News Tag: index
March 16, 2010
Affordability for first-time buyers has continued to improve, according to FindaProperty.com.
The website's latest index suggests it is now easier for first-time buyers to get onto the property ladder than it has been at any time since the start of the credit crisis, in 2007.
Stable prices and more borrower-friendly lending criteria are responsible for the shift, which has occurred despite ...
Friendlier lending eases the way for first-time buyers
by Gill Montia
March 4, 2010
A report by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG has revealed February was the seventh consecutive month in which permanent places rose.
According to the report, more full-time jobs were added in February than at any time since July 2007.
The index, which is produced by Markit for the REC and KPMG, grew from 60.5 to 63.2 in February - any ...
Report reveals improvement in jobs market
by Kay Murchie
February 14, 2010
The Commerce Department has revealed a better-than-expected 0.5% rise in January retail sales compared with the previous month, suggesting a strong economic recovery.
The figures follow on from the 0.1% fall in December but on an annual basis, sales were up by 4.7%.
Retail sales are closely monitored because consumer spending makes up for more than two-thirds of overall economic ...
US retail sales up 0.5%, consumer confidence down
by Kay Murchie
February 9, 2010
Rising inflation is not deterring consumers from putting money aside into a savings account, according to research by Nationwide.
According to the building society, the number of occasional and regular savers is at the highest level for 16 months.
Nearly eight in ten (79%) consumers are now regular or occasional savers, according to Nationwide’s Importance of Savings Index.
Andy Hutchinson, Nationwide’s head of savings, ...
Rising inflation fails to deter savers
by David Masters
February 2, 2010
There were further hopes of a strong recovery today after the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS)/Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to 48.6 in January, up from 47.1 the previous month - the smallest fall in activity during the current 23-month period of contraction.
The figures came just a day after the CIPS/Markit manufacturing PMI revealed UK manufacturing activity ...
Construction industry contracts at slower rate
by Kay Murchie
January 28, 2010
Unemployment in Europe’s largest economy rose to 3.43 million, taking the unemployment rate up from 8.1% in December to 8.2% this month.
The jobless total rose by 6,000 people in January but this was less than economists had expected.
According to the Federal Labour Office, the severe snowfall experienced in January put an end to the recent pick up in the labour market.
Carsten ...
German unemployment rate up to 8.2%
by Kay Murchie
January 26, 2010
The US economy experienced two sets of positive economic data today. Firstly, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas rose for the sixth consecutive month in November.
According to the index, house prices were 0.2% higher compared with the October.
Meanwhile, on an annual basis, the 20-city index was 5.3% down compared with November 2008.
David Blitzer, chairman of ...
US house prices rise, consumer confidence up
by Kay Murchie
January 20, 2010
Rightmove has reported that its initial statistics for 2010 show increases in both seller confidence and buyer interest.
According to the property portal, sellers who have come to market so far in January are asking more for their properties "causing a big turnaround in figures that were on course for a third consecutive monthly fall".
The firm's commercial director, Miles Shipside, says he ...
Seller confidence and buyer interest return
by Gill Montia
January 7, 2010
The key services sector reported growth during December according to the latest activity index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).
The index showed a reading of 56.8 in December, up from 56.6 in November - any reading above 50 indicates growth.
Not only was the figure slightly above economists' forecasts, it was just under the 27-month high ...
Positive economic data boosts hope for end to recession
by Kay Murchie
December 30, 2009
The FTSE 100 index closed at 5437.61 points yesterday - a level not seen since prior to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008.
However, in March this year, the index hit a 6-year low of 3,461 and despite the recent rally, it is still a long way off the 6,700 mark it reached prior to the dot-com crash ...
Blue-chip firms in record rights issues in 2009
by Kay Murchie
November 2, 2009
The latest Consumer Confidence Index, released by market research company Nielsen and the British Retail Consortium (BRC), has revealed a rise in consumer confidence.
The index shows an increase to 75, which is 10 points higher than the all-time-low reported in April this year.
However, the BRC cautioned that despite the bounce in confidence, consumers are still concerned over unemployment and future job ...
BRC reports rise in consumer confidence
by Kay Murchie
October 30, 2009
Nationwide has reported that UK house prices rose for the sixth consecutive month in October, although the rate of increase slowed from 0.9% in September and 1.4% in both July and August.
However, the month saw the average value of a home 2% higher than a year earlier at £162,038, reflecting the first annual increase since March 2008.
The three-month ...
UK house prices 2% higher than a year ago
by Gill Montia
October 20, 2009
Property Portfolio Rescue (PPR) has published its latest UK distress index, showing a surge in the number of distressed home sellers in major cities in the Midlands and the North.
In the three months to the end of September, the index rose by 60% in these regions, compared with the same period of 2008.
According to the residential landlord, enquiries from ...
Distressed sales surge in Midlands and the North
by Gill Montia
October 12, 2009
The FTSE 100 Index rose to 5231.16 today - a new record for the year to date.
London’s FTSE responded to strong gains seen on the Dow Jones Industrial Average last Friday, which hit a 12-month high.
Since its low point in March this year, the FTSE 100 Index has risen around 50% with companies such as Marks & Spencer and Barclays seeing gains ...
FTSE 100 reaches 2009 high
by Kay Murchie
October 2, 2009
Nationwide has announced that UK house prices are now at the same level as a year ago.
In its latest review of the market, the lender found that the average value of a home rose by 0.9% in September, marking the fifth consecutive monthly increase and taking the year-on-year rate of change out of negative territory for the first time since ...
House prices rebound to September 2008 levels
by Gill Montia
October 1, 2009
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) index has revealed a fall in UK manufacturing activity in September by falling to 49.5 from 49.7 in August.
The data shows that employers reduced headcount for the 17th consecutive month, while the rate of pick-up in new orders slowed.
The fall was a surprise to many analysts who were expecting a rise to 50.3. ...
UK factory activity dips in September
by Kay Murchie
September 1, 2009
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply's monthly index of manufacturing fell to 49.7 in August from 50.2 in July - a figure below 50 indicates contraction.
Today’s figures have surprised many analysts who predicted a rise to 51.5, after growth was reported in July for the first time since April last year.
Meanwhile, the new orders index declined from 54.8 to ...
Weak manufacturing data sends FTSE down
by Kay Murchie
August 27, 2009
August saw a 1.6% monthly gain for UK house prices, with values increasing for the fourth consecutive month, Nationwide has reported.
The building society's index puts the average price of a property at £160,224, up from £158,871 in July, with the rise slowing the annual rate of decline to an almost acceptable 2.7%, compared with 6.2% in July.
The three-month on three-month measure ...
House prices up 1.6% in August
by Gill Montia
August 24, 2009
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 largest quarterly ...
Hopes for end of recession as business confidence surges
by Kay Murchie
August 4, 2009
There are tentative signs that the construction sector is recovering after figures today revealed that the slowdown in activity eased in July to the slowest pace for sixteen months.
The CIPS/Markit Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index posted a reading of 47 in July, edging closer to the 50 mark which indicates growth.
The index is up from the 44.5 recorded in June ...
Construction sector shows tentative signs of recovery
by Kay Murchie
