Financial news

• Britons warned to watch out for new phone contract scam that 'empties bank accounts'

  28-03-2023 20:10 via express.co.uk
  
  With a lot of phone contracts soon to increase in line with inflation from April, Britons are being targeted with "legitimate-looking" emails and texts about discounted phone bills.
  
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• Silicon Valley Bank takeover deal 'positive news' for investors - but sentiment 'fragile'

  28-03-2023 19:48 via express.co.uk
  
  A deal to purchase assets and loans from Silicon Valley Bank has been confirmed but experts are warning economic sentiment remains "fragile and vulnerable" regarding the long-term fate of stocks.
  
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• Martin Lewis warns of LISA penalty that leaves savers with 'less than they started with'

  28-03-2023 18:50 via express.co.uk
  
  Money Saving Expert founder Martin Lewis told Ideal Home Show visitors to "get the clock ticking now" for the Lifetime ISA bonus - but also to watch out for the risks.
  
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• Inequality starts before birth – so child benefits should too | Mary Reader

  28-03-2023 17:37
  
  Providing a safety net from ‘cradle to grave’ is already too late. Time to revive an old Labour policy that can make things fairerBy the time children start school in the UK, those from low-income backgrounds are already an average of four months behind their peers in terms of educational development. The gap only widens from there. By the end of primary school, it’s nine months. By the time they take their GCSEs, 18 months. Inequality grows exponentially throughout childhood,
  
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• Best easy-access savings accounts: Interest rates of up to 3.35 percent - full list

  28-03-2023 17:25 via express.co.uk
  
  Savers are increasingly looking for the best savings accounts that they can readily access, which still offer top interest rates.
  
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• Virgin Media O2 opens 1000th Databank to offer free mobile data to Britons in need

  28-03-2023 16:45 via express.co.uk
  
  Virgin Media O2 has now opened its 1000th National Databank Hub, offering free O2 mobile data, texts and calls to more "people in need than ever before".
  
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• SVB collapse was ‘fastest since Barings’, Bank of England says, in call for vigilance – business live

  28-03-2023 16:42
  
  Treasury committee holds hearing on the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank this monthSilicon Valley Bank collapse was fastest since Barings, says BoE governorIn the City, the FTSE 100 share index has gained 0.5% in early trading, as fears over the banking sector continue to ease.The index of blue-chip shares has gained 38 points to 7510 points, the highest since last Thursday, before jitters over Deutsche Bank triggered Friday’s selloff.Morrisons saw a welcome return to growth with sal
  
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• Why won’t the Gambling Commission suspend licences of firms that break rules? | Rob