Grim outlook on the High Street
Today, it's the economy, stupid, yet again! Last night the Dow closed under 8,000 and the FTSE is currently trading under 4,000 -- both dire indications that all the recent rallies have been only dead cat bounces. I fear this could be the case for the rest of the year into 2009 and the doldrums on stock markets will continue to take their toll in the "real economy". 
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worldwide, the outlook on the high street is grim -- and will no doubt get grimmer when the latest retail sales figures come out this morning. Things are so bad you could buy Woolies for a pound -- though you'd then be lumbered with a ton of debt. So probably best not to do it.
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Yesterday's PMQs was dominated by frontbench exchanges about the banks and whether or not they are lending enough to businesses and house-buyers. Figures out this morning say mortgage lending went up a bit in October but all three major parties are united in saying the banks are not doing enough. We'll be looking today at the deal they're giving consumers today, from mortgages to savings to credit cards.Ìý
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All this ahead of the Darling v Osborne pre-budget showdown on Monday afternoon, which we'll bring you live on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ2 and ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ News Channel from 3pm. Today we'll be profiling Gideon George Osborne, who hasn't had the best press recently and party activists are starting to blame his lacklustre performance on the economy for the slump in the Tory lead in the polls.Ìý
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We'reÌýalso talking to Joanne Lumley about the Ghurkas and our guest of the day is columnist Simon Jenkins, who's taking over the National Trust.ÌýÌýThat's all on the Daily Politics at Noon on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ2 today.
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