WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 21, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES MOD TO SHAME LAX CONTRACTORS Liam Fox is to name and shame defence companies that fail to deliver military projects to the government on time, in a radical attempt to re-establish control over the department’s heavily overspent procurement budget. As the defence secretary wrestles with the consequences of slack spending on equipment programmes [...]
London set to defy UK house slump February 20, 2011 LONDON’S housing market is set to buck the national trend with the number of new sellers up by more than a fifth, the Rightmove house price index reveals today. Across the UK, annualised new seller numbers have remained “practically unchanged” so that sluggish transaction levels are “set to be the norm,” the survey said. “But [...]
BoE says mortgage lending flat in January February 18, 2011 The country’s major lenders approved 41,000 mortgages for house purchase in January, the Bank of England said on Friday, the same number as in December and a further sign that the housing market remains in the doldrums. The BoE, updating its Trends in Lending statistics, said net mortgage lending picked up slightly in January to [...]
Three ways to maximise your borrowing potential February 16, 2011 IT’S bonus season, and some high-earning City workers are likely to take advantage of the promise of rising top-end prices to snap up exclusive pads – provided they can get the necessary finance. The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) estimated earlier this year that bonuses would amount to £7bn. The final figure is [...]
Rates risk for repossessions February 10, 2011 REPOSSESSIONS fell by 24 per cent last year, while the number of mortgages in arrears also dropped, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said yesterday. Yet stubbornly high inflation has heightened the risk of a hike in interest rates, which would lead to an upturn in repossessions, the CML said. “As we go through 2011, [...]
The top ten real causes of the crisis February 9, 2011 IN the end, Merlin turned out a damp squib. This is goodish news, because the deal is based on a faulty interpretation of the crisis. Here are the ten most important causes of our problems. 1) Loose, ultra-interventionist monetary policy from central banks that kept stepping in whenever growth slowed or the stock market fell. [...]
Calls for Hypo Real Estate to be wound up February 9, 2011 AILING German lender Hypo Real Estate (HRE) should be wound down, a German expert commission has recommended. “The experts can see only slim chances that a privatisation of HRE would become a success,” said a source with knowledge of a report drafted on behalf of the German government by the expert commission. Due to overcapacity [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS February 9, 2011 42 PER CENT PREFER DOG TO PARTNER It is a sad day for British romance when 42 per cent of British people prefer their dog or cat to their partner. A survey conducted by M&S Pet Insurance shows that when it comes down to the “me or the dog” question, 42 per cent would always [...]
VAT shock yet to be passed to consumers February 8, 2011 INFLATION in UK shops rose to 2.5 per cent in January – from 2.1 per cent in December — despite retailers absorbing much of the hike in VAT, a comprehensive survey revealed today. Even more price pressure could spill through to consumers in the coming months, the British Retail Consortium warned. “Retailers generally took the [...]
Denmark lender fails February 7, 2011 Denmark has been left bearing a £1.72bn bill as Amagerbanken, the country’s eighth-biggest lender, became its tenth bank to be nationalised following the global financial crisis. Amagerbanken said yesterday that it would transfer its assets to Finansiel Stabilitet A/S, the state company that administers failed banks, and administrators would close the bank. Amagerbanken said fourth-quarter [...]