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PM Sunak has said “confidence is returning”, after official data showed the economy expanded by more than predicted in the month of January. The economy grew by 0.3% in January, following a sharp contraction of 0.5% in December. Higher school attendance and the return of Premier League football are believed to have contributed. All eyes are now on Chancellor Hunt’s as we await his economic plans in the Budget later this week.

While unemployment in the US edged marginally higher from 3.4% to 3.6%, the jobs market remains robust, as employers added 311K jobs in February. While the data reflects positively on the resilience of the economy, it comes as a hit to the Fed in their battle to cool inflation. Fed chairman Powell warned last week that the bank may raise rates faster and further than expected, adding that he was worried progress was stalling. He cited the strong jobs market as one of the factors maintaining pressure on prices.

Last week marked the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. With $212bn in assets and a market cap of $16bn as recently as Wednesday, it is the largest bank to collapse since 2008. While the underlying problems are not the same as in the lead-up to the financial crisis, SVB may only be the first sign of pain in an era where higher rates are required by banks. In markets, bank stocks took a heavy blow over contagion fears. JPM and BofA shares fell over 5% on Thursday, with some European banks sliding on Friday as well.