Banking giant HSBC has today said third-quarter profits were well ahead of the same period a year ago with bad debts on the decline. The bank did not provide exact figures in today’s statement but did caution that the global recovery was “taking longer than previous cycles”. The bank, which is Europe’s largest, also expressed [...]
Lloyds Banking Group, which is 41% owned by the taxpayer, has today provided an upbeat statement as it continues its recovery from the global financial crisis. The bank, which had to be bailed out in autumn 2008, said it remains on track to deliver a “good financial performance” for 2010 as it continues with its [...]
Minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting have revealed that policymakers are optimistic that the US downturn is coming to an end. However, the minutes did say that the economy is “likely to recover only slowly during the second half of this year and all saw it as still vulnerable to adverse shocks.” Furthermore, policymakers [...]
The topic of bank bonuses continues to hit the headlines with Prime Minister Gordon Brown suggesting a possible cap on bonuses within the banking industry, and indicating that bonuses should be based on long-term success. The PM added that banks should be able to “claw back” bonuses if the bank later performed poorly. Mr Brown [...]
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said today the prospects for economic recovery “appear good” and sent global stock markets higher. The Dow Jones index gained 1%, London’s FTSE 100 index climbed 2% to close at 4,850.89. Germany’s Dax index rose 2.8%, while France’s Cac 40 added 3.1%. Mr Bernanke’s comments came at a speech in [...]
Banking giant Barclays, which has so far turned down financial help from the Government, has today announced pre-tax profits of £2.98 billion for the first six months of the year. While the bank’s profits came slightly under analysts’ forecasts of over £3 billion, they were up 8% compared with the same period a year earlier. [...]
People are becoming more positive about the economy after the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index recorded a rise in June. The reading increased from 54 in May to 58 in June and reflects the fact that consumers are becoming more upbeat about the future. According to the Nationwide, the main driver behind the rise in confidence [...]
A quarterly survey from the CBI suggests that the UK’s beleaguered financial services sector is on a “gradual” road to recovery. While the organisation warned of considerable job losses and cuts to investment, there are indications that the sector is emerging from the worst of the downturn. The CBI also cautioned that the situation remains [...]
Japan’s economy looks set to be improving after it has experienced a rise in exports, production and public investment. The export-dependent economy has been hit by a slump in demand for its products overseas, particularly cars and electrical goods but this looks set to change after the Bank of Japan (BoJ) said “the country’s economic [...]
Insurance firms remain upbeat about the year ahead despite taking a battering from the credit crunch. Over half (55%) of the world’s leading insurers expect organic growth to improve over the next 12 months, whilst a similar number (53%) expect to grow through acquisitions. International expansion is the favoured option for many companies, with 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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