New York Report: Interest hike fears hurt US March 19, 2014 US stocks fell yesterday after comments from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen raised the possibility of an earlier- than-anticipated increase in interest rates. The central bank dropped the US unemployment rate as its definitive yardstick for gauging the economy’s strength and made clear it would rely on a wide range of measures in deciding when [...]
How to become an Isa millionaire in just 27 years March 19, 2014 Who says saving doesn’t pay? We may be living in an era of flat-as-a-pancake interest rates, but chancellor George Osborne’s changes to Individual Saving Accounts (better known as Isas) have given savers a glimmer of future riches. Sort of. The clever people at Brewin Dolphin have calculated that, if you started chucking money into an [...]
Why copper’s getting crushed (again) March 19, 2014 China’s the world’s number one commodity buyer. So it’s not overly surprising that the slowdown in its economy has been blamed for the decline in the price of copper, which – dubbed Dr Copper – usually serves as something of a barometer for the health of the global economy, is falling. Today, it’s down 2.24 [...]
Rank Group to hike investment in wake of bingo tax cut March 19, 2014 European gaming business Rank Group has announced a new programme of investment and job creation in response to George Osborne's halving of bingo duty from 20 per cent to 10 per cent. The company said it had identified a number of new towns where it will be able to develop new bingo clubs. Rank Group [...]
US markets exercise caution ahead of Yellen speech March 19, 2014 US markets crept lower today at the open, following weaker European counterparts. Investors are awaiting the new inflation and growth forecasts from the Fed’s Open Market Committee, with Janet Yellen holding her first press conference (6.00pm GMT) since taking over as chair last month. Despite some recent weaker economic data, the Fed isn’t expected to [...]
Shares in bookies crash as Osborne hikes taxes on betting machines March 19, 2014 Some of Britain's leading bookmakers are taking a beating after George Osborne announced that the tax on fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) would be raised from 20 per cent to 25 per cent. Shares in Ladbrokes have crashed by 12 per cent while William has suffered a decline of six per cent. Investec specialist bank [...]
Pension providers’ shares plunge on non-compulsory annuities March 19, 2014 Shares in UK-listed pension providers are feeling the heat after chancellor George Osborne’s announcement that pensioners will no longer have to buy an annuity. Shares in Legal & General have plummeted seven per cent, to 214p. Source: Google Aviva has shed over four per cent to 495p, and Standard Life has seen shares fall almost [...]
Isa types merged as limit’s raised to £15,000 March 19, 2014 There's more big news for savers from the Budget. The government’s dramatically increasing the flexibility of Isas. It’s merging cash and stocks Isas into one product, allowing transfers from shares into cash. It's also raising the annual limit to £15,000, rising from £11,520. Junior Isas will be raised to £4,000. Halifax has been calling for [...]
Pension liberation as government ends compulsory annuities March 19, 2014 Some enormous news on pensions. On the grounds that people should be trusted with their own finances, George Osborne's announced a liberalising new set of freedoms for pensioners. The government's getting rid of the restrictions on taking money out of pensions, with nobody now having to take an annuity. It's also cutting the income requirement [...]
40p tax threshold rises by one per cent March 19, 2014 George Osborne has left those who were hoping for a significant rise in the 40p tax band disappointed, after he announced a one per cent rise from annual incomes of £41,451 in the current financial year to £41,866 next month. HMRC have said the government's decision will see the number of people paying the 40p [...]