The Commerce Department reported a rise in US factory orders, suggesting the US economy is continuing to grow strongly. According to the Commerce Department, orders for manufactured goods grew 1.2% in April, easing slightly from the 1.7% rise in March. The manufacturing sector has been one of the strongest performers, boosted by the recovery in [...]
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) today said its Pending Home Sales Index rose for the third consecutive month in April boosted by the expiration of a Government tax credit. The NAR said the index rose 6% in April – far exceeding the 4.3% rise which many analysts had predicted. However, the index is 22.4% [...]
Net mortgage lending increased by £0.5 billion in April, according to Bank of England figures. The growth rate for the month proved stronger than in March (£0.2 billion) but was below the previous six-month average of £1.3 billion. The number of loan approvals for house purchase also showed some improvement at 49,871, compared with the [...]
House prices in England and Wales showed an 8.5% annual gain in April, the average value of a home having risen 0.2% on March, according to the Land Registry. The figure reflects the highest annual change since September 2007 and takes the average house price to £165,596. The North East experienced the greatest monthly rise [...]
The European Union’s statistics agency has today announced unemployment in the 16-member euro zone rose to 10.1% in April – the first time it has reached this level since the common currency was introduced in 1999. The rise in the jobless rate highlights the sluggish recovery within the euro zone. Eurostat said 15.86 million people [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has today revealed a marginal rise in the number of new mortgages approved by the major banks in April. According to the BBA, mortgage approvals for the month stood at 35,729 – up by just 685 on March. The BBA said there is little evidence of the traditional “spring bounce” [...]
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has today revealed a rise in sales of previously owned homes in the US for the month of April, boosted by the expiration of a Government tax credit, which ended last month. The industry body said sales surged 7.6% in April (a five-month high) to an annual rate of [...]
Gross mortgage lending fell to an estimated £10.2 billion in April, down 12% from £11.6 billion in March and 1% from £10.3 billion in April 2009. According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), a slight seasonal decline had been expected as Easter fell in April this year and gross lending remains broadly in line [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed the UK Government borrowed £10 billion in April. However, while the figure represented the highest amount for April on record, it was less than the £13 billion many economists had expected. Overall, Government debt stands at £893.4 billion – the equivalent to 62.1% of GDP. However, [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed a slight rise in retail sales for the month of April – boosted by stronger clothing and department store sales. According to the ONS, sales volumes including fuel grew 0.3% in April – slightly beating analysts’ forecasts of a 0.2% rise and follows a revised increase [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed US housing starts soared in April, boosted by the expiration of a Government tax credit, which ended last month. According to the Commerce Department, construction of new US homes rose 5.8% in the month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 672,000 properties – the highest since October 2008. [...]
The latest house price index from Acadametrics shows the value of the average home in England and Wales rising by 0.5% in April, compared with March, to £225,963. The research tracks the twelfth consecutive month-on-month rise, which has given an annual increase of 12.9%. Acadametrics describes the recovery as “significant” but points out that London [...]
US retail sales rose in April for the seventh consecutive month. The figures are closely watched since consumer spending makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US. According to the Commerce Department, total retail sales rose by 0.4% following an upwardly revised 2.1% gain the previous month. Furthermore, retail sales [...]
RealtyTrac has revealed the number of homes being repossessed in the US hit a record high in April. The real estate data company said banks took control of 92,432 properties last month – a rise of 1% compared with March but a massive 45% increase compared with a year ago. Meanwhile, there were far fewer [...]
Figures published by the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) have revealed the UK’s defined benefit pension schemes fell back into deficit at the end of last month. According to the PPF, the 7,400 pension schemes had a total deficit of £2.2 billion after being in surplus at the end of March. However, it is a significant [...]
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has today reported a sharp fall in UK retail sales for the month of April. According to the BRC, the total value of sales fell by 0.2% in April on an annual basis, while the like-for-like drop was 2.3% – the steepest fall since December 2008. However, the figures suggest [...]
