Figures from the Insolvency Service today highlighted the impact that the recession has had on many individuals. According to the organisation, the number of people declared insolvent in England and Wales reached a record high in the last three months of 2009. There were 35,574 people declared insolvent in the last three months of the [...]
The pound fell this morning after quarter four GDP figures were weaker than expected. While official figures showed that the UK has finally emerged from recession in the fourth quarter, the economy only grew 0.1% – an expansion of 0.4% had been expected. The pound fell to $1.614 against the US dollar – a fall [...]
The long-awaited quarter four GDP figures are to be released at 09:30 today with the hopes that the UK has finally emerged from its worst recession in several decades. The UK economy, which has now contracted for six consecutive quarters, has been lagging behind other major economies but it is hoped that the economy exited [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is to publish UK unemployment figures this morning and analysts expect the figure to be around the 2.5 million mark. Figures last month revealed that UK unemployment rose by 21,000 in the three months to October to 2.491 million, taking the unemployment rate to 7.9% – a 13-year high. [...]
Despite the fact that interest rates have been on hold at the historically low rate of 0.5% since March 2009, the average credit card interest rate rose from 15.89% to 16.28% in December, according to figures from the Bank of England. The bank also revealed that the average credit card interest rate is now at [...]
London’s FTSE 100 reached a 16-month high today boosted by strong Chinese export and import figures. The index gained 61.61 points to 5,595.85 just after 9:00am British time today – a level last seen in September 2008. The FTSE hit a low point in March 2009 of 3512 but appears to be making a strong [...]
According to the TUC, the number of people spending their second consecutive Christmas claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance has almost doubled. Using their calculations from official claimant count data, figures show the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s allowance for more than a year rose to 201,015 in November 2009, from 103,930 in December 2008. Furthermore, the TUC [...]
The Commerce Department today revealed that the world’s no.1 economy grew at a slower rate in the third quarter than previous estimates showed. According to official figures, the US economy grew by 2.2% between the July and September period, rather than the 2.8% previously reported and the original estimate of 3.5%. The figures come on [...]
The Commerce Department today revealed that the world’s no.1 economy grew at a far slower rate in the third quarter than previous estimates showed. According to official figures, the US economy grew by 2.8% between the July and September period, rather than the 3.5% previously reported. Today’s figures confirm that the economy exited its worst [...]
At 0930 BST today, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will release UK GDP figures for the third quarter. If the UK economy experiences positive growth in the July to September period, it will mean the economy has exited recession. If not, it will be the first time the UK has endured six consecutive quarters [...]
The recovery in the US was thrown into doubt today after the Commerce Department revealed housing start figures for the month of September. While construction of new US homes rose during the month, it was below economists’ expectations. According to the Commerce Department, construction of new US homes rose 0.5% during the month to a [...]
The European Union’s Eurostat agency has today revealed that the euro zone economy contracted by 0.2% in the April to June period – revised from the 0.1% previously reported. The figures are a major setback to the economy suggesting that the economy, as a whole, may not be exiting recession in the third quarter as [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed that the UK economy contracted by 0.6% in the April to June period – rather than the 0.7% previously reported and the 0.8% reported prior to that. The latest revision comes as the manufacturing and construction sectors performed better than originally thought and brings further hope [...]
For the first time ever, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published figures showing the number of complaints made to firms in the financial services industry in the 2006-2008 period. The data has revealed an enormous increase in complaints about banking and loan products, revealing a 122% increase – from 608,620 at the beginning of [...]
The Bank of England has today reported that the total amount of personal debt in the UK has declined for the first time since records began – more than 16 years ago. The economic downturn and fears over rising unemployment has meant consumers are reducing their debt with personal borrowing falling by £600 million in [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed some positive news for the UK economy after GDP contracted by 0.7% in the April to June period – rather than the 0.8% previously reported. The 0.7% fall is also a considerable improvement on the 2.4% contraction in the January March quarter. Meanwhile, the year on [...]
