Economic uncertainty and the threat of another recession is causing consumers to take charge of their finances and cut back on debt according to the latest figures from the Bank of England. Personal debt, excluding mortgages, fell by £377 million in December, the biggest fall since records began. Howard Archer an economist at Global Insight [...]
US consumer confidence slumped in October, the Conference Board has reported. The closely-monitored Consumer Confidence Index from the Conference Board dived to 39.8 this month from September’s reading of 46.4. Not only was the reading less than forecasts of a level of 46.0, it was the lowest since March 2009, when the US was in [...]
The latest survey from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed a fall in UK consumer confidence for the month of September. The building society’s consumer confidence index fell for the fourth consecutive month, falling by 3 points to 45 in September – hovering dangerously close to the all-time low of 41. Furthermore, it is 10 [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK retail sales beat forecasts in September, led by spending on electrical goods such as laptop computers. According to the Statistics Office, sales rose by 0.6% last month, reversing the 0.4% fall in August. Furthermore, the figure was 0.6% higher on an annual basis. Retail sales [...]
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 British Retail Consortium (BRC) has today reported weak retail sales for August. According to the BRC, like-for-like sales (which exclude the impact of sales at new stores) fell 0.6% last month on an annual basis. Overall sales rose 1.5%, however, this was much lower than the 2.8% rise noted in August 2010. Commenting, Stephen [...]
There have been fears of late that the US economy could fall back into recession this year but the Obama administration does not envisage this and is predicting growth of 1.7% this year – albeit 1% less than its forecast earlier this year. Official data from the Commerce Department show the economy grew by just [...]
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas fell in June on an annual basis, by 4.5% – albeit slower than the 4.6% drop in May. The figure was slightly better than the 4.6% decline expected by the market. The US housing market has remained subdued for some time now and many have [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed a rise in US retail sales for the month of July. Sales grew 0.5% last month – the best reading since March and follows June’s upwardly revised figure of a 0.3% rise. The rise, which was better than forecasts of a 0.2% gain, was partly attributed to strong demand for [...]
The British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) latest consumer confidence survey has revealed how consumer shopping habits have changed due to the Government spending cuts and the rise in the cost of living. According to the survey released by the BRC and Nielsen, almost one third of those questioned feel that they have no cash left over [...]
A survey of 2,000 individuals, conducted between July 1 and 10, has revealed a fall in consumer confidence. According to the survey of consumer attitudes, carried out by GfK NOP Social Research, confidence dived by 5 points to -30 in July – edging closer to the -31 seen in April. The index was also worse [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed sales of new homes in the US fell in June, suggesting the housing market remains depressed. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales fell by 1% in June on a monthly basis to an annual rate of 312,000 units – lower than expectations of 325,000 units. Meanwhile, the [...]
The latest survey from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed a fall in UK consumer confidence for the month of June. The building society’s consumer confidence index lost 4 points to 51 last month, which reverses some of the 11 point rise seen in May, which represented one of the largest gains on record. The [...]
The latest survey from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed a surge in UK consumer confidence for the month of May. The building society’s consumer confidence index rose 11 points to 55 last month – the biggest monthly increase in 5½ years, and takes the index to a five-month high. However, the index is still [...]
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas fell in March – the ninth consecutive monthly decline. According to the closely watched report, house prices were 0.2% lower in March on a monthly basis – albeit in line with forecasts. The index fell to 138.16, dipping below the 139.26 seen in April 2009 [...]
A survey conducted between May 6 and 15 revealed a strong rise in consumer confidence. According to the survey of consumer attitudes, carried out by GfK NOP Social Research, confidence jumped to -21 from April’s two-year low of -31. May’s reading represents the biggest increase since May 1993 and surprised analysts who had expected a [...]
The Cabinet Office has today revealed Japanese consumers continue to be pessimistic following the devastating earthquake and tsunami which hit the north east on 11 March. The consumer confidence index dived from 38.6 in March to 33.1 last month – much worse than the 36.7 expected by analysts. Meanwhile, all the four sub-components of households’ [...]
Consumer confidence in Germany, which is the euro zone’s largest economy, is expected to fall further in May, according to the GfK research group. The market research company said its forward looking consumer sentiment index, based on a survey of about 2,000 people, will fall to 5.7 in May from April’s reading of 5.9. The [...]
US consumer confidence fell in March after higher energy prices fuelled fears of inflation and consumers were hit by falling income expectations. The reading from the closely-monitored Consumer Confidence Index from the Conference Board dived to 63.4 in March from February’s three-year high of 72.0. The reading was below expectations of a fall to 65.0 [...]
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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