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All Financial News
The latest financial news:
March 15, 2010
by Kay Murchie
The Government-led crackdown on credit card companies is expected to save consumers around £300 million a year.
The crackdown comes after the Government warned credit and store card firms to “clean up their act” after it launched a review of the industry in a consumer White Paper in July 2009.
According to Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, the cost of borrowing ...
by Kay Murchie
Moody's Investors Services has today announced the credit ratings of the world’s four largest AAA-rated nations are viewed as safe.
According to Moody’s, the world's four largest AAA-rated sovereign nations, which include Germany, France, the UK and the US are currently "well positioned despite their stretched finances".
In its quarterly report assessing the prospects of the triple A-rated countries, Moody’s said ...
by Kay Murchie
Bank of England policymaker, Kate Barker, said the UK is unlikely to return to recession.
In an interview over the weekend, Ms Barker, who is a former housing adviser to the Government, said it is possible, however, that the economy could contract for one quarter.
"It's possible we will have a quarter when GDP falls, but I don't ...
by David Masters
Young people are risking their financial future by opening multiple current accouts to maximise their access to overdraft facilities, according to a new report.
Research by YouGov, on behalf of Callcredit, found that nearly one in ten (9%) 18 to 24 year olds have three or more current accounts in their name with an overdraft available.
Of those with more than one bank account, ...
by Kay Murchie
Figures published by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have revealed a severe decline in passenger numbers across UK airports in 2009.
According to the CAA, the UK's airports handled 7.4% fewer passengers in 2009 than in 2008 - marking the biggest drop since records began just after World War II.
It was also the first time levels have fallen two years ...
by Kay Murchie
Wen Jiabao, China’s Premier, has denied his Government is keeping the yuan undervalued after lawmakers and economists said it is hampering a global recovery.
Mr Wen argued keeping the yuan stable was "an important contribution" to global recovery and said: “We oppose countries pointing fingers at each other and even forcing a country to appreciate its currency.”
Speaking at the ...
March 14, 2010
by Kay Murchie
Industrial production in the euro zone exceeded expectations in January, posting growth of 1.7%, which represented the biggest monthly increase since records began in January 1990.
The increase boosted hopes that the 16-member bloc’s economic recovery is gathering pace.
It was recently revealed the euro zone economy grew by just 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2009 but many ...
by Kay Murchie
US retail sales grew unexpectedly in February by 0.3% after economists had predicted a fall of 0.2% due to bad weather, which gripped most of the country during part of the month.
According to the Commerce Department, the rise is the biggest since November, driven by hopes that economic recovery is gaining momentum.
The news resulted in a rise in US stocks but ...
March 13, 2010
by Gill Montia
Lloyds Banking Group is inviting its standard variable rate (SRV) mortgage customers to increase their monthly repayments.
Under a new scheme that will run for a year, borrowers can overpay by up to 20% without incurring a financial penalty.
Research by the bank, which is the UK's biggest mortgage lender, suggests over 63% of mortgage customers would definitely consider overpaying, or increasing their existing ...
March 12, 2010
by Elaine Frei
Most European equities markets were higher Friday, although the CAC-40 was 0.04 percent lower to 3,927.4 in Paris.
The FTSE 100 added 0.15 percent to 5,625.65 in London, while the FTSE 250 gained 0.88 percent to 9,941.56.
British Sky Broadcasting Group led gainers on the 100, adding 5 percent on rumors that News Corp (NYSE: NWS) could be getting ready ...
by Gill Montia
There were 49% fewer house purchase loans approved in January than in December, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported.
According to the body, the steep decline "emphatically demonstrates" the impact of the end of the stamp duty holiday, in December.
First-time buyers recorded the largest drop among house purchasers: in January, approvals were down to 11,300 compared with 24,800 in December.
However, January first-time ...
by Kay Murchie
Talks aimed at averting industrial action at British Airways (BA) collapsed earlier this week and, as a result, Unit has today announced BA cabin crew members will strike for three days from March 20 and for four days from March 27.
