Global confidence dips

Bloomberg reports confidence in the world economy dipped in November as central banks’ actions to withdraw some stimulus measures sparked concern about the strength of the recovery, a Bloomberg survey of users on six continents showed.

The Bloomberg Professional Global Confidence Index fell to 60.3 from 61.7 in October, the highest level in the series that began two years ago. The index exceeded 50 for a fourth month, which means there were more optimists than pessimists.

The survey follows steps by central banks including the Federal Reserve to start unwinding emergency measures, seeking to avoid market distortions that may spur bubbles in assets from stocks and commodities to real estate. The shift comes at a time when unemployment is still rising in the U.S. and Europe, threatening a nascent recovery as consumers limit spending.

UK

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said today that UK economy faces a “hard path” back to health and he has an “open mind” on further bond purchases, which is part of the £200 billion programme of pumping money into the economy.

“Even if we get significant positive growth rates in the future, we have a long way to go to get back to where we were,”King said at a press conference where he launched the bank's inflation report.

Deputy Governor Charles Bean said credit remains  tight and there are signs some companies are turning away orders because of a lack of capital.

“We have a completely open mind as to whether to do more asset purchases or not,” King said.

The Office for National Statistics said earlier today that the number claiming unemployment benefit rose by just 12,900 last month.

The number of people without a job, using the International Labour Organisation measure,  rose by 30,000 in the three months to September to 2.46 million, the smallest increase since March-May 2008.

The unemployment rate was at 7.8%.

Earnings growth was at an annual rate 1.2% rate, including bonuses in the three months to September.

Separate figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders showed that the number of mortgages advanced for house purchase rose by 2% during September after dropping during August.

The pound fell against all major currencies.

The Bank of England “raised the inflation profile, as you would expect because interest rates are lower, sterling is lower, the global economy is stronger,” Geoffrey Dicks from NOVUS Capital Markets told CNBC Wednesday. "There’s still upside in their mind for getting inflation higher,” he added. Alain Schibl, co-chairman of Duet Asset Management, joined the discussion: