The John Lewis Partnership, which is regarded as a barometer of British retailing, today announced that sales grew 17.7% to £55.1 million in the week to 8 May, compared with the same period a year ago. The renowned employee-owned department store said colder weather has not deterred shoppers and the firm will continue to outperform [...]
Supermarket giant Morrisons has today reported same store sales rose by 0.8% in the 13 weeks to 2 May, much lower than the 6% growth reported in the year to January 31. Despite the slower sales growth, the Bradford-based retailer said it is outperforming its competitors and industry data shows it remains the fastest-growing of [...]
Influential think tank, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), said the UK economy avoided a double-dip recession in the first quarter of 2010 and is expected to see growth of 0.4%. However, official figures for quarter one GDP will not be published until April 23 but it appears many are optimistic for [...]
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is today expected to keep UK interest rates on hold at the historically low level of 0.5% for the 13th consecutive month. In addition, the Bank is expected not to inject any more money into the economy through its quantitative easing (QE) scheme. In February, the Bank [...]
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has today said the UK economy will outperform its G7 rivals in the second quarter of 2010. The forecast comes despite the UK economy lagging behind other major economies and being one of the last to emerge from recession – in the fourth quarter of 2009. However, [...]
Supermarket giant Morrisons has beat its rivals by announcing strong Christmas trading results. The Bradford-based retailer said like-for-like sales in the six weeks to January 3 rose by 6.5%. Meanwhile, total sales grew 11.2% as the supermarket attracted a record number of customers and the strong festive performance resulted in Morrisons increasing its market share [...]
Australia’s unemployment rate fell in December to 5.5% from 5.6% in November, according to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. In comparison, the unemployment rate in both the US and Europe are around the 10% mark. Australia’s figures came as a surprise to many analysts who had expected the rate to remain [...]
The world’s biggest supermarket, Wal-Mart Stores Inc, has described the current sales environment as “difficult”. The retailing giant said sales were down 0.4% in the three months to 31 October at stores open for more than 12 months. US consumers continue to rein in their spending as the economy continues to see a rise in [...]
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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