Official figures have revealed consumer spending in the US improved last month. According to the Commerce Department, consumer spending rose 0.6% to $68.7 billion (£42.7 billion) in September and follows a 0.2% rise in August. The figures will be a welcome boost for the economy which looked set to be heading towards a double dip [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed the world’s largest economy grew by 1.3% on an annual basis in the April to June period – higher than an initial estimate of 1%. The figure was also slightly higher than analysts’ expectations of 1.2% and follows a 0.4% growth rate in the first quarter of the year. The [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed sales of new homes in the US fell to a six-month low in August, suggesting the housing market remains depressed. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales fell 2.3% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 295,000 units – the lowest level since February. The figure [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed US exports hit an all-time high in July, while imports fell. According to official figures, exports surged 3.8% to $178 billion (£111 billion) after two months of declines. The rise in exports was attributed to strong overseas sales of manufactured goods, particularly to countries in Central and South America. Meanwhile, [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed the UK economy grew by 0.2% in the April to June period – unchanged from a previous estimate published last month. A third and final estimate will be available next month. However, growth for the second quarter slowed from the 0.5% growth posted in the first quarter. [...]
The Commerce Department has today reported an unexpected fall in consumer spending in the US for the month of June. Spending fell 0.2% on the month – the first fall in almost two years – suggesting the economic recovery is losing momentum. Furthermore, the figures confounded analysts’ expectations for a 0.1% increase. Consumer spending is [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed the world’s largest economy grew by 1.3% on an annual basis in the April to June period. The figure was far short of expectations of a reading of 1.8%. However, today’s reading is the first estimate and could be revised up or down in the coming months. Meanwhile, first [...]
The US trade deficit swelled in May to $50.2 billion (£31.7 billion) from $43.6 billion the previous month, as oil imports surged. According to the Commerce Department, the trade deficit rose to the highest level since October 2008. Exports fell by 0.5% on a monthly basis to $174.9 billion, while imports rose by 2.6% on [...]
The Commerce Department has today reported consumer spending in the US was flat in May. This was the first month since September 2009 that there was no growth, surprising analysts who had expected a 0.1% rise. Consumer spending is closely monitored as it accounts for approximately 70% of total economic output. However, many analysts said [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed the US economy grew by an annualised 1.9% in the January to March period – marginally higher than the previous estimate of 1.8%. On a quarterly basis, growth was up 0.58%. Today’s reading is the third and final for first quarter growth. Stubbornly high unemployment and a depressed housing [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed sales of new homes in the US fell, suggesting the housing market remains depressed. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales fell by 2.1% in May on a monthly basis to an annual rate of 319,000 units, after two consecutive months of gains. However, despite the fall, [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed US retail sales fell in May for the first time in 11 months, hit by weak car sales. According to official figures, sales fell 0.2% to $387.1 billion on a monthly basis as consumers opted out of buying big-ticket items such as cars. Car sales were almost 3% lower, [...]
The US trade deficit narrowed sharply in April, figures showed today, due to a record increase in exports. According to the Commerce Department, the trade deficit narrowed to $43.7 billion from March’s figure of $46.8 billion – surprising analysts who had expected a rise to $48.7 billion. Exports rose 1.3% on a monthly basis to [...]
The Commerce Department has today reported a rise in consumer spending in the US for the month of April – due, in part, to higher food and energy costs. Spending grew 0.4% on the month – the tenth consecutive monthly increase but the figure was less than analysts had expected. Consumer spending is closely monitored [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed the US economy grew by an annualised 1.8% in the first quarter – unchanged from the first estimate and less than analysts’ expectations of a 2.1% growth rate. However, today’s estimate is only the second reading and the third and final reading will be available next month and could [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed sales of new homes in the US rose for a second consecutive month in April, after diving to a record low in February. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales grew 7.3% on the month to an annual rate of 323,000 units, better than analysts had forecast. [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed US housing starts slumped in April – much worse than forecast. Housing starts dived 10.6% in the month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 523,000 units, analysts had expected an annual rate of 563,000. In the meantime, applications for building permits, a barometer of future home construction, also [...]
The Commerce Department has today reported a rise in consumer spending in the US for the month of February – due, in part, to higher food and energy costs. Spending grew 0.7% in the month after a 0.3% increase in January. February’s figure represented the fastest pace for four months but this was attributed to [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed the US economy grew by an annualised 3.1% in the October to December period – higher than the previous estimate of 2.8%. It was also slightly better than analysts forecast of a 3% growth rate. The upward revision in GDP was attributed to higher consumer spending – which grew [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed sales of new homes in the US dived to a record low last month. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales plunged 16.9% to an annual rate of 250,000 units – the lowest since records began in 1963. Analysts had expected a rate of 290,000 units. However, [...]
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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