Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has today downgraded Italy’s sovereign debt by one notch to A from A+, and kept it on a negative outlook. The agency cited weak economic growth prospects, which may impact on the country’s ability to reduce its deficit. The Italian Senate recently passed a tough austerity budget, which [...]
France’s economic growth showed a reading of zero in the April to June quarter, compared with 0.9% in the previous three months, according to Insee, the national statistical agency. The reading was short of forecasts of a 0.3% rise for the quarter. The lack of growth was attributed to a fall in household consumption, which [...]
US President Barack Obama has announced Republican and Democratic leaders have come to an agreement on raising the Government debt ceiling to avoid defaulting on its debt. “I want to announce that the leaders of both parties in both chambers have reached an agreement that will reduce the deficit and avoid default, a default that [...]
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 International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned the Spanish Government to continue with its efforts of cutting public spending and reducing unemployment. Like many other Governments across the globe, Spain is taking steps to reduce the deficit but the IMF warned the economy still faces “considerable” risks. In an annual report, the Washington-based Fund said: [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK public sector borrowing fell slightly last month. According to the ONS, public sector borrowing fell to £15.15 billion last month compared with £16.46 billion in May last year. The figure was lower than analysts’ expectations of £15.75 billion and was attributed to an increase in [...]
Some of Britain’s top economists are calling for Chancellor George Osborne to come up with a plan B for the UK economy. It has been suggested that the Chancellor’s massive spending cuts are too harsh for the fragile economy and a plan B on economic policy is required. The comments come shortly after the OECD’s [...]
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has today lowered the US’ top notch credit rating from stable to negative – suggesting that the rating could be cut within the next two years. The rating agency believes that the Democrats and Republicans will not be able to agree a plan to cut the spiralling US deficit. President Barack [...]
A report by the Ernst & Young Item Club has suggested the Government could be in line for an £8 billion windfall this year due to a rebound in tax revenues and a cut in public spending. The Item Club is estimating public borrowing for the financial year to the end of March to be [...]
Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed he is maintaining the levy on banks, raising an additional £800 million this year and £2.5 billion in the coming years. In a radio interview, he said he wants to ensure “banks make a fair contribution to closing the deficit”. Initially, Mr Osborne said the Government’s new bank levy would [...]
Prime Minister David Cameron has said the Government will not introduce major tax cuts but insisted he remains a “tax-cutting Tory”. His comments come just a few days after Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, claimed that millions of middle-class families who are set to become higher rate taxpayers from April will “barely notice” the difference. [...]
The Baltic republic of Estonia adopted the euro yesterday – becoming the euro zone’s 17th member. Estonia, a country of 1.3 million people, had hoped to join the euro in 2007 but was prevented from doing so by high inflation. However, its entry into the euro zone comes at a time when the region is [...]
British Prime Minister, David Cameron, has warned that next year will be “difficult” as he delivered his new year speech. However, Mr Cameron said Britain has a “really bright future to look forward to” and defended his Government’s spending cuts as tough but necessary, in order to trim the budget deficit. The cuts have received [...]
The Greek parliament has today approved its 2011 austerity budget, which includes further spending cuts and tax hikes. The budget, which is part of the condition of its bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is an attempt to trim the country’s deficit to 7.4% of GDP next year, down from [...]
Ireland’s Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today revealed Ireland’s economy experienced growth in the July to September period. The economy expanded by 0.5% in the third quarter compared with the previous quarter – albeit, the figure was slightly below expectations. The former “Celtic Tiger” economy contracted in the second quarter after emerging from recession in [...]
Spain’s finance minister has insisted that the country will not follow Greece and Ireland and seek a bailout. In a newspaper interview published today, Elena Salgado said: “Our fiscal adjustment is on track… we have done all the things that we had to do with our financial sector.” She added that Spain is “absolutely not” [...]
A US panel has been established to help slash the budget deficit and it is calling for harsh spending cuts and tax hikes. In the 12 months to September, the budget deficit stood at $1.3 trillion (£837 billion) and experts have argued that more should be done to narrow the gap. This week, President Barack [...]
Portugal has, once again, denied that it does not require an EU bailout as speculation mounts that it will follow Greece and Ireland and request emergency funds. The euro has been falling over recent days over debt concerns in the euro zone. The single currency is falling as investors are nervous that the debt crisis [...]
The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR), which was established in May, is today expected to revise its growth forecast for the UK for the 2010 year. The independent body, which was set up by the coalition Government to assess the state of public finances, is expected to revise its growth forecast to 1.7% from the [...]
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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