Japan’s industrial output recovered further last month after a record drop in March due to the earthquake and tsunami. Disruptions caused by the twin disasters resulted in carmakers being forced to halt production as a result of parts shortages. However, it looks as if the situation continues to improve after output rose by 0.8% last [...]
Official figures today revealed Japan’s exports rose in August for the first time in six months – suggesting the world’s third largest economy is continuing its recovery from the devastating earthquake and tsunami which struck in March. According to the Ministry of Finance, exports were 2.8% higher last month on an annual basis but this [...]
The Cabinet Office has today revealed the world’s third largest economy performed worse than originally thought in the April to June period. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted by 2.1% on an annual basis in the three-month period, compared with an initial estimate of 1.3%. The fall was attributed to a cut back on spending by [...]
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has today elected to keep UK interest rates on hold at the historically low level of 0.5%, as widely expected. Interest rates have now been at this low level since March 2009 – when the economy was in the midst of recession. Recent figures show the economy [...]
Recovery of the UK economy is to remain sluggish, with GDP slowing to 0.2% in the June to August period, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) predicts. This compares with a 0.6% rate in the three months to July. The influential think tank believes if the weakness continues, the Bank of England [...]
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) commenced its two-day rate-setting meeting yesterday and interest rates are expected to remain on hold at the record low of 0.5% – where they have been since March 2009. The bank is presented with a dilemma as it comes under pressure to raise interest rates to combat [...]
Growth in the UK’s closely-watched service sector slowed in August, figures have revealed today. The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) slowed at the fastest pace in over a decade to 51.1 in August from July’s reading of 55.4. The fall represented the second largest on record and was much [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) has today revealed growth in the UK construction industry weakened in August. The PMI dipped to 52.6 in August from July’s reading of 53.5 – however, the figure was in line with expectations. Furthermore, the index remains above the crucial 50 mark, which [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) has today revealed UK manufacturing activity contracted at the fastest pace in more than two years in August. The closely-watched CIPS/Markit manufacturing PMI fell to 49.0 last month from an upwardly revised 49.4 in July. The latest figure means the index remains [...]
Official figures today revealed Japan’s exports fell more than expected last month resulting in the country’s second consecutive month of trade surplus. According to the Ministry of Finance, exports were 3.3% lower on an annual basis in July – the fifth consecutive monthly fall – and lower than forecasts of a 2.4% fall. The figures [...]
Minutes of the Bank of England’s August 3-4 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%. For several months, Martin Weale and Spencer Dale have been lone voices on the Committee by voting to hike [...]
Japan’s economy performed better than in expected in the second quarter, suggesting the country is slowly recovering after the earthquake and tsunami, which struck in March. According to the Cabinet Office, the economy contracted by 0.3% in the April to June period – less than the 0.7% expected by analysts. On an annual basis, meanwhile, [...]
Speaking in the House of Commons today, Chancellor George Osborne has warned that the UK can expect a long and tough recovery. His speech came as he defended the Government’s tough spending cuts, which many have been critical about – even suggesting they could push the UK back into recession. However, the Chancellor believes that [...]
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed the UK trade gap widened to £8.8 billion in June – the biggest deficit since December 2010 and higher than expectations of £8.1 billion. The figures come on the same day the ONS revealed UK factory output fell by 0.4% in June after rising by 1.8% [...]
The Commerce Department has today reported an unexpected fall in consumer spending in the US for the month of June. Spending fell 0.2% on the month – the first fall in almost two years – suggesting the economic recovery is losing momentum. Furthermore, the figures confounded analysts’ expectations for a 0.1% increase. Consumer spending is [...]
In its latest assessment of the UK economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said growth will be around 1.5% this year. The Washington-based Fund warned that stubbornly high inflation continues to be a threat to the economy and is forecasting inflation to remain well above the 4% mark in 2011 before falling to 2% [...]
The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)/Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) has today revealed UK manufacturing contracted in July – the first time since the UK was in recession two years ago. The closely-watched CIPS/Markit manufacturing PMI fell to 49.1 last month from a revised 51.4 in June. The index is now below [...]
Minutes of the Bank of England’s July 6-7 meeting have been released today and have revealed the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) again voted 7-2 to lift interest rates and 8-1 to restart the Bank’s quantitative easing (QE) scheme. Adam Posen, again, called for an injection of £50 billion via the QE scheme to boost the [...]
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has today revealed the unemployment rate in the US rose in June to 9.2% from 9.1% in May. According to the Bureau, the number of new jobs created in the world’s largest economy last month represented the lowest in 9 months. The economy created just 18,000 jobs in June – [...]
Gender directive could slash men’s annuity payouts
The EU Gender Directive, which came into force today, could see men losing up to £10,000 from their annuity payouts, according to research by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Under the new rules insurers are no longer allowed to take gender into account when setting annuity rates and premiums on insurance products. Men previously enjoyed higher annuity rates than [...]
Home rental costs down in November
The cost of renting a house in England and Wales fell by 0.4 per cent in November, its first dip since March, according to a survey by LSL Property Services. Average rent was £741m during the month, returning to the level seen in September. However, it was 3.4 per higher than in November last year. [...]
Lloyds TSB halts sale of packaged accounts in branches
Lloyds TSB will stop selling packaged account in its branches from 1 January 2013, until its sales procedures are brought into line with those operated by sister bank The Halifax. Lloyds TSB is one of the main providers of packaged accounts in Britain, with around one in three of its customers choosing to pay fees [...]
Housing market recovery to continue next year
Recent improvements in the housing market should continue into next year, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) Gross lending is estimated to have increased to £12.9 billion in November, helped by the Funding for Lending scheme which provides banks and building societies with lower-cost funding, which they are then supposed to pass on [...]
Newcastle Building Society exits interest-only mortgages
Newcastle Building Society has stopped offering interest-only mortgages to new borrowers, following the lead of the Royal Bank of Scotland, Nationwide, Co-operative bank and Coventry Building Society. The decision will not affect existing Newcastle customers and applications for interest-only mortgages received before 14 December will still be processed. Prior to the credit crunch, interest-only mortgages [...]
Less than half of Brits considered creditworthy
Fifty-seven per cent of UK adults are at risk of having an application for credit turned down by a mainstream lender according to a new report. The ‘Mind the Credit Gap‘ report commissioned by aqua credit cards suggests that even people with a good credit rating and earning more than £50,000 could have a credit [...]
Monthly incomes £22 lower in 2012
The average monthly income of UK households fell by £22 in real terms compared with last year, according to a survey carried out for the Bank of England (BoE) by NMG Consulting. People on lower incomes have seen their income eroded more than higher earners and households still have high levels of debt the BoE [...]
Savers dig deep to fund Christmas
New research from the Halifax suggests that savers are funding their Christmas spending with money set aside for other purposes. Thirty-seven per cent of 2,138 savers surveyed by the bank at the end of November had withdrawn savings in the last three months. The average amount withdrawn was £1,186, more than double the average savings [...]
Financial data at risk from unsafe passwords
According to a survey by the Payments Council the problem of having to remember a different password for several accounts means that many internet users are compromising the security of their financial data. Internet users have 22 password-protected accounts on average and many use the same log-in details for more than one account, even though [...]
Wonga launches Paylater loans on retailer website
Payday loan company Wonga has launched a new Paylater service on furniture firm Cotswold Company’s website. The service, which allows customers to “buy now, pay later” will be introduced on other retailers’ sites in the near future. Although the Paylater branding is similar to Wonga’s, the Wonga name only appears in the small print. A [...]
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