The Statistics Bureau has today revealed Japan has overcome deflation for the first time in 25 months after consumer prices rose by 0.6% last month – in line with forecasts. A short period of deflation (where prices fall rather than increase) is a serious threat to an economy because it deters consumers and businesses from [...]
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has today announced UK car sales grew by 13.5% in May compared with the same month in 2009. The SMMT said the number of new cars sold in the month was 153,095 compared with 134,858 in May 2009 – this represented the 11th consecutive monthly rise. However, [...]
Bus and train operator National Express has today announced plans to raise £360 million via a rights issue, which will strengthen its balance sheet as it struggles under a mountain of debt of £1.5 billion. Shares in the transport group lost 7.9% at 311p in early trading today. Shares in the group have lost almost [...]
Bus and train operator National Express has confirmed that talks over a possible tie-up with rival bus and rail group Stagecoach have ended. In a statement yesterday, the company said: “The board has concluded it is unlikely that a combination with Stagecoach could be successfully executed in 2009, even if appropriate terms could be agreed.” [...]
The Commerce Department today revealed a fall in US retail sales for the month of September as the US Government’s Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), branded the “cash for clunkers” scheme ended. According to the organisation, retail sales in the world’s largest economy fell 1.5% on the month – the largest amount in 2009 to [...]
Hopes of an end to the recession have been heightened by September data from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. New figures indicate that the UK service sector has grown at its fastest pace in almost two years, with the Institute’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) turning in a better than expected performance and increasing [...]
Influential think tank, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said today that Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 0.2% in the third quarter after a 0.3% fall in the April to June period. The NIESR specialises in estimating GDP prior to the release of figures from the Office for National Statistics. However, while [...]
Minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting have revealed that policymakers are optimistic that the US downturn is coming to an end. However, the minutes did say that the economy is “likely to recover only slowly during the second half of this year and all saw it as still vulnerable to adverse shocks.” Furthermore, policymakers [...]
The US Government’s Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), branded the “cash for clunkers” scheme has boosted car sales with Ford reporting a 17% rise in sales in August compared with July. General Motors (GM) said sales had soared by 30% from July this year but did report a 20% drop in year-on-year sales. Overall, total [...]
The Institute of Chartered Accountants’ index has revealed that business confidence has surged, boosting hopes that the recession is coming to an end. The survey, which questioned over 1,000 chartered accountants across England and Wales, showed that business confidence soared from minus 28.2 at the end of March to 4.8 at the end of June [...]
The German and French economies, Europe’s two largest, have both experienced economic growth during the second quarter of 2009. The news has surprised many economists and French Finance and Economy Minister, Christine Lagarde, comments: “The data is very surprising. After four negative quarters France is coming out of the red.” Ms Largarde said that consumer [...]
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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