Economic Outlook - What is ITEM Club - Ernst & Young - United Kingdom

The ITEM Club is one of the UK’s best-known independent economic forecasting groups. Its quarterly forecasts and special reports consistently achieve widespread coverage from the UK and international press, who frequently refer to ITEM as ‘respected’, ‘leading’, ‘authoritative’ and ‘trusted’.

'ITEM' stands for ‘Independent Treasury Economic Model’ and the ITEM Club is the only non-governmental forecasting group to use the same economic model for its UK forecasts as HM Treasury and the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). This means that the ITEM Club is in an unrivalled position to test whether Government claims are consistent and whether its forecasts are credible.

The ITEM Club was founded in 1977 by a number of major companies who wanted to share the cost of economic forecasting (Ernst & Young is not a member but is the sole sponsor). Members span a range of industry sectors, and have the opportunity to discuss each forecast before it is finalised so that it can take account of their current business experience. This ensures that ITEM’s forecasts and analyses are particularly relevant for business and are not just academic or theoretical.

Ernst & Young and the ITEM Club: Ernst & Young has been the sole sponsor of the ITEM Club since 1988. Untied sponsorship by Ernst & Young ensures that ITEM's forecasts are independent of any political, economic or business bias. All forecasts, analyses and commentary are those of the ITEM Club and the views expressed may or may not be those of Ernst & Young.

Ernst & Young produces a quarterly 4-page summary of each UK forecast, Economic Outlook for Business, and provides access to ITEM reports on the overview page of this section.

The ITEM Club's forecasts and reports are intended to provide only a general outline of the subjects covered. They should neither be regarded as comprehensive nor sufficient for making decisions, nor should they be used in place of professional advice. Neither The ITEM Club Limited nor Ernst & Young LLP accepts any responsibility for loss arising from any action taken or not taken by anyone using such material.

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