Are income funds holding back the UK recovery?

When Chancellor George Osborne stood up to deliver last week's Autumn Statement, there was little doubt he felt more bullish than in 2012.

Whatever the merits of trends such as the reignition of the housing market, there is no denying UK economic data has been improving in 2013. Business investment, however, remains one piece of the puzzle yet to fall into place. UK business investment rose by a quarterly 1.4% in Q3, according to the latest Office for National Statistics data, but we have been here before: the measure rose by 1.7% in Q1 before dropping 2.7% in Q2. There are signs the economy is beginning to move out of the flatlining phase, and perhaps capital expenditure will follow suit in the coming quarters. But it i...