Influential think tank, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), has today suggested the UK economy recovered in the first quarter of the year after bad weather conditions led to a shock contraction in the final quarter of last year. The economy contracted by 0.5% in the October to December period after the [...]
The Japanese economy, which is the world’s second largest, faces many risks, one of them is deflation and the other is the country’s debt – which at nearly 230% of GDP is the highest of any industrialised nation. The debt is the result of decades of stimulus spending and low tax receipts. Japan’s new Prime [...]
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 [...]
Industrial production in the euro zone exceeded expectations again in February, posting growth of 0.9% from January, while on an annual basis, output rose 4.1% – the biggest rise since April 2008. The figures were a surprise since economists had predicted a monthly gain of 0.2% and an annual rise of 2.9%, according to a [...]
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has announced that in the first quarter of 2009, the number of problem banks in the US soared 40% to a 15-year high. The FDIC said the number of banks with financial difficulties in the three-month period soared to 305, which represents the highest number since 1994 and follows [...]
Figures released today by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) revealed that spending by British households fell by 1.2% in the first three months of 2009 – the largest fall since 1980. According to the ONS, the only positive contribution to growth was Government spending. In addition to the fall in household spending, the ONS [...]
Banking giant HSBC has today announced that pre-tax profit in the first quarter of 2009 was down compared with the same period in 2008, due to higher bad debts. However, the bank received $6.6 billion (£4.4 billion) from the higher book value of its debt, which meant its profits at the underlying level increased. The [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has today reported a pre-tax loss of £44 million for the first quarter of 2009, against a profit of £479 million for the same three month period in 2008. Meanwhile, the bank wrote off £4.9 billion during the period while post-tax losses totalled £857 million. At the end of February [...]
UBS, which is Switzerland’s largest, bank, has reported a first quarter loss of SwFr1.98 billion (£1.2 billion). The bank said the losses were attributed to write-downs on risky investments. However the loss was less than the SwFr9.5 billion reported for the fourth quarter of 2008. The Swiss bank is among one of the worst hit [...]
Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has followed rival firm BP and announced a sharp fall in quarterly profits as oil prices fall and demand weakens. Profit for the first quarter plunged to $3.3 billion (£2.24 billion), down 58% compared with the same period in 2008 and represents a 31% fall compared with the fourth quarter [...]
Friends Provident, the life insurer, has experienced a 40 percent fall in life and pension sales for the first quarter of 2009 to £109 million, as the recession has put off potential customers in saving for the future. Following the reported results, shares in Friends Provident lost 8 percent. In a bid to rectify losses, [...]
For the first time in over 23 years, Microsoft has experienced its first ever year-on-year decline and the fall in sales is expected to continue for at least another three months. However, investors had feared that the company’s results could have been worse. Net profit at Microsoft fell by 32 percent to $2.98bn as revenue [...]
The world’s biggest package delivery company, United Parcel Service (UPS), has announced a severe fall in profits for the first quarter as fewer parcels are being sent during the global economic downturn. The group reported a 55% drop in profits for the period, compared with the same period in 2008, while revenue declined by 14% [...]
As the government has been preparing the budget for jobs, it has been revealed that unemployment in the UK reached 2.1 million in the first quarter and last month signalled the 13th consecutive rise. Just prior to the budget, the latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics showed that a further 177,000 jobs [...]
The run of good luck is continuing among US banks as Bank of America is the latest to exceed analysts expectations after it made a net profit of $4.24 billion for the three months ending 31 March – almost triple that of a year ago of $1.21 billion. The bank, which is the largest in [...]
Citigroup has today boosted the stock market by announcing its first quarterly net profit in almost two years. The bank made a profit of $1.6 billion (£1.1 billion) for the first three months of 2009, compared to a loss of $5.1 billion in the last three months of last year, while revenues rose 99% to [...]
Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, is to wield the axe on another 8,700 jobs. Oswald Gruebel, the chief executive appointed to restore the bank’s reputation, said the bank will become smaller and there will be cuts. The jobs are set to go by next year in a major cost-cutting programme after the bank announced losses of [...]
Britain’s largest clothing retailer, Marks & Spencer (M&S), has reported a 4.2% fall in like-for-like sales for the three months ending March 28. The decline compares with a 7.1% fall in the previous quarter and exceeded City expectations. However, it is the sixth consecutive quarter that the group has reported a drop in revenue. The [...]
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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