News Tag: decline
March 17, 2010
Consumers groups have expressed concern for the elderly if cheques are abolished, suggesting that it will result in them hoarding cash at home.
Appearing before the Treasury Select Committee, Jane Vass, of Age Concern and Help the Aged, warned that there could be a security issue if cheques were to be scrapped.
"This would encourage people to return to ...
Fears for elderly hoarding cash when cheques phased out
by Kay Murchie
December 16, 2009
The use of the cheque book continues to decline as consumers opt for quicker payment methods and, as a result, the cheque clearing system could end by 2018.
Major retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s no longer accept cheques, arguing that phasing out the use of cheques in stores resulted in quicker service and improved security for consumers. ...
Future of the cheque book to be decided today
by Kay Murchie
July 10, 2009
Key Retirement Solutions has updated the equity release market with its latest monitor, showing that volumes are down for the second consecutive quarter.
In the three months to the end of June, the number of new plans sold fell an annual 24% to 5,143.
Furthermore, the property market downturn meant that the value of new lending plummeted 41%, from £319 million in the second ...
Equity release values plummet 41%
by Gill Montia
July 8, 2009
Halifax has reported that UK house prices fell back 0.5% last month, after recording a rise of 2.6% in May.
Despite the June fall, the annual rate of decline eased to 15% (down from 16.3% in May) nudging the average property price up to £157,715.
Taking a three-month measure the average value of a home declined 1.9% during the second quarter of ...
House prices fall back 0.5% in June
by Gill Montia
June 26, 2009
Latest figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales declining by 0.2% in May, with the average property worth £152,497.
While the monthly change remained negative, the rate of fall eased from 0.3% in April and the annual rate of decline fell back to 15.9% compared with 16.2% in April.
In May, London saw house prices ...
Official figures show house price slide easing to 0.2%
by Gill Montia
June 18, 2009
Gross mortgage lending declined slightly last month, falling to £10.3 billion in May from £10.5 billion in April.
The 2% decline took the annual fall to 58%.
The new figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) include lending for house purchases and remortgages and the Council points out that even if house purchase activity is increasing, the rise will not ...
Gross lending dips as remortgaging continues to decline
by Gill Montia
June 14, 2009
The plight of would-be first-time buyers is highlighted by new research from Moneysupermarket.com.
According to the price comparison website, home loans requiring a 10% deposit have all but disappeared in the credit crisis with only 102 available today, compared with 3,124 in January 2007, a decline of 97%.
First-time buyers are also being penalised on interest rates with the average rate on ...
Demise of 90% LTV blocks first-time buyers
by Gill Montia
June 1, 2009
The latest CIPS/Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) has revealed some good news for Britain's manufacturing industry today after a rise was noted in new manufacturing orders.
According to the PMI, new manufacturing orders increased to a 14-month high, while UK manufacturing contracted at its slowest pace in a year in May.
May marked the third consecutive month of improvement with ...
UK manufacturing contracts at slowest pace in a year
by Kay Murchie
May 1, 2009
India’s exports for March have fallen by a record amount as the country missed a revised export target of $175 billion.
In 2007-08, the country posted export growth of 23 percent valued at $155.51 billion.
According to figures released by the ministry of commerce in March exports were valued at $11.52 billion, which is down 33 percent from this time last ...
Indian monthly exports fall by largest on record
by Peter Charalambous
April 30, 2009
Nationwide's latest house price index shows a 0.4% fall in the average price of a home in April.
The decline means the average domestic residence is now worth 15% less than a year ago, at £151,861.
It also scuppers hopes that the 0.9% price rise reported by the building society in March launched the UK housing market on a definite route to recovery.
Taking ...
House prices lose 0.4% in April
by Gill Montia
April 27, 2009
Hometrack has reported that house prices in England and Wales fell by 0.3% in April.
The monthly decline was at its slowest for a year and half that recorded by the housing intelligence firm in March.
Figures for this month bring the annual loss to 10.1% and the price of the average home in England and Wales down to £155,600.
The number of ...
Monthly house price decline slows to 0.3%
by Gill Montia
April 23, 2009
Industrial orders in the euro zone have fallen by 34.5 percent compared to last year and fell at their fastest rate in over 13 years in February as the global economic slowdown has meant that the demand for factory equipment and metal work has fallen drastically.
The European Union’s statistics office said today that the February drop is the largest on record, however ...
European industrial orders down 34.5%
by Peter Charalambous
April 22, 2009
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has dealt a blow today by announcing that the global economy is set to decline by 1.3% in 2009.
Back in January, the IMF predicted that world output would increase by 0.5% in 2009.
In the UK, the IMF is forecasting a “quite severe recession” and that the economy will contract by 4.1% in 2009, and by a further ...
IMF predicting ‘brutal slump’
by Kay Murchie
April 16, 2009
Despite high hopes for the equity release market during the fallout from the credit crisis, the first quarter of 2009 has produced disappointing results.
The Key Retirement Solutions (KRS) Equity Release Market Monitor shows a decline in take-up compared to a year ago, with the number of plans sold down 7% during the first three months of the year.
Actual equity release lending for the ...
Equity release lending plummets
by Gill Montia
April 1, 2009
The UK manufacturing sector is showing some signs of improvement after the CIPS/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 39.1 last month, up from 34.9 in February.
Anything below the 50 mark represents a contraction in activity, but the pace of decline last month slowed at a faster rate than economists had predicted by economists.
The reading is the highest since the collapse ...
Decline in UK manufacturing slows
by Kay Murchie
March 29, 2009
Official figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales falling a further 2% during February, taking the annual rate of decline to 16.5% and marking 18 consecutive months of sliding values.
According to the data, the average price of a house now stands at £153,862, a level last seen in September 2004.
By comparison, ...
Land Registry reports 16.5% annual fall in house prices
by Gill Montia
March 18, 2009
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has released its UK house price statistics for January, based on mortgage completions during the month.
The figures show the average cost of a home falling 11.5% since January 2008, to £195,724.
However, the decline in prices eased during the three months to the end of January 2009, with the value of ...
Government figures show 11.5% decline in house prices
by Gill Montia
March 12, 2009
Numis Securities, the investment banking and institutional stockbroking firm, has predicted the worst outcome yet for the UK property market.
Analysts at the firm suggest that house prices could slump by a further 55% as Britian faces a deep recession that could extend throughout 2010.
Already 21% below their 2007 peak, Numis estimates that UK property prices remain between 17% and 39% ...
House prices could fall a further 55%
by Gill Montia
March 10, 2009
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have revealed manufacturing output in the UK fell for the eleventh consecutive month in January, and shrank at its fastest annual pace since January 1981.
According to the ONS, output fell 12.8% compared with a year ago as the downturn continues to have a devastating affect on the sector. ...
UK manufacturing output contracts at fastest annual pace since January 1981
by Kay Murchie
March 5, 2009
The Halifax house price index returned to its usual sombre mood in February, showing a 2.3% fall in the average house price, against a surprise 1.9% monthly rise in January.
According to the lender, the value of the average UK residence fell £3,800 during the month to £160,327, a level last seen in August 2004.
The annual decline stood at 17.7%, based ...
House prices down another 2.3% in February
by Gill Montia
