Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said the first interest rate reduction is still “some way off” despite signals that borrowing costs have probably peaked, Bloomberg News reported. Addressing the central bank’s regional agents after the deeply split vote to maintain the key rate at 5.25%, Pill said policy needed to remain “restrictive until the consistent component of inflation has been squeezed out of the system.” The remarks tempered expectations on a rapid series of rate cuts this year.

The Bank of England left its key interest rate unchanged but signaled it is likely to lower borrowing costs this year for the first time since 2020, though perhaps not as soon as investors expect, the Wall Street Journal reported. The U.K. central bank’s move followed a similar pivot by the Federal Reserve, which Wednesday signaled it was thinking about when to lower interest rates but hinted a cut wasn’t imminent when it held rates steady. Last week, the European Central Bank left its key rate at a record high but kept open the door to cuts as soon as the spring.

Business insolvencies in Northern Ireland soared by 62% in the final quarter of 2023 compared to the previous year, government figures show, the Irish News reported. But on the flip side, more than 13,200 start-ups were launched over the last 12 months. There were 81 company insolvencies in the north in the October-December period, according to the Insolvency Service, taking the total number of business failures over the calendar year to more than 200.

The number of companies going bust in the UK jumped to the highest level in 30 years as businesses were hit by a combination of high borrowing costs, surging inflation and weakening consumer demand, Bloomberg News reported. In 2023, there were 25,158 registered company insolvencies across England and Wales, according to quarterly data released on Tuesday by the government’s Insolvency Service. That’s the most recorded since 1993. One in 186 active companies entered insolvent liquidation in 2023, the highest rate in around a decade.

The UK construction sector is facing an “immensely difficult period” after 4,370 construction companies went bust over the past year, according to new data, The Independent reported. The sector has experienced the highest number of bankruptcies of any industry in the UK for the past three years, according to auditing firm Mazars. In the year to the end of November, 4,370 companies went insolvent compared to 4,086 in 2021/22 and 2,481 in 2020/21. This reflected a 7% increase in insolvencies from 2021/22 and 76% in 2020/21 due to high material and labour costs.

Job vacancies in the UK fell by the most in more than three years in December, another sign a red-hot labor market is cooling, Bloomberg News reported. Figures in latest Job Market Report published by online portal Adzuna showed advertised vacancies declined 6.95% in December, the largest drop since June 2020. Early data suggests January will see a similar sized fall, marking what could be the start of difficult year for jobseekers, Adzuna said. The shift may ease upward pressure on wages that’s been a symptom of persistent inflationary pressures the Bank of England is trying to rein in.

A luxury development in the heart of Mayfair has collapsed into administration, after defaulting on its loans, Bloomberg News reported. 60 Curzon, a set of 32 apartments designed by the French architect Thierry Despont, has appointed insolvency experts from Interpath Advisory. The project, which was developed by Brockton Capital and financed by funds managed by Apollo Global Management Inc., will continue to be marketed. It is majority owned by two Chinese investment firms, Citic Capital and Cindat which bought their stake from Brockton in 2016.

The UK government has launched a new investigation into the takeover of the Telegraph Media Group backed by the United Arab Emirates, prolonging the uncertainty over the newspaper group’s future, Bloomberg News reported. The move effectively resets the ongoing probe that was set to present its findings on Friday and extends the deadline to March 11.

The UK government handed English councils a £600 million ($765 million) top-up to their budgets for the next financial year after concerns that a wave of local authorities were heading toward bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported. Michael Gove, secretary of state for leveling up, housing and communities, on Wednesday announced a £500 million funding boost for councils responsible for providing social care services. An extra £100 million is provided to ensure local authorities see at least a 4% rise in their spending power and for other measures, such as rural services.

British electric-vehicle company Arrival is heading closer to insolvency after lining up a new set of advisers to oversee contingency planning, Sky News reported on Monday. The company is in talks with accounting firm EY about acting as administrator if it cannot secure rescue funding, the report added. EV firms that went public in the SPAC boom during the pandemic capitalized on strong demand from investors looking for the next Tesla. However, high interest rates, inflation, supply chain issues and production struggles have sapped their cash balances with few or no vehicles on roads.