The Bank of England has today revealed mortgage approvals picked up significantly in July to a 14-month high. According to the central Bank, there were 49,239 loans approved in the month – higher than the upwardly revised 48,500 for June and a significant improvement on April’s 45,855 which represented a four-month low. The figure was [...]
Credit Suisse, which is Switzerland’s largest bank, has today revealed it will axe 2,000 jobs after unveiling poor results in the second quarter. The job cuts represent approximately 4% of its 50,700-strong global workforce. The Swiss banking giant has been hit by weak trading activity and the strong Swiss franc. Net profits dived to SwFr [...]
Retail sales in the 17-member euro zone fell in May as consumers cut back on spending in the face of higher inflation and rising unemployment. According to the European Union’s statistics, Eurostat, sales in the euro zone fell 1.1% in May on a monthly basis – the biggest fall since April 2010 – with the [...]
The US housing market remains depressed after figures today revealed sales of previously owned homes plunged 15% on an annual basis last month, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The industry body also said sales were down 3.8% on the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million units – [...]
Europe’s largest economy, Germany, looks set to be continuing its strong recovery after Federal Statistical Office, Destatis, reported the economy grew by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. For the 2010 year, the economy expanded by 3.6%, said Destatis. However, both figures were slightly below forecasts with economists expecting quarterly growth of 0.5% and annual growth [...]
The Bank of England has today revealed mortgage approvals slumped in December – to the lowest level since March 2009 – when the economy was in the midst of recession. According to the Bank, there were 42,563 loans approved in the month, down from November’s 47,287 approvals. December’s figure was also way below analysts forecast [...]
The Federal Labour Agency has today announced Germany’s unemployment rate remained at 7% in November. However, the jobless total fell by 14,000 to 2.931 million, down from 2.945 million the previous month. The number of unemployed continues to remain below the crucial three million mark – boosted by a combination of Government measures and reforms. [...]
The Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry has revealed Japanese industrial output fell in September – the fourth consecutive monthly fall. Figures show output fell 1.9% in September compared with the previous month – way below expectations of a 0.6% fall. However, the fall was attributed to the strong yen, which is weakening demand for [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed public sector borrowing totalled £3.8 billion in July. Not only was the figure was much less than the £5.25 billion expected by analysts, it is also well below the £6.1 billion borrowed in July 2009. The improved picture was attributed to exceptionally strong growth in receipts [...]
Official figures have revealed the world’s largest economy experienced annualised growth of 2.4% in the April to June period, according to the US Commerce Department. The figure came in slightly below expectations but it is the first of three estimates and could be revised up or down in the next few months. However, the growth [...]
Growth in the UK’s closely-watched service sector slowed in June and hit its lowest level in 10 months. The latest index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit PMI showed a reading of 54.4 in June, down from 55.4 in May. Not only did this represent the lowest level since August last year, [...]
House prices dipped by 0.4% in May, following a 0.1% decline in April, Halifax has reported. However, taking an average of the latest three months, the value of the typical home increased 6.9% on the same period of 2009, reflecting the biggest annual rate of change since October 2007 (8.9%). Prices are therefore 8.3% above [...]
Official data has revealed US consumer prices rose by a slower-than-expected 0.2% in January. On an annual basis, prices were up 2.6% – also below expectations. The increase was the result of a hike in energy prices, which rose for the ninth month in a row. Over the last year, energy prices have soared 19.1%, [...]
British retailing giant, Marks and Spencer (M&S), has today reported its first sales growth in over two years. The 125-year-old retailer which sells clothes, food and homewares, said like-for-like sales grew 0.8% in the three months to 26 December compared with the same period a year earlier. However, the increase was below market expectations of [...]
The Consumer Prices Index (CPI), a key measure of inflation, has fallen from 1.6% to an annual 1.1% in August – the lowest level since September 2004, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today. While the decline in inflation was higher than analysts had expected, it was primarily due to lower food and energy [...]
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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