IMRG, an industry body for global e-retailing, has reported online sales soared in July – at the quickest pace in three years. According to the industry body, the rain discouraged shoppers from venturing onto the high street and opting to purchase from the comfort of their own home. According to IMRG, £5 billion was spent [...]
The Commerce Department has today said US retail sales grew by 0.4% in July – boosted by an increase in car sales. The figures were much needed after two months of declines. However, the figures were less than the 0.5% rise analysts had expected. US retail sales are closely-watched as consumer spending makes up for [...]
Official figures show that the number of US workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose unexpectedly last week to a high not seen since April. The figures show that initial jobless claims rose more than 4% to 479,000 in the week ended July 31, according to the Labor Department. Analysts had expected a fall [...]
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) today said its Pending Home Sales Index fell by 18.6% in June on year. On a monthly basis, the index fell by 2.6% to 75.7 points based on contracts signed in June compared with May. As a result, the index fell to the lowest level since records began in [...]
According to the Commerce Department, consumer spending in the US remained flat in June. Households in the US continue to be squeezed amid higher unemployment. Consumer spending, which makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US, was unchanged from May. Meanwhile, incomes failed to increase for the first time since [...]
British retailing giant, Marks and Spencer (M&S), has today announced UK same-store sales grew in its first quarter (13 weeks to 3 July), while food sales rose 1.5% and general merchandise was 6% higher. While the figures represented the third quarter of sales growth in a row, it was slower than the 5.1% increase in [...]
According to the Commerce Department, consumer spending in the US rose to an eight-month high in May, by 0.2% on month, suggesting the recovery is still on course. The rise in consumer spending, which makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US, slightly exceeded expectations of a 0.1% rise. The [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed the US economy grew by an annualised 2.7% in the January to March period – slightly lower than the 3.2% previously estimated. This figure is the third and final estimate and the downward revision was due to a slower rate of business investment and consumer spending. However, it still [...]
Supermarket giant Tesco has today reported a 6.9% increase in total group-wide sales, (excluding petrol). Tesco, which is the UK’s largest retailer, said the global economic recovery was “well underway” and said it was seeing proof of a rise in consumer spending. Boosted by new store openings, sales growth for the three months to the [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed the US economy grew by an annualised 3% in the January to March period – slightly lower than the 3.2% previously estimated. The figures surprised analysts who had predicted an upward revision to 3.4%. The downward revision was due to a slower rate of business investment, which fell to 3.1% [...]
Fashion chain Next said it had a solid first quarter and is on track to meet full-year profit targets but added: “We remain very cautious in our outlook for the year ahead”. Its cautious statement comes as many other companies warn of slow consumer spending after the General Election as the new Government embarks on [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed a slight rise in UK retail sales for the month of March. According to the ONS, retail sales volumes during the month grew by 0.4% from February – less than the 0.6% analysts had expected. Sales grew strongly in February but this followed a poor January, when [...]
British retailing giant, Marks and Spencer (M&S), today posted better-than-expected same store sales of 5.1% in the UK in the 13 weeks to March 27 (its fiscal fourth quarter). Sales were boosted by strong demand for formalwear and knitwear. The company said clothing sales grew 10.1%, while homewares rose 13.3%. Furthermore, food sales (which have [...]
According to the Commerce Department, consumer spending in the US rose for a fifth consecutive month in February, by 0.3%, as widely expected. The rise in consumer spending, which makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US, followed a revised 0.4% rise in January. According to the data, consumers increased [...]
The Labor Department has today revealed the US unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.7% in February and lower than the 10% rate reported in December. According to the Labor Department, employers cut 36,000 jobs last month – fewer than the 50,000 analysts had been expecting and compares to a revised 26,000 job cuts in January. [...]
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has revealed a fall in sales of previously owned homes in the US for the month of January, suggesting the extension of the $8,000 tax credit for first-time buyers is having little appeal. The industry body said sales agreements fell 7.6% in January compared with December and the index [...]
