The Commerce Department today revealed US retail sales grew at their quickest pace in seven months in September. According to the Department, sales gained 1.1% on a monthly basis – boosted by clothing and car sales. The figures were better than the 0.7% rise expected by analysts. Furthermore, August retail sales were revised up to [...]
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has today announced retail sales saw a slight improvement in September According to the BRC/KPMG retail sales monitor, like-for-like sales (which exclude the impact of sales at new stores) rose 0.3% on an annual basis. However, clothing sales suffered while demand for big-ticket items remained weak due to fragile consumer [...]
The John Lewis Partnership, which is regarded as a barometer of British retailing, today announced that sales growth surged last week – as shoppers looked to buy warmer clothing as a result of the colder weather. The renowned employee-owned department store said sales grew 12% to £88 million in the week to 20 November, compared [...]
British retailing giant, Marks and Spencer (M&S) today reported half-year pre-tax profits of £348.8 million in the 26 weeks to October 2 – a rise of almost 17% compared with a year earlier. The 126-year-old retailer which sells clothes, food and homewares, said earnings after tax grew by 16.4% to £261.2 million Sales, meanwhile, increased [...]
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has today reported a rise in UK retail sales for the month of May. The Consortium said sales were boosted by the warm weather, as well a high demand for clothing. Furthermore, the forthcoming World Cup tournament boosted television sales, while non-food non-store sales surged 21.9% – the strongest performance [...]
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 [...]
Official data has today revealed that US consumer prices fell in April by 0.1% on a monthly basis – the first decline in 13 months. The fall was attributed to declines in petrol, housing, car and clothing prices according to the Labor Department. Petrol prices fell by 2.4%, clothing costs fell 0.7%, while food costs [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed a rise in UK retail sales for the month of October. Retail sales for the month were up 0.4% compared with September and rose by 3.4% compared with October 2008. Sales were driven by clothing and footwear, partially due to Halloween and half-term shopping, which contributed [...]
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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