Consumer goods manufacturer Unilever has been given the backing of its trustee board for proposed changes to its pension scheme. The company’s employees are currently involved in strikes against the proposal to close its final salary pension scheme. In a statement the trustees said: “Whilst the trustee board does not welcome the company’s decision to [...]
This month’s official figures show that inflation has fallen from 4.8 per cent to 4.2 per cent but two new studies show that older age groups suffer the most from high inflation, and at 4.2 per cent it is still well above the government’s 2 per cent target. Saga’s monthly Price Index shows that since [...]
The rate of Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation fell to 4.2 per cent in December, from 4.8 per cent in November, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This is the third consecutive month that inflation has fallen and December’s figures represents the biggest monthly fall since April 2009. Inflation [...]
The Bank of England’s latest inflation attitudes survey suggests that fewer people believe inflation is being controlled effectively with interest rates. In August, when the survey was last carried out, the proportion satisfied that the Bank was doing its job to set interest rates to control inflation, versus those dissatisfied, was 16 per cent, but [...]
The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rate of inflation fell to 4.8 per cent in November it was revealed yesterday, representing the second consecutive 0.2 percentage point monthly decline. Although the price of domestic heating and alcohol increased during the month, this was offset by a fall in the cost of food, petrol, clothing, furniture and [...]
The UK’s economy will take five and a half years to recover to pre-recession levels according to Martin Weale, a member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee. Speaking to the National Institute of Social and Economic Research, Mr Weale said that the recovery “unusually slow” and indicated that the Bank could enact more [...]
With inflation at 5 per cent savings can soon be eroded and yet the number of savings accounts offering 0.1% or less interest has soared over the past year. Consumer campaign group Which? reports that the number of easy-access and notice accounts paying 0.1% or less has increased by 23% to 384 and these low [...]
In its latest quarterly inflation report the Bank of England warns that the UK’s economic outlook has worsened. It suggests that the economy could stagnate until the middle of next year, with growth predictions for 2011 and 2012 cut to around 1 per cent, compared with its August forecast of 1.7 per cent growth in [...]
Inflation fell to 5 per cent in October helped by a price war between major supermarkets, with food and petrol prices being slashed as they competed with each other. The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show a 5 per rise in the consumer-price index in the 12 months to October, compared with [...]
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has today elected to cut interest rates by one quarter of a percentage point to 4.5% in a bid to bolster growth. The move, which was widely expected, comes as the global economy slows and unemployment rises (currently at 5.2%). It was the first time in two-and-a-half years that [...]
Mervyn King, the Bank of England’s Governor, has confessed that the latest round of stimulus is not guaranteed to boost lending to SMEs. The ongoing lack of credit to SMEs has been a major concern for the Government as these companies are the key to job creation in the UK and are expected to be [...]
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has today raised key interest rates for the thirteenth time since March 2010, in a bid to tame stubbornly high inflation. The central bank lifted its main rate to 8.5% from 8.25% as inflation soars on the back of higher food and fuel prices and the measures were widely [...]
The Markit Household Finance Index (HFI) has today published a gloomy report as families’ finances were slightly worse in October than in September. Meanwhile, Markit’s HFI, which measures prospects for finances over the coming year, dived to 34.5 this month, from September’s reading of 42.2. The reading represented the lowest in the survey’s history and [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK public sector net borrowing fell last month. According to the ONS, public sector net borrowing came in at a lower than expected £14.1 billion in September, boosted by tax receipts. Analysts had expected borrowing to total £14.5 billion. Furthermore, the ONS revised down the borrowing [...]
The latest survey from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed a fall in UK consumer confidence for the month of September. The building society’s consumer confidence index fell for the fourth consecutive month, falling by 3 points to 45 in September – hovering dangerously close to the all-time low of 41. Furthermore, it is 10 [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK retail sales beat forecasts in September, led by spending on electrical goods such as laptop computers. According to the Statistics Office, sales rose by 0.6% last month, reversing the 0.4% fall in August. Furthermore, the figure was 0.6% higher on an annual basis. Retail sales [...]
The Bank of Thailand has opted to keep interest rates on hold at 3.5%, despite the worst floods the country has seen in decades which are set to hamper growth. Thailand, which is South-East Asia’s second largest economy, is expected to see growth of just 2% this year as a result of flood damage, compared [...]
Minutes of the Bank of England’s October 5-6 meeting have been released today and have revealed all nine members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to keep interest rates at the historic low of 0.5%. This was the third consecutive month that the Committee voted unanimously to keep rates at the record low, despite [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) today announced Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) accelerated to annual rate of 5.2% last month from August’s rate of 4.5%. The rate represented the highest since September 2008 and it has never exceeded this rate since the CPI measure was first calculated in 1997. Higher inflation continues to be led [...]
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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