China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed the consumer price index rose 5.1% in November on an annual basis – much faster than expected. It represented the fastest increase since July 2008 – when inflation exceeded the 6% mark. Inflation is still well in excess of the 3% target set by the Government. Last [...]
The Halifax has today revealed UK house prices fell by 0.1% last month compared with October. The latest house price fall takes the average cost of a UK home to £164,708, the Halifax said. According to the lender, which is now part of the Lloyds Banking Group, buyer demand continues to be weak amid economic [...]
A report by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG has revealed employment for both temporary and permanent workers rose during November. The survey of 400 recruitment consultancies showed job appointments grew at their fastest pace in three months. The permanent staff placements index surged to 55.2 in November, from to 52.6 the previous [...]
Falling temperatures led to a slowdown in retail sales in November, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) revealed today. According to the BRC, values were just 0.7% higher compared with November 2009 as consumers are cautious about the uncertainty surrounding the economy and are fearful of spending cuts and rising taxes. The cold weather and snowfall [...]
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has today announced UK car sales fell by 11.5% in November compared with the same month in 2009. It represents the fifth consecutive monthly fall and came despite the forthcoming VAT hike, which was expected to boost sales towards the end of the year. The SMMT said [...]
There are continued fears for the strength of the US economic recovery today after the jobs market fails to improve. The Labor Department revealed the unemployment rate rose to 9.8% in November – the highest level since April. The rate has now exceeded the 9% mark since May 2009. The US economy added just 39,000 [...]
Growth in the UK’s closely-watched service sector eased slightly in November but still remained near October’s four-month high. The latest index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit PMI fell to 53 in November, down slightly from the 53.2 recorded in October. However, the reading was in line with expectations and the index [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply(CIPS)/Markit construction PMI index revealed activity improved in November. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 51.8 in November from 51.6 the previous month and surprised analysts who had expected a fall to 51. The index remains above the crucial 50 level, which indicates expansion. Activity in the commercial and [...]
Manufacturing activity in China picked up further in November, two separate surveys showed today. The China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) showed manufacturing activity rose to 55.2 last month, up from 54.7 in October and 53.8 in September. Meanwhile, a separate survey from HSBC bank also confirmed manufacturing activity increased. Activity rose to 55.3 [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) has today revealed UK manufacturing activity surged at a record pace in November. The closely-watched CIPS/Markit manufacturing PMI rose to 58 in November from an upwardly revised 55.4 in October. Not only was the reading the highest since September 1994, it confounded [...]
The latest house price index from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed a 0.3% fall for the month of November compared with October – the fourth time in five months that prices registered a fall. The latest fall means house prices are now just 0.4% higher than this time last year with the average UK [...]
US consumer confidence surged ahead in November to a five-month high. The reading from the closely-monitored Consumer Confidence Index from the Conference Board rose for the second consecutive month to 54.1 in November – up from a revised 49.9 in October and beating expectations of a reading of 52.5. However, while the index rose, it [...]
The Federal Labour Agency has today announced Germany’s unemployment rate remained at 7% in November. However, the jobless total fell by 14,000 to 2.931 million, down from 2.945 million the previous month. The number of unemployed continues to remain below the crucial three million mark – boosted by a combination of Government measures and reforms. [...]
According to housing intelligence group, Hometrack, house prices in England and Wales fell for the fifth consecutive month in November. According to Hometrack, house prices fell by 0.8% on the month in November to £155,000. The ongoing fall in values continues to be the result of a higher level of instructions on the market and [...]
The Munich-based Ifo think tank today announced confidence among German firms grew in November. The Business Climate Index rose to 109.3 in November, up from 107.7 the previous month – the strongest rise since German reunification in 1990. The closely-watched index also confounded expectations of a fall to 107.5. Meanwhile, commenting on the figures, the [...]
Minutes of the Bank of England’s November meeting have been released today and have revealed that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) were split three ways – for the second consecutive month. Adam Posen, again, called for an injection of £50 billion via the Bank’s quantitative easing (QE) programme to boost the economy. Furthermore, for the [...]
Property website, Rightmove, has today reported a major fall in asking prices in November – as vendors cut their prices amid desperation to sell their property before the Christmas slowdown. According to Rightmove, asking prices for residential property in England and Wales fell 3.2% in the month – the biggest drop since December 2007. The [...]
Chancellor George Osborne has today announced that UK banks will have until next month to sign up to a code of practice, in a bid to get them to pay more tax. Speaking to BBC television today, Mr Osborne said: “We are going to be looking at the code of practice that the banks were [...]
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 [...]
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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