UK’s capital gains tax bill shot up 43pc in one year to £5.5bn, announces accountancy group UHY Hacker Young November 2, 2015 Taxpayers forked out £5.5bn in capital gains tax (CGT) last year, up 43 per cent from £3.4bn the year before, UHY Hacker Young has announced. The accountancy group pinpointed increases in the CGT rate and removal of CGT reliefs, coupled with increased turnover in shares and buy-to-let properties as being behind the rise. And, having [...]
Standard & Poor’s warns of greater risks for Chinese insurers as they seek out overseas investments November 2, 2015 Chinese insurers could encounter increased risks as they seek investments overseas, a Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services report released today warned. The report notes that China’s recent economic slowdown and interest rates cut meant insurers were likely to generate less new business and have to increase their claim liability reserves on their existing business. These [...]
Markit PMI: Sterling climbs as UK manufacturing reaches 16-month high – factory output grows amid growing consumer demand and exports November 2, 2015 The pound jumped against the dollar this morning, after UK manufacturing reached a 16-month high in October, recording its best month since June 2014, according to Markit PMI. The pound rose 0.3 per cent to $1.5479 in mid-morning trading, after the index's seasonally adjusted headline figure rose to 55.5, up from 51.8 in September (which was itself revised [...]
UK house prices: The most popular properties in the UK according to Zoopla November 2, 2015 There's a lot more to the housing market than what's in offer in London, according to research by property website Zoopla. Read more: Land Registry – London house prices hit half million-pound mark Using data compiled from Zoopla's tool which allows users to search by "most popular", the company found a list of the five most popular properties in [...]
Tech entrepreneurs to David Cameron: Welcome skilled immigrants to keep the UK a global tech hub November 2, 2015 Over 230 entrepreneurs have urged Prime Minister David Cameron to welcome more immigrants in an open letter criticising restrictions on skilled migrants. The letter, organised by the Coalition for a Digital Economy and signed by the founders of Citymapper, Swiftkey and Unruly as well as Baroness Martha Lane Fox, founder of Lastminute.com, argued that the [...]
Kazakhstan president Nursultan Nazabayev sacks central bank governor Kairat Kelimbetov after tenge plummets November 2, 2015 Kazakhstan has ousted the governor of its central bank after the country's currency, the tenge, lost more than a third of its value in a matter of months. President Nursultan Nazarbayev – who arrives for a two-day visit to the UK today – sacked Kairat Kelimbetov, saying trust in the country's national currency and central bank [...]
London property prices: Luxury homes in Greenwich and Blackfriars going up for sale – in Kuwait November 2, 2015 Two new luxury developments in central London are going on sale this week, looking to tempt overseas property investors by holding the official launch at the Warba Tower in Kuwait. An "exclusive collection of homes" are being unveiled to Middle Eastern buyers on 4 and 5 November by developers Barratt Homes London, alongside Knight Frank and [...]
UK’s rising population will support the housing market, says Moody’s November 2, 2015 The UK and Ireland’s expanding population combined with both countries’ housing supply shortage and “robust” economic growth will support demand and property prices, Moody’s Investors Service has said this morning. Moody's research comes amid warnings from UBS economists last week that London's property market is on the verge of bubble that could pop soon after [...]
Chancellor George Osborne in Berlin to meet German ministers for talks on non-Eurozone states November 2, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne heads to Berlin today, where he is expected to make the case for protecting the interests of non-Eurozone states in crunch talks with German government officials. Osborne, who has made similar trips to Paris, Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen in recent months, is set to meet with German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble and German [...]
Association of British Insurers calls for better flood-risk information for UK homebuyers November 2, 2015 Nine out of ten people think flood-risk information should be included in material about properties for sale, an Association of British Insurers (ABI) survey has revealed today. The ABI also criticised property search websites and marketing materials for new builds for lacking flood-risk information. In light of the survey, the ABI is calling for more [...]