🇬🇧 The UK beat America

What’s going on here?

The UK announced that inflation was bang on target for the first time in three years, earning the country serious bragging rights over Europe and the US.

What does this mean?

British inflation came in at 2% for May, marking a major milestone in the fight against the steepest price rises in a generation. But the battle isn’t won yet. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is still well above target at 3.5%. Services inflation is proving stubborn too, improving by only a smidge over the last month. So while the headline figure puts the Bank of England on track for interest rate cuts later this year, it won’t be rushing into anything. That’s why traders aren’t unanimously expecting the first cut until November – and why you can’t bank on any trimming of the 16-year-high interest rate from the central bank’s next announcement on Thursday.

Why should I care?

For markets: Hare and the tortoise.

The UK’s win puts the country ahead of the US and eurozone in their efforts to calm inflation. That’s some underdog story. British inflation notched the highest peaks and slowest drops out of the trio, making it seem that the UK would be stuck in the mud for the longest. But then, inflation started slipping in Blighty without budging elsewhere. The exact reason is hard to pinpoint, but aggressive rate hikes, effective energy price caps, and a stable currency will all certainly have helped.

The bigger picture: The win is a loss in disguise.

Remember, though, that even 2% inflation means prices are still rising. In fact, Brits are now up against prices that are more than 20% higher than they were in 2020. And unless the country's bosses suddenly do a synchronized act of goodwill and make wages high enough to cover that price increase, many households will continue to feel the strain.

What’s going on here?

Fisker filed for bankruptcy, becoming the latest EV maker to end up beaten and bruised by the volatile auto market.

What does this mean?

Fisker went public in 2020 and hit a peak valuation just shy of $8 billion in early 2021. But since then, it’s been stuck in reverse. The US firm fell short of sales targets in both Europe and the US last year, not least because it delivered only half of the roughly 10,000 new SUV models it made. To make matters worse, Fisker couldn’t snag financing from any major automaker. That forced it to halt operations, pause manufacturing, and cut its workforce. And those aren’t the only problems under the hood: Fisker’s cars are under investigation by the US auto safety regulator over complaints about their braking system.

Why should I care?

Zooming out: Slamming on the brakes.

Fisker is the latest casualty of the EV industry’s cutthroat climate, which recently sent Lordstown Motors and Arrival into the scrapyard. Supply chain issues, a price-cutting war between Tesla and Chinese producers, and trade tariffs have all hammered companies’ bottom lines. That, at a time when demand is waning. Drivers have been put off by generally high prices, as well as concerns about sparse charging points. It hasn't helped that high borrowing rates have made it tough for smaller brands to reach the manufacturing scale needed to pad out profit margins.

The bigger picture: The self-fulfilling pricing prophecy.

Cost-conscious eco-warriors might be able to nab a deal, though. Companies are making more cars than they’re selling, so they’re cutting prices to shift them. That’s making models – especially used ones – that bit more affordable. Case in point: the average price of a used EV fell below that of regular cars for the first time in February, and that gap is only getting wider. Problem is, that’s hardly incentivizing anyone to buy expensive, top-of-the-line EVs.