The Zew economic sentiment index has revealed German analyst and investor confidence fell to a 2½ year low in September as the ongoing euro zone debt crisis and fears of a global slowdown dampened sentiment. The index, which measures expectations of economic activity over the next six months, fell for the seventh consecutive month to [...]
The Munich-based Ifo think tank has revealed confidence among German firms remained flat in May. The closely-watched Business Climate Index remained unchanged at 114.2 in May, surprising analysts’ who had expected the index to slip to 113.7. Ifo surveys around 7,000 German manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail companies each month. Export demand helped to bring [...]
US banking giant Morgan Stanley has today announced first quarter profit fell 48% on an annual basis – primarily due to a $655 million pre-tax loss from its joint venture with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. However, the fall was much less than analysts had forecast and shares rose 3.5% in early trading as a result. [...]
Last week’s earthquake and tsunami which hit Japan are set to cause “considerable” economic impact as the country faces a massive clean-up operation, a potential nuclear meltdown and power shortages. However, analysts have today said the world’s third largest economy will recover later this year. Over the weekend, the Japanese Government spoke of the 8.9 [...]
The Labor Department has revealed the unemployment rate in the US has fallen from 9.4% in December to 9% in January – confounding expectations of a rise to 9.5%. It also follows on from the sharp drop of 9.8% reported for the month of November. However, the large fall has been attributed to jobseekers giving [...]
The Bank of America has today reported its second consecutive quarterly loss – primarily due to the writedown of its mortgage business, Countrywide. The bank, which is the largest in the US by assets, today disappointed analysts with a fourth quarter net loss of $1.24 billion (£775 million), compared with a $5.2 billion loss a [...]
The Bank of England has today revealed mortgage approvals picked up in November – surprising analysts. According to the Bank, there were 48,019 loans approved in the month, up from October’s 47,315 approvals. Not only did this represent the highest level since July, it confounded expectations of a level of 47,000. Meanwhile, approvals for remortgaging [...]
Consumer confidence in Germany, which is the euro zone’s largest economy, has fallen after six months of sharp gains, according to the GfK research group. GfK said its consumer climate indicator fell to 5.4 for January from 5.5 in December. The fall from the forward looking indicator, which questioned around 2,000 people, surprised some analysts. [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply(CIPS)/Markit construction PMI index revealed activity improved in November. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 51.8 in November from 51.6 the previous month and surprised analysts who had expected a fall to 51. The index remains above the crucial 50 level, which indicates expansion. Activity in the commercial and [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed public sector borrowing totalled £14.5 billion in June. While the figure was slightly lower than the £14.7 billion seen in June last year, it surprised economists who expected the figure to be around £13.1 billion. Overall, Government debt stands at £926.9 billion – the equivalent to [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which is 84% state-owned, has today posted a full-year loss of £3.6 billion. RBS is the second major UK bank to report its 2009 results. Last week, Barclays announced record profits of more than £11 billion – a 92% rise on the previous year. However, RBS’ loss is not as [...]
As expected, the snowy and icy conditions experienced in the UK in January has resulted in a fall in retail sales. The severe wintry weather drove shoppers away from the High Street and resulted in a 1.8% fall in retail sales – the sharpest drop in 18 months. The official figures, from the Office for [...]
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has stunned the markets by electing to keep interest rates on hold at 3.75%. The RBA has increased interest rates three times since October and many analysts said interest rates could hit 4.25% in the short-term. Australia is one of the few developed economies not to have fallen into [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed that the US economy grew 5.7% in the final three months of 2009 – the fastest pace in six years and higher than analysts expectations. The US economy emerged from recession in the third quarter after experiencing growth of 2.2% and today’s figures clearly show that after enduring the [...]
Australia’s unemployment rate fell in December to 5.5% from 5.6% in November, according to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. In comparison, the unemployment rate in both the US and Europe are around the 10% mark. Australia’s figures came as a surprise to many analysts who had expected the rate to remain [...]
There were concerns over a recovery in the US housing market today after the Commerce Department revealed a fall in the annual rate of US new home sales in September. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales dived by 3.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 homes, down from a revised [...]
The maker of Dairy Milk chocolate, Cadbury, has exceeded analysts expectations in the third quarter after reporting a 7% rise compared with the same period a year ago. Analysts had been expected growth of around 4% and the news sent shares up 0.9% to 808p in the British confectionery giant. Cadbury chief executive, Todd Stitzer, [...]
There are signs of recovery within the US manufacturing sector after the Federal Reserve reported a rise in industrial production for the month of September. The US central bank said output at the nation’s factories, mines and utilities grew 0.7% during the month – higher than the 0.2% rise expected by analysts and follows the [...]
Official figures have revealed that the Australian economy exceeded expectations in the April to June period by experiencing growth of 0.6% compared with the previous quarter. Analysts had only forecast growth of 0.2% after a severe fall was reported in export prices yesterday, Export prices in quarter two plummeted by 15.8% – the largest drop [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply’s monthly index of manufacturing fell to 49.7 in August from 50.2 in July – a figure below 50 indicates contraction. Today’s figures have surprised many analysts who predicted a rise to 51.5, after growth was reported in July for the first time since April last year. Meanwhile, the [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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