Last month, BA‘s 12,000 cabin crew members voted to take industrial action over cost-cutting measures, which include a ...
by Kay Murchie
Accountancy firm Ernst & Young (E&Y) has been criticised in a 2,200-page report over the collapse of Lehman Brothers, and could face legal action as a result.
The report has accused E&Y of negligence, while senior management at the bank were said to be involved in “lazy accounting gimmicks” to conceal the fact that the bank was insolvent.
However, E&Y said ...
by David Masters
British consumers should expect to face more financial difficulty this year than during 2009, a financial expert has claimed.
Richard Perks, director of retail research at Mintel, said it is "obvious" that living costs are going to rise while income is squeezed.
The tough times are "really still to come," Perks said.
"That doesn't necessarily mean we are going to have a double dip ...
by Gill Montia
Since the start of the year, house sales in England and Wales have fallen dramatically, the BBC reports.
New data obtained by the BBC from research-based consultancy, Acadametrics, show January transaction levels down 52% on December, at 36,000.
February looks little better with an estimated 40,000 completed sales, although seasonal trends, winter weather, and the end of stamp duty holiday ...
March 11, 2010
by Kay Murchie
John Lewis Partnership, the renowned employee-owned department store, has revealed its staff will share a bonus pot of £151 million.
The announcement came after the 146-year-old group said annual pre-tax profits grew 9.7% to £306.6 million.
According to John Lewis chairman, Charlie Mayfield, the company's 70,000 staff - or partners, as John Lewis refers to them - will receive payouts equal ...
by Kay Murchie
According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global airline industry is improving, with both passenger and freight numbers expected to grow this year.
In January, the industry body said 2009 saw the biggest decline in air passenger traffic since the aftermath of World War II.
The global economic downturn had a devastating impact on the airline industry, which led to a slump ...
by Elaine Frei
European equities markets were lower Thursday after new data from China showed that nation’s inflation hit a sixteen month high in February, causing concerns that China will tighten its monetary policy further.
The FTSE 100 was down 0.41 percent to 5,617.26 in London, while the FTSE 250 dropped 0.11 percent to 9,854.44.
Most miners saw declines on the news from China as investors ...
by Kay Murchie
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) today reported the heavy snowfall earlier in the year cost insurers £650 million in weather-related claims.
Between December 18 and January 13, when snow and plummeting temperatures swept the country, there were around 335,000 claims, said the ABI.
The majority of the claims came from motorists as a result of the treacherous conditions on Britain’s roads. January ...
by Kay Murchie
Crisis-hit Greece has come to a standstill again today after workers staged the third general strike in as many weeks.
The further strike comes after austerity measures to rescue Greece’s debt-stricken economy angered Greek trade unions.
Greece is currently taking action to reduce its public deficit from 12% to 8% of GDP this year.
The country currently has the highest debt ...
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The Government-led crackdown on credit card companies is expected to save consumers around £300 million a year.
The crackdown comes after the Government warned credit and store card firms to “clean up their act” after it launched a review of the industry in a consumer White Paper in July 2009.
According to Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, the cost of borrowing ...
Industrial production in the euro zone exceeded expectations in January, posting growth of 1.7%, which represented the biggest monthly increase since records began in January 1990.
The increase boosted hopes that the 16-member bloc’s economic recovery is gathering pace.
It was recently revealed the euro zone economy grew by just 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2009 but many ...
Lloyds Banking Group is inviting its standard variable rate (SRV) mortgage customers to increase their monthly repayments.
Under a new scheme that will run for a year, borrowers can overpay by up to 20% without incurring a financial penalty.
Research by the bank, which is the UK's biggest mortgage lender, suggests over 63% of mortgage customers would definitely consider overpaying, or increasing their existing ...
Most European equities markets were higher Friday, although the CAC-40 was 0.04 percent lower to 3,927.4 in Paris.
The FTSE 100 added 0.15 percent to 5,625.65 in London, while the FTSE 250 gained 0.88 percent to 9,941.56.
British Sky Broadcasting Group led gainers on the 100, adding 5 percent on rumors that News Corp (NYSE: NWS) could be getting ready ...
