How Is the U.K.’S Tax Policy Change Impacting the Market?

Tuesday saw a continuation of the previous day’s gains in global equities thanks to Britain’s decision to abandon a contentious tax-cut proposal and somewhat diminished expectations for strong central bank action.

British Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng announced Monday that the government is withdrawing its plan to scrap tax cuts for high earners as a stimulus package. The unfunded £45 billion tax cut that sent the pound to a record low and crashed the gold market is just one small part of the plan.

However, it was enough to ease the market’s recent jitters. Sterling should recover most of its losses as the Bank of England rushes to buy bonds.

Rates In Favor of the Investors

Australia’s central bank raised interest rates far less than anticipated adding to investors’ comfort after one of the most turbulent quarters in recent memory in the three months to September. Poorer reading of American manufacturing activity tempered the Fed’s expectations for more significant rate increases.

CaxtonFX chief analyst Michael Brown explained that this optimism might not be warranted, according to some analysts. He believes that won’t happen. Despite its dual mandate, the Fed has become a central bank with only one objective: to return inflation to its 2% target. It is hard to imagine a change until inflation rates improve in a few months. Another 75bp move will be a key case for next month’s decision. With that in mind, it’s hard to take big risks.

The MSCI All-World index was last up 0.8% for the day, while European equities had a good rebound, with the Stoxx 600 trading close to 2% higher and London’s FTSE up more than 1%. The pound increased 0.6% versus the dollar to $1.1390. Since the mini-budget, the pound’s value has increased by almost 10%.