Mortgage demand is soaring on both sides of the Atlantic January 8, 2014 US mortgage applications rose by 2.6 per cent in the week to 3 January. And last week's fall of 6.3 per cent has been revised up – to a more moderate decline of just 4.2 per cent. Over on this side of the pond, the Bank of England said this morning that mortgage demand in [...]
What you need to know before the open – 08/01 January 8, 2014 European markets are set to open flat this morning, as US employment data and Fed Open Market Committee meeting minutes are due out later today. European opening may be reflective after rudderless rally yesterday – FTSE -2, DAX -14, CAC -4 — David Buik (@truemagic68) January 8, 2014 Strong US data yesterday gave [...]
Rates fall again for UK’s savers and borrowers January 7, 2014 MARKET interest rates are still falling five years after the Bank of England slashed the base rate to 0.5 per cent, official data and Goldman Sachs research showed yesterday. Mortgage interest rates on new loans now average around 2.75 per cent, Goldman analysts said. The rates have fallen by more than one percentage point in the [...]
How to give pensioners choice without harmful annuity switching plans January 7, 2014 WITH the demise of salary-related pensions, we now face the challenge of ensuring people get the most out of the alternative defined contribution system, where their pensions are heavily dependent on how much they have saved during their working lifetime. This is why pensions minister Steve Webb is right to worry about annuities. But his [...]
Why annuities switching is likely to cause serious problems for UK insurers January 6, 2014 WE HAVE little detail of pensions minister Steve Webb’s proposals to allow pensioners to switch between annuity providers in the same way that they can switch between mortgages. However, at first sight, his ideas provide more evidence that the coalition made a serious error in appointing somebody so far to the political left to such [...]
Minister: Let pensioners switch their annuities January 6, 2014 THE government announced a series of reforms to private and state pensions yesterday. Under the proposals, retired workers would be able to switch annuities regularly to get the best value for money. It would work in a similar way to mortgage switching. David Cameron also vowed to maintain the triple-lock on the state pension, which [...]
My predictions for 2014 for the economy, markets and politics January 6, 2014 HAPPY New Year, dear readers, and welcome to our first edition of 2014. As ever, we devote a sizeable chunk of this issue to trying, as best as we can, to predict some of the big economic, political, market, financial and corporate events of the year ahead. We do so with humility: as Mark Twain [...]
Letters to the Editor – 06/01 – Gold speculation, Payday lending, Best of Twitter January 5, 2014 Gold speculation [Re: Here’s why Capital Economics thinks gold will bounce back this year, Thursday] Buying gold at current prices is speculation, and not just over the potential removal of Indian import restrictions. Its price tells you about fear in an economy at any given point – and there just isn’t that fear around that [...]
UK mortgage approvals hit six-year high January 3, 2014 Data released by the Bank of England show that the number of mortgages approved in November rose to 70,758 – the largest number in almost six years, although still far lower than figures pre-recession. Expectations were for 69,000, and the number of approvals beat October's 67,701, providing more evidence of a rapidly growing housing market. [...]
UK mortgage approvals at highest in six years January 3, 2014 Data released by the Bank of England show that the number of mortgages approved in November rose to 70,758 – the largest number in almost six years, although still far lower than figures pre-recession. Expectations were for 69,000, and the number of approvals beat October's 67,701, providing more evidence of a rapidly growing housing market. [...]