Bank of England Governor, Mervyn King, believes Britain is in the midst of the “most serious financial crisis ever”. The Governor was speaking after the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) elected to keep interest rates on hold at the historically low level of 0.5%. Interest rates have now been at this low level since [...]
According to a new report by the National Housing Federation (NHF), the UK housing market is in “crisis” as private rents continue to surge and owner-occupier rates fall. The study suggests that home ownership will decline to around 64% by 2021 – the lowest level since the mid-1980s – as an entire generation is unable [...]
Speculation is mounting again that Portugal may need financial assistance after a rise in bond yields. Yields on Portuguese 10-year bonds climbed to 8.17% yesterday – a record high after last week’s rise to 8%. The country’s borrowing costs have risen in recent months – mimicking what happened in Greece and Ireland – just before [...]
The Japanese Government has spoken of the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and the 13-foot tsunami which hit the northeast coast of Japan last week. Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, described it as the worst crisis since the Second World War. The disasters are set to cause “considerable” economic impact as the country faces a massive clean-up operation, [...]
As widely expected, the European Central Bank (ECB) today elected to keep interest rates on hold at the record low of 1% for the 20th consecutive month. Rates are expected to be kept on hold for the medium-term at least to boost the area’s economic recovery. However, there are still fears that the debt crisis [...]
Airports operator BAA has today reported a sharp fall in passenger numbers at its six British airports in December – hit by the heavy snowfall which gripped most of the country during the month. BAA, which is majority owned by Spain’s Ferrovial, said the big freeze cost it £24 million as Heathrow and other airports [...]
Heathrow airport’s boss, Colin Matthews, has announced he will forgo his 2010 bonus after saying he was “responsible” for the recent crisis at the snow-hit airport. Mr Matthews said: “We’ve had a crisis here. I am responsible and I have decided not to take my bonus.” However, BAA would not disclose what Mr Matthews’ six-figure [...]
In its half-yearly health assessment of the financial system, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said it is concerned about the global financial system. The crisis in the European sovereign debt markets has meant the prospects for global stability have been pushed back, said the IMF. The crisis is Europe has recently been exacerbated by [...]
A report has revealed around 100,000 finance jobs have been lost since the onset of the credit crisis three years ago. On the third anniversary of the run on Northern Rock, there have been significant job losses within the sector. The Unite union said that little had changed to improve the regulatory regime in order [...]
The Baltic republic of Estonia has been given the go ahead to adopt the euro on 1 January 2011 and will become the euro zone’s 17th member. “Estonia will become the 17th member of the euro area on 1 January, 2011,” Euro group president and Luxembourg Prime Minister, Jean-Claude Juncker told a news conference. “The [...]
In its latest Fiscal Monitor report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that despite the recovery in the global economy, the world’s wealthiest economies urgently need to tackle their debt levels. Its report, and warning, comes as several euro zone nations have introduced tough austerity measures to trim their debt levels, which have caused violent [...]
EU finance ministers have agreed a €500 billion (£433 billion) emergency rescue package, designed prevent the Greek debt crisis from spreading to other euro zone nations. The bail-out came after 11 hours of discussions in Brussels last week as fears grew for other heavily indebted European countries such as Ireland, Spain and Portugal. The 16 [...]
Global shares have continued to decline due to ongoing fears of contagion from Greece’s debt crisis. Asian shares fell sharply yesterday after fears grew that the crisis would spread to other European countries. Ratings agency Moody’s said European banking systems faced “very real, common threats” from the fallout from Greece. However, it seems that fears [...]
Asian shares have fallen sharply today as fears mount that Greece’s crisis would spread to other European countries. In an interview with French newspaper, La Parisien, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dominique Strauss-Kahn, admitted earlier this week that the possible spread of the crisis was a concern. He said: “We have to [...]
Strikes were launched across Greece again today as workers protest against new austerity measures, which include deeper cuts in pensions and public servants’ pay, as well as a fresh hike in consumer taxes. The new austerity measures are being submitted in a draft bill to the Greek Parliament today, and will be voted on by [...]
A deal designed to prevent Greece from defaulting on its massive debt has been agreed over the weekend. It is also hoped the €110 billion (£95 billion) three-year rescue package will strengthen the single currency, which has been plummeting over recent months as a result of Greece’s debt crisis. The EU will provide €80 billion [...]
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) have today downgraded Spain’s credit rating by one notch to AA from AA+ and comes as the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that the crisis in Greece could spread throughout Europe. Following the news, the euro fell against the dollar to $1.3129 – a level not seen since [...]
Bank of Ireland has announced plans to raise €3.4 billion (£2.9 billion) through a rights issue and private placing, in order to meet its capital needs and aid its recovery from the financial crisis. Last month the bank, which is the Irish Republic’s biggest lender, said there is no let up from the ongoing crisis [...]
Greece’s woes intensified today after ratings agency Fitch downgraded the country’s credit rating amid fears over its rescue plan. Fitch downgraded Greece’s rating by two notches, from BBB+ to BBB-, as the cost of Greek borrowing continues to soar. The BBB- rating is significant since it is the lowest rating that qualifies as an investment [...]
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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Asian shares recover after Fed comments
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke yesterday allayed investor fears after saying the US economy appeared to have enough momentum to avoid a “double-dip” recession. Mr Bernanke also said he believes European leaders are taking the right steps to ensure the survival of the euro. “European leadership is strongly committed to doing whatever is necessary to [...]