Business investment in Britain fell by 10.4% in the April to June period – the biggest quarterly fall since 1985. Official figures show that the amount spent by businesses on a range of investments, such as new computers and building works, fell to £29.8 billion during the period. According to economists, the figures will raise [...]
The Commerce Department has today revealed that the US economy contracted at an annual rate of 1% during the second quarter – unchanged from an initial estimate released in July, and better than market expectations for a 1.5% contraction. The data is almost certain to back up the fact that the economy is starting to [...]
The Insolvency Service has today revealed the impact of the recession after the number of people being declared insolvent in England and Wales hit a record high. According to the figures, a record 33,073 people in England and Wales were declared insolvent in the second quarter of 2009. This represents a rise of 9% compared [...]
Last month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that UK unemployment had reached 2.26 million – the highest level since November 1996, while the unemployment rate rose to 7.2% – the highest since July 1997. The ONS is set to reveal official figures later today that could show the total number of people out [...]
Phone fraudsters stealing bank card pins
Fraudsters using a phone scam to trick bank card holders into revealing their pin numbers stole £750,000 in the first four months of this year. This is the same amount stolen through this scam in the whole of last year. The fraudster telephones a bank customer, often someone elderly or vulnerable, telling them that their [...]
FSA rules out ban on interest-only mortgages
Speculation that the Financial Services Authority would ban interest-only mortgages as part of its Mortgage Market Review has proved to be unfounded. However, lenders will be required to monitor the performance of the investment product taken out by the customer to repay the mortgage at the end of its term. Investments are performing poorly because [...]
Bank of England may end free in-credit banking
A director of the Bank of England has warned that official intervention could be considered to end the ‘dangerous myth of free in-credit banking’. Andrew Bailey has already spoken out against free banking in relation to the mis-selling of financial products. In a speech made available to media, he reiterated his concern, saying that it [...]
Bank of England votes against more economic stimulus
The Bank of England voted against a further round of quantitative easing, at its latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. Just one member, David Miles, voted for further asset purchase to encourage growth in the UK economy, while the other eight members voted to keep the Bank’s quantitative easing programme steady at £325bn. The minutes [...]
Catalogue debt growing says helpline
Calls from people concerned about their debts with mail order catalogues accounted for more than 12 per cent of all calls received by National Debtline last year, compared with just 8 per cent in 2007. More people were concerned about catalogue debt than about payday loans, mortgage or rent, according to the Money Advice Trust [...]
Homeserve faces mis-selling investigation
HomeServe, which provides emergency insurance cover and domestic repairs to households in the UK, is to be investigated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Issues over the possible mis-selling of household emergency policies were uncovered last October during an internal review at the Walsall-based company. Homeserve’s call centre staff were found to be selling ‘Complete [...]
OFT warns Wonga over debt collection methods
Payday loan company Wonga used aggressive and misleading methods to collect debts from customers, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has found. Wonga sent letter and emails to certain customers suggesting they had committed fraud and threatening to report them to the police if they did not act in the way Wonga suggested. The company [...]
NS&I re-launches investment account
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has re-launched its Investment Account at a higher interest rate than it previously offered. The account now offers 0.75 per cent before tax, compared with between 0.2 and 0.3 per cent previously, depending on the account balance. Deposits and withdrawals on the account can no longer be made at Post [...]
Rightmove reports property downsizing trend
Two in five property owners planning to sell in the next year are planning to ‘trade down’, compared with one in four who plan to ‘trade up’. A survey by property website Rightmove found that moving to a smaller home is the main reason for moving in nine out of the ten regions in the [...]
More people failing to save for retirement
The proportion of people with no pension savings has grown from 20 per cent to 22 per cent over the past year, according to Scottish Widows’ latest survey. The pension provider surveyed 5,200 adults in the UK, aged 30 or over, and earning at least £10,000 a year, for its annual review of pensions. Ian [...]
About | Privacy | Disclaimer | Resources | XML Feeds | Press Releases | Directory | Contact us
