War on Britain’s aspirational classes March 5, 2012 THERE is something very wrong with Britain’s tax system. Imagine you are an aspiring, successful hard-working individual; after several years putting in the hours, you now earn £42,475 a year. You’re already a victim of the tax system: you pay no tax on your first £8,105, but then face 20 per cent tax on the [...]
Millions set to pay higher mortgage rate March 4, 2012 MORTGAGE repayments are set to rise across the board, with millions of borrowers expected to pay more each month. Over one million Halifax and NatWest customers have already been hit with rate rises, while some new customers to Santander will also see repayments go up. Those banks have blamed higher funding costs on wholesale and [...]
FTSE flat as ECB pours in more funds February 29, 2012 The FTSE 100 was flat this morning with investors awaiting another injection of cash from the European Central Bank, aimed at propping up the Eurozone. The ECB is expected to pump about 500bn euros (£422bn) into the Eurozone’s financial system to fight the region’s debt crisis, enabling banks to tap as many of the ultra-cheap, [...]
Lending slows as consumers pay back more January 25, 2012 BANK lending continued to slow in December, but remains up on 2010’s figures according to data published yesterday by the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). New mortgage lending hit £8.7bn in the month, 12 per cent higher than in December of 2010 and the strongest month of 2011. However, annual net growth in the sector slowed [...]
Spain told it can’t delay deficit cuts January 24, 2012 SPAIN will not be allowed any more time to cut its budget deficit, the European Commission said yesterday. Budget minister Cristóbal Montoro called for the EU to give the country extra leeway on deficit targets this year on the basis that the economy is suffering another recession. However commissioners yesterday insisted Spain will not be [...]
Squeeze on income shows little easing January 22, 2012 CUTS to tax credits are set to strain the UK’s “squeezed middle” even further, with wages continuing to fall and mortgages beyond the reach of many under-35s, a report from the Resolution Foundation will say today. The Lloyds TSB spending power report, also out today, reveals spending on essentials, like utilities, rose 4.6 per cent [...]
FTSE rally ends as investors eye Eurozone bond auctions January 11, 2012 The rally on the FTSE 100 yesterday stalled in early trading today as concerns over upcoming Eurozone bond auctions and slightly weaker commodity stocks took their toll. Heavyweight miners failed to keep up the gains made yesterday which were fuelled by positive data from China showing the country’s demand for metals had risen. Wall Street [...]
A wholesale improvement is the only way for UK banks to weather the Eurozone storm December 21, 2011 FOR the past fifteen months, the Bank of England (BoE) has been backpedalling. Instead of coasting, the UK economy has stalled. The government’s bold and sensible plans for budget deficit reduction are broadly on track for the next few months, but will not remain so unless the central bank shapes up to the challenge of [...]
Inflation hits incomes at record speed December 18, 2011 CONSUMERS are suffering at record rates, despite the small fall in inflation, according to separate pieces of research published today by Markit and Lloyds TSB. The Bank of England’s quarterly bulletin also identified ongoing falls in the standard of living. Spending power fell at its fastest rate this year in November, according to Lloyds TSB. [...]
Banks and miners fuel FTSE gains December 7, 2011 Miners and banks fuelled a lift in the FTSE 100 as investor sentiment improved ahead of a crunch Eurozone summit. The blue chip index mirrored Asia and the US where markets recovered from the ratings blow from Standard & Poor’s, which threatened to downgrade 15 nations, including Germany. There is mounting optimism that Eurozone leaders [...]