Financial news

• Aggressive debt collectors raise risk of suicide

  03-12-2018 20:30 via theguardian.com
  Research showing level of risk to people heavily in debt leads to calls for change to lawCase study: ‘The council was more aggressive than the payday lenders’
  More than 100,000 people a year in England who are mired in heavy debt try to end their lives, new research has revealed.Intimidating and threatening letters sent by debt collectors, bailiffs and councils raise the risk of suicide by adding to people’s feelings of despair, the study found. The findings have prompted calls
  
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• Flatshare bias: room-seekers with Muslim name get fewer replies

  03-12-2018 19:00 via theguardian.com
  ‘Muhammad’ less likely than ‘David’ to get a positive response, Guardian investigation finds• How we carried out the surveyPeople from ethnic minorities face arbitrary discrimination when they look for a room to rent, experts have said, after a Guardian investigation found that inquiries from a person with a Muslim name about flatshare ads received significantly fewer positive responses.In a snapshot survey of the private flatshare market carried out as part of the B
  
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• Airbus blames EU for freezing UK out of Galileo military project - Financial Times

  03-12-2018 18:54
  Financial Times
  Airbus blames EU for freezing UK out of Galileo military project
  Financial Times
  Airbus has hit out at the EU for Britain's decision to quit the military side of the EU's Galileo satellite navigation system after being frozen out by Brussels, warning it will undermine security ambitions across the bloc. Tom Enders, Airbus chief ...en meer »
  
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• Pension schemes to provide online data 'dashboards' for UK savers - Financial Times

  03-12-2018 13:12
  Financial Times
  Pension schemes to provide online data 'dashboards' for UK savers
  Financial Times
  Pension providers and schemes will be compelled to supply data for millions of customers to a groundbreaking new service that will help savers see all their pension pots in one online hub. On Monday, the government unveiled plans to compel ...en meer »
  
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• An instructor on driving test bias: 'he was fine with white students...'

  03-12-2018 11:54
  Shazia Akkari’s experiences of examiners have led her to suspect not every verdict is fair
  • Revealed: the stark evidence of everyday racial bias in BritainA car horn sounds a short distance away. The driver pauses, looks around, momentarily distracted, and then tentatively reverses into the parking space. Ignition off. A moment’s pause while a form is filled. It’s good news. Her hands go up to her face out of sheer relief. Related: An instructor on driving test bias: 'he
  
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• Markets surge after US-China trade truce, as UK factories stockpile for Brexit - business live

  03-12-2018 10:53
  Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as shares surge in Asia and EuropeLatest: FTSE 100 surges 150 pointsIntroduction: US and China reach trade truce
  US had decided not to hike tariffs from 10% to 25% in JanuaryAnalysts: There’s still work to do
  Fears that 90-day truce may not deliver permanent dealChina’s stock market jumps almost 3% 9.53am GMT Ladies and gentleman -- we have stockpiling!
  • UK factory PMI rises much more than expected to 53.1
  • Even
  
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• Qatar pulls out of Opec to focus on gas production

  03-12-2018 09:21
  Country to leave cartel in January 2019, but will take part in this week’s meetingQatar is to pull out of Opec after nearly 60 years of membership of the oil cartel, but will attend a meeting this week that will discuss cutting output.Saad al-Kaabi, the country’s energy minister, told a news conference: “Qatar has decided to withdraw its membership from Opec effective January 2019 and this decision was communicated to Opec this morning.” Continue reading...
  
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• What happens if I convert a help-to-buy Isa to a lifetime Isa?

  03-12-2018 08:00
  We want to buy a home costing more than £250,000 – the limit for help-to-buy outside LondonQ I set up a help-to-buy Isa before lifetime Isas became available. I never got round to switching from the help-to-buy Isa to a lifetime Isa because I didn’t think that we would have to pay more than £250,000 for a house. However, we are looking to buy in a different city where house prices mean that we are likely to go over the £250,000 limit. I know that with a lifetime Isa
  
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• We booked a hire car via Ryanair – but the firm's office was shut

  03-12-2018 08:00
  We added the rental when booking but it was only available the morning after we landedI think your readers should be aware of a problem on the Ryanair website. If you add a hire car to your booking there’s the danger that you’ll arrive at your destination only to find the car hire firm shut. I recently booked a Ryanair flight to Grenoble in France and, as it was convenient, I added car hire. The Ryanair website did all the work – took the same dates from the flight and added it
  
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• UK manufacturers stockpile goods ahead of Brexit

  03-12-2018 07:01
  Firms fear imports of raw materials will dry up or rise in price when Britain leaves the EU, survey saysManufacturers are stockpiling goods ahead of March’s Brexit date as the prospect of queues at Britain’s ports grows more likely.Production remained strong across the manufacturing sector in recent months, with firms fearful that imports of raw materials will dry up in the event of a no-deal Brexit or go up in price should a deal go ahead. In response, they are making as many goods
  
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• Insurers in UK and US lagging behind in divesting from coal, report finds

  03-12-2018 07:00
  European firms are making faster progress in refusing to insure polluting firms, says campaign group Unfriend CoalUK and US insurers are lagging far behind European firms when it comes to divesting from coal-heavy businesses and refusing to insure them, campaigners have warned.At least 19 major insurers holding more than $6tn in assets – a fifth of the industry’s global assets – have now divested from coal, according to a report from the Unfriend Coal campaign, which represents
  
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• Christmas shoppers warned over safety as fake goods on rise

  03-12-2018 07:00
  Police warn of counterfeit product danger with online customers most at risk
  •Counterfeit goods pose a serious threatChristmas shoppers are being urged to be wary of counterfeit products following a rise in cases involving fake goods.According to KPMG, over the past two years, 39 cases involving a total of £116m of counterfeit and pirated goods – which can range from hair straighteners and perfume to ebooks – have been prosecuted in the UK. The firm said the number of case
  
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