First-time buyers drop off market as mortgage completions sink August 22, 2018 First-time buyer mortgages fell sharply in the second quarter of 2018, signalling a drop in new homeowners coming onto London’s subdued property market. Roughly 10,300 new first-time buyer mortgages were completed in London in the three months to the end of June, marking a 3.7 per cent fall from the same period in the previous year. [...]
Home buyers face stamp duty of up to 881 per cent higher after Covid-inspired tax holiday March 24, 2022 Since the pandemic-inspired stamp duty holiday came to an end, the amount of SD the average homebuyer in England is now required to pay is 84 per cent higher than it was before the tax break was introduced, and some areas have seen this cost increase by as much as 881 per cent, according to [...]
A tumble in mortgage approvals could be followed by a fall in house prices, analysts believe January 31, 2023 Mortgage approvals have plummeted to their lowest since the credit crunch after the global financial crisis in 2008, excluding the pandemic when the housing market was shut down, in a sign house prices could fall sharply soon, according to official data. The number of loans to Brits to fund a home purchase dropped more than [...]
Gazprom chases buyers amid mass exodus March 20, 2022 The British arm of Kremlin-backed gas giant Gazprom is scrambling to find buyers to prevent its collapse with customers fleeing the company.
Brits shrug off cost of living squeeze and rush to snap up homes January 17, 2022 Brits are shrugging off the cost of living crisis and higher mortgage costs and are rushing to snap up homes, reveals a new study published today. A housing market frenzy in 2021 triggered by the pandemic engineering a mass shift in housing preferences and the stamp duty holiday has bled into the new year. The [...]
UK house prices hit ‘hat-trick’ new high, climbing more than £5.5k since March April 25, 2022 The average price of a home has hit its third record high in just three months, as spiralling costs dampen the hopes of Londoners looking to climb the ladder. Prices have jumped 1.6 per cent since March – the equivalent of £5,537 – to £360,101 on average across the UK, according to Rightmove today. With [...]
Uncool Britannia: What is going wrong at Dr Martens, Burberry and Mulberry? May 30, 2024 Thursday proved to be another challenging day for British heritage brands, with Dr Martens revealing a plummet in annual profits largely due to dwindling demand from US shoppers.
Bank of England to hike interest rates for 14th time in a row to 2008 high of 5.25 per cent July 31, 2023 The Bank of England this week is tipped to hike interest rates for the 14th time in a row as it extends its fight against roaring inflation. Members of the nine-strong monetary policy committee (MPC) are expected on Thursday to back a 25 basis point increase to the UK’s official interest rate, which would send [...]
Blackwell’s puts itself on the sale shelf after 143 years of family ownership February 1, 2022 One of the UK’s oldest booksellers Blackwell’s is looking to sell up after its 143-year history as it scraps plans to hand ownership of the business to its employees. As first reported by Mark Kleinman, the academic bookshop which has been owned by its founding family since its first store opened in Oxford in 1879, [...]
Trafigura’s profits rise to $2.7bn following surge in commodities price June 11, 2022 Trafigura’s profits have soared after the price of commodities surged following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In the six months ended 31 March, the group’s net earnings went up to £2.7bn – 22 per cent above 2021 levels – while revenue rose 73 per cent to around $171bn. “The Ukraine crisis placed supply chains under [...]