relief and strategic investments, the Budget aims to balance short-term economic pressures with sustainable growth. We’ll take a closer look at some of the specific announcements made in this Budget. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gdJMGZsW #FederalBudget #EconomicForecast #AusBudget20242025

UK Spring Budget 2024: What was announced? Before the Spring Statement was announced last week, there was a lot of speculation surrounding what it might include. Back in November, the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget had a focus on aspects like national insurance, economic growth, minimum wage, full expensing, and inflation. But did this new update cover similar themes? In our latest blog, Matthew Muldoon (VP of Financial Management Solutions at Advanced) assesses how the government’s plans have progressed since the autumn, highlighting some of the predictions that were made before Wednesday’s announcement, and then unpicking the key points to emerge from it: ➡https://lnkd.in/eRqsBYWy #SpringStatement #EconomicForecast #FinanceInsights

Budget deficit predicted bigger than expected $33.5 B vs $28.3 B & speculation the election will happen BEFORE the next budget via Deloitte Access Economics Partner Stephen Smith edition of Budget Monitor - "Soft landing, hard truths" Key points from the report for the APS & Canberra recruitment market - With speculation that the next federal budget will be handed down after the election rather than before, the figures in the 2024-25 MYEFO will take on added meaning for the campaign ahead.  - At a minimum, Deloitte Access Economics expects a range of cost-of-living ‘relief’ to be renewed for the 2025-26 financial year – no political party wants to go to an election with a promise to increase energy bills. And there will be pressure on both the government and the opposition to promise more to support households in what is likely to be a fiercely competitive campaign. . - Budget forecasts " The highwire budget balancing act confronting the Federal Government has only intensified over the last six months, with weak economic conditions, recalcitrant inflation and a looming federal election ratcheting up the degree of difficulty facing those in charge of the national purse strings.  The link to this very well written and interesting report is linked in comments below.