Influential think tank, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has today said the number of unemployed in the 33-member OECD countries hit 45.5 million in August. The Paris-based organisation said the jobless rate in August for the area was 8.5%, falling from 8.6% in July. A statement from the Organisation noted that the [...]
The European Union’s statistics agency has announced unemployment in the 16-member euro zone remained steady at 10.1% in August. According to Eurostat, 15.87 million people were unemployed in the euro zone during the month. Spain continues to have one of the highest unemployment rates within the 16-bloc nation at 20.5%, while Germany’s rate continues to [...]
Homeowners who qualify for the Government’s Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) scheme have seen a 40% cut in the rate at which the benefit is paid. The scheme allows some borrowers in financial difficulties to defer part of their mortgage repayments until their circumstances have improved, and the SMI rate was frozen at a generous [...]
The Irish Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today revealed the jobless rate dipped to 13.7% in September, down from 13.8% in August. However, the rate remains a concern and compares with a rate of 10% for the euro zone and 7.8% for the UK. In the meantime, the CSO said there was a fall in [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK unemployment dipped in the three months to July. The ONS said unemployment fell by 8,000 in the three month period to 2.47 million. The latest figures means the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.8%, said the ONS. This compares with 10% in the euro zone [...]
Figures today revealed Australia’s unemployment rate rose unexpectedly to 5.3% in July from 5.1% in June. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 24,600 more people were out of work surprising analysts who had expected no change. However, experts said the surprise rise may partly be due to revised population figures, which showed there were [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK unemployment dipped in the three months to June. According to the ONS, the number of people unemployed in the UK fell to 2.457 million. The ONS said the jobless total dived by 49,000 in the three month period – representing the biggest quarterly drop since [...]
The Labor Department has revealed the world’s largest economy lost 131,000 jobs last month – again, partly due to the loss of temporary Government jobs, which were recruited to help conduct the 2010 census. The latest figures means the unemployment rate held steady at 9.5% in July – for the second consecutive month and beating [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed UK economic growth for the second quarter today surged ahead by 1.1% – almost double the rate analysts had forecast. Meanwhile, economic growth rose by 1.6% on an annualised basis – the highest in two years. The UK is the first G7 country to release its [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed that UK unemployment fell in the three months to May. According to the ONS, the number of people unemployed in the UK fell to 2.468 million, boosted by a record rise in part-time work. The latest figures means the unemployment rate dipped to 7.8% from 7.9% [...]
Yesterday’s emergency Budget contained a change to the Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) scheme, which aims to give homeowners in financial difficulties time to find new employment or recover income, without the added stress of potentially losing their homes. The scheme involves lenders reducing a borrower’s monthly mortgage payments by deferring interest, which can be [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed that UK unemployment fell in April. According to the ONS, the number of people unemployed in the UK fell from 2.51 million to 2.471 million in the three months to April. The latest figures means the unemployment rate dipped to 7.9% from 8%. In comparison, the [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today announced Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) fell to 3.4% in May – down from the 17-month high of 3.7% in April. While the level still far exceeds the 2% target, the drop was quicker than the 3.5% many analysts had expected. The Bank of England’s Governor, Mervyn King, [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is scheduled to announce the UK inflation rate this morning, with analysts expecting the annual rate to be around 3.5%. Last month, the ONS reported Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) rose to a 17-month high of 3.7% in April – far exceeding the 2% target for the sixth consecutive month. [...]
The Labor Department today revealed the world’s largest economy added 431,000 jobs last month – the majority of them temporary Government jobs to help conduct the 2010 census. However, the figure fell far short of the 515,000 expected by analysts and follows an unrevised 290,000 increase in April. As a result, the unemployment rate has [...]
Barclays is celebrating the tenth anniversary of the UK’s first offset mortgage. The bank’s Woolwich subsidiary took the plunge in June 2000 and the lender claims it has saved borrowers more than £1 billion in mortgage interest over the years. The average Woolwich offset mortgage stands at £132,000 and customers typically keep £21,000 in their [...]
The Labor Department revealed the world’s largest economy added 290,000 jobs last month, primarily in manufacturing, healthcare and hospitality. It was the biggest monthly total in four years but despite the rise, the unemployment rate has risen from 9.7% in March to 9.9% in April. According to analysts, as confidence grows in the economy, those [...]
Figures today showed inflation in the euro zone rose 1.5% year-on-year in April, up from 1.4% the previous month. While the rise was expected, the figure still remains well below the European Central Bank’s (ECB) target. The figures led many analysts to believe that the ECB will keep interest rates at the record low of [...]
Phone fraudsters stealing bank card pins
Fraudsters using a phone scam to trick bank card holders into revealing their pin numbers stole £750,000 in the first four months of this year. This is the same amount stolen through this scam in the whole of last year. The fraudster telephones a bank customer, often someone elderly or vulnerable, telling them that their [...]
FSA rules out ban on interest-only mortgages
Speculation that the Financial Services Authority would ban interest-only mortgages as part of its Mortgage Market Review has proved to be unfounded. However, lenders will be required to monitor the performance of the investment product taken out by the customer to repay the mortgage at the end of its term. Investments are performing poorly because [...]
Bank of England may end free in-credit banking
A director of the Bank of England has warned that official intervention could be considered to end the ‘dangerous myth of free in-credit banking’. Andrew Bailey has already spoken out against free banking in relation to the mis-selling of financial products. In a speech made available to media, he reiterated his concern, saying that it [...]
Bank of England votes against more economic stimulus
The Bank of England voted against a further round of quantitative easing, at its latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. Just one member, David Miles, voted for further asset purchase to encourage growth in the UK economy, while the other eight members voted to keep the Bank’s quantitative easing programme steady at £325bn. The minutes [...]
Catalogue debt growing says helpline
Calls from people concerned about their debts with mail order catalogues accounted for more than 12 per cent of all calls received by National Debtline last year, compared with just 8 per cent in 2007. More people were concerned about catalogue debt than about payday loans, mortgage or rent, according to the Money Advice Trust [...]
Homeserve faces mis-selling investigation
HomeServe, which provides emergency insurance cover and domestic repairs to households in the UK, is to be investigated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Issues over the possible mis-selling of household emergency policies were uncovered last October during an internal review at the Walsall-based company. Homeserve’s call centre staff were found to be selling ‘Complete [...]
OFT warns Wonga over debt collection methods
Payday loan company Wonga used aggressive and misleading methods to collect debts from customers, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has found. Wonga sent letter and emails to certain customers suggesting they had committed fraud and threatening to report them to the police if they did not act in the way Wonga suggested. The company [...]
NS&I re-launches investment account
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has re-launched its Investment Account at a higher interest rate than it previously offered. The account now offers 0.75 per cent before tax, compared with between 0.2 and 0.3 per cent previously, depending on the account balance. Deposits and withdrawals on the account can no longer be made at Post [...]
Rightmove reports property downsizing trend
Two in five property owners planning to sell in the next year are planning to ‘trade down’, compared with one in four who plan to ‘trade up’. A survey by property website Rightmove found that moving to a smaller home is the main reason for moving in nine out of the ten regions in the [...]
More people failing to save for retirement
The proportion of people with no pension savings has grown from 20 per cent to 22 per cent over the past year, according to Scottish Widows’ latest survey. The pension provider surveyed 5,200 adults in the UK, aged 30 or over, and earning at least £10,000 a year, for its annual review of pensions. Ian [...]
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