by Calculated Risk on 2/09/2008 06:37:00 PM

From The Times: Britain ‘facing huge job losses’

TWO in every five employers plan redundancies over the next three months ... [according to] the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development ... Its winter labour market outlook ... is set to show that 38% of the more than 1,500 employers surveyed plan redundancies over the next three months, with a quarter intending to let go at least 10 employees.

Although it is normal for a proportion of employers to be planning redundancies, the latest figure is sharply up on the 17% number three months ago.

On the plus side, the article mentions that British consumer spending was "resilient" in January.

And from the Telegraph: Increasing home repossessions to hit 12-year high

House repossessions are expected to hit a 12-year high this year, with 45,000 owners seeing their homes taken away, experts warned yesterday.
...
With a growing number of lenders refusing to offer mortgages to those with a poor credit history, many people in financial trouble are expected to find their finances even more stretched. The CML is predicting that 45,000 homes will be repossessed this year. This would still be some way off the crash in 1991, when 75,500 were repossessed.

R&R in Britain: Redundancies and Repossessions.