The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK factory output fell by 0.4% in June after rising by 1.8% in May. The reading surprised economists who had expected a 0.2% rise. Meanwhile, the ONS said out of 13 categories in manufacturing, five increased and eight fell with the biggest falls in transport equipment, [...]
Japan’s industrial production rose in November for the first time in six months, increasing by 1% on the previous month, boosted by higher car production. The rise was also attributed to Government incentive programmes and will undoubtedly ease concerns about the recovery of the world’s third largest economy. The figures, published by the Ministry of [...]
The Commerce Department reported a rise in US factory orders, suggesting the US economy is continuing to grow strongly. According to the Commerce Department, orders for manufactured goods grew 1.2% in April, easing slightly from the 1.7% rise in March. The manufacturing sector has been one of the strongest performers, boosted by the recovery in [...]
US food giant, Kraft, has been criticised by a group of MPs today after the company pledged to keep open Cadbury’s Somerdale factory in Keynsham, but later decided to close the site following its takeover of the British confectioner. Kraft, which made several hostile bids for Cadbury before shareholders finally agreed to a deal, initially [...]
Marc Firestone, vice-president of US food giant, Kraft, has today appeared before MPs on the Business Select Committee and has apologised for the firm’s pledge to keep open Cadbury’s Keynsham factory. Mr Firestone was questioned by MP’s over the company’s takeover of Cadbury. Kraft completed its takeover of the 186-year-old iconic British confectioner on 2 [...]
Marc Firestone, vice-president of US food giant, Kraft, will appear before MPs on the Business Select Committee today. Mr Firestone will be questioned by MP’s over the company’s takeover of Cadbury. Kraft completed its takeover of the 186-year-old iconic British confectioner on 2 February after a five-month battle. Earlier this month, the US food giant [...]
US food giant, Kraft, is set to be investigated by the City takeover panel about whether it made misleading comments at the time of its takeover of British confectioner, Cadbury. Kraft, which made several hostile bids for Cadbury before shareholders finally agreed to a deal, initially said a takeover of Cadbury would secure UK jobs, [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed a rise in factory prices for the month of December. According to the ONS, the prices of goods leaving UK factories grew at a faster pace than expected at 0.5%. The monthly rise takes the annual rate of output price inflation to 3.5% – exceeding forecasts [...]
The Economy Ministry in Berlin has today revealed a fall in German factory orders for the month of October. The monthly fall of 2.1% was the first in eight months and came as a surprise after analysts had expected the recent rise in orders to continue. The fall was led by a slump in export [...]
The recession has had a major impact on the job market with companies firing rather than hiring but today Taiwanese company Kenmark, which makes LCD televisions, has announced it is to open a factory in Corby, Northamptonshire, with new jobs up for grabs. Corby will act as the company’s Eurohub and will create 500 jobs [...]
Defence giant BAE Systems is to reduce its workforce and close one of its sites in Woodford, Cheshire. However the job losses will also affect a number of its other sites. The Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions (CSEU) described the news as “bitterly disappointing”. The union’s general secretary, Hugh Scullion, said: “The CSEU will [...]
The Office for National Statistics has today revealed that the cost of goods leaving UK factories fell at the sharpest pace in 8 years in June due to a slump in demand. Output prices fell by a larger than expected 1.2%, quadruple the 0.3% decline recorded in the year to May and puts further downward [...]
The UK’s largest engineering company, BAE Systems, is to shut three factories in Telford, Leeds and Guildford by Christmas and is to axe 500 jobs. The announcement is primarily due to the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq and the axe will be wielded in the combat vehicles and weapons division. Today’s announcement follows the [...]
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 [...]
There is more bad news for the US economy today as the Commerce Department revealed that new home sales fell by 14.7% last month. Meanwhile, for the full 2008 year, sales fell by 37.8% to 482,000 homes – the fewest since 1982, when 412,000 homes were sold. However, on a positive note, while sales of [...]
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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