Chinese inflation continued to increase last month on the back of rising house and food prices. According to China’s statistics bureau, consumer prices in April were up 2.8% on an annualised basis – the highest rate in 18 months, while house price inflation hit 12.8% – fuelled by new luxury housing in Shanghai. While the [...]
The UK housing market is experiencing a Spring boost, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). In its April survey of members, a net balance of 17% more surveyors reported a rise (rather than a fall) in house prices, compared with a positive balance of 9% in March. Furthermore, the average number of [...]
BAA has today reported a fall in passenger numbers at its six British airports, after the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud forced UK airspace to close. The volcano, located under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier about 100 miles east of the capital Reykjavik, erupted in the early hours of 14 April. The massive cloud of ash is a [...]
The Labor Department revealed the world’s largest economy added 290,000 jobs last month, primarily in manufacturing, healthcare and hospitality. It was the biggest monthly total in four years but despite the rise, the unemployment rate has risen from 9.7% in March to 9.9% in April. According to analysts, as confidence grows in the economy, those [...]
Phone fraudsters stealing bank card pins
Fraudsters using a phone scam to trick bank card holders into revealing their pin numbers stole £750,000 in the first four months of this year. This is the same amount stolen through this scam in the whole of last year. The fraudster telephones a bank customer, often someone elderly or vulnerable, telling them that their [...]
FSA rules out ban on interest-only mortgages
Speculation that the Financial Services Authority would ban interest-only mortgages as part of its Mortgage Market Review has proved to be unfounded. However, lenders will be required to monitor the performance of the investment product taken out by the customer to repay the mortgage at the end of its term. Investments are performing poorly because [...]
Bank of England may end free in-credit banking
A director of the Bank of England has warned that official intervention could be considered to end the ‘dangerous myth of free in-credit banking’. Andrew Bailey has already spoken out against free banking in relation to the mis-selling of financial products. In a speech made available to media, he reiterated his concern, saying that it [...]
Bank of England votes against more economic stimulus
The Bank of England voted against a further round of quantitative easing, at its latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. Just one member, David Miles, voted for further asset purchase to encourage growth in the UK economy, while the other eight members voted to keep the Bank’s quantitative easing programme steady at £325bn. The minutes [...]
Catalogue debt growing says helpline
Calls from people concerned about their debts with mail order catalogues accounted for more than 12 per cent of all calls received by National Debtline last year, compared with just 8 per cent in 2007. More people were concerned about catalogue debt than about payday loans, mortgage or rent, according to the Money Advice Trust [...]
Homeserve faces mis-selling investigation
HomeServe, which provides emergency insurance cover and domestic repairs to households in the UK, is to be investigated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Issues over the possible mis-selling of household emergency policies were uncovered last October during an internal review at the Walsall-based company. Homeserve’s call centre staff were found to be selling ‘Complete [...]
OFT warns Wonga over debt collection methods
Payday loan company Wonga used aggressive and misleading methods to collect debts from customers, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has found. Wonga sent letter and emails to certain customers suggesting they had committed fraud and threatening to report them to the police if they did not act in the way Wonga suggested. The company [...]
NS&I re-launches investment account
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has re-launched its Investment Account at a higher interest rate than it previously offered. The account now offers 0.75 per cent before tax, compared with between 0.2 and 0.3 per cent previously, depending on the account balance. Deposits and withdrawals on the account can no longer be made at Post [...]
Rightmove reports property downsizing trend
Two in five property owners planning to sell in the next year are planning to ‘trade down’, compared with one in four who plan to ‘trade up’. A survey by property website Rightmove found that moving to a smaller home is the main reason for moving in nine out of the ten regions in the [...]
More people failing to save for retirement
The proportion of people with no pension savings has grown from 20 per cent to 22 per cent over the past year, according to Scottish Widows’ latest survey. The pension provider surveyed 5,200 adults in the UK, aged 30 or over, and earning at least £10,000 a year, for its annual review of pensions. Ian [...]
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