The latest publication of the US Federal Reserve’s influential Beige Book reported that the world’s largest economy has continued to grow this year but at a “modest” pace. The Beige Book, which is compiled eight times a year, is based on reports and comments from businesses throughout the US. It said despite a pick up [...]
According to the Commerce Department, US consumer spending rose faster than expected in January by 0.5% – the fourth consecutive monthly rise. The rise in consumer spending, which makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US, was better than expectations of 0.4%. Meanwhile, the data said personal incomes crept up [...]
The quarterly Confederation of British Industry (CBI) report has revealed shoppers returned the High Street in their droves in February after UK retailers reported their strongest growth in sales volumes for two years in early February. The CBI also believes further growth will be experienced in March as consumers begin to loosen their purse strings. [...]
According to the Commerce Department, US consumer spending rose by just 0.2% in December after a 0.7% rise in November. The rise in consumer spending, which makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic activity in the US, was slightly under analysts expectations of a 0.3% gain. For 2009, consumer spending fell 0.4% – [...]
Gender directive could slash men’s annuity payouts
The EU Gender Directive, which came into force today, could see men losing up to £10,000 from their annuity payouts, according to research by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Under the new rules insurers are no longer allowed to take gender into account when setting annuity rates and premiums on insurance products. Men previously enjoyed higher annuity rates than [...]
Home rental costs down in November
The cost of renting a house in England and Wales fell by 0.4 per cent in November, its first dip since March, according to a survey by LSL Property Services. Average rent was £741m during the month, returning to the level seen in September. However, it was 3.4 per higher than in November last year. [...]
Lloyds TSB halts sale of packaged accounts in branches
Lloyds TSB will stop selling packaged account in its branches from 1 January 2013, until its sales procedures are brought into line with those operated by sister bank The Halifax. Lloyds TSB is one of the main providers of packaged accounts in Britain, with around one in three of its customers choosing to pay fees [...]
Housing market recovery to continue next year
Recent improvements in the housing market should continue into next year, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) Gross lending is estimated to have increased to £12.9 billion in November, helped by the Funding for Lending scheme which provides banks and building societies with lower-cost funding, which they are then supposed to pass on [...]
Newcastle Building Society exits interest-only mortgages
Newcastle Building Society has stopped offering interest-only mortgages to new borrowers, following the lead of the Royal Bank of Scotland, Nationwide, Co-operative bank and Coventry Building Society. The decision will not affect existing Newcastle customers and applications for interest-only mortgages received before 14 December will still be processed. Prior to the credit crunch, interest-only mortgages [...]
Less than half of Brits considered creditworthy
Fifty-seven per cent of UK adults are at risk of having an application for credit turned down by a mainstream lender according to a new report. The ‘Mind the Credit Gap‘ report commissioned by aqua credit cards suggests that even people with a good credit rating and earning more than £50,000 could have a credit [...]
Monthly incomes £22 lower in 2012
The average monthly income of UK households fell by £22 in real terms compared with last year, according to a survey carried out for the Bank of England (BoE) by NMG Consulting. People on lower incomes have seen their income eroded more than higher earners and households still have high levels of debt the BoE [...]
Savers dig deep to fund Christmas
New research from the Halifax suggests that savers are funding their Christmas spending with money set aside for other purposes. Thirty-seven per cent of 2,138 savers surveyed by the bank at the end of November had withdrawn savings in the last three months. The average amount withdrawn was £1,186, more than double the average savings [...]
Financial data at risk from unsafe passwords
According to a survey by the Payments Council the problem of having to remember a different password for several accounts means that many internet users are compromising the security of their financial data. Internet users have 22 password-protected accounts on average and many use the same log-in details for more than one account, even though [...]
Wonga launches Paylater loans on retailer website
Payday loan company Wonga has launched a new Paylater service on furniture firm Cotswold Company’s website. The service, which allows customers to “buy now, pay later” will be introduced on other retailers’ sites in the near future. Although the Paylater branding is similar to Wonga’s, the Wonga name only appears in the small print. A [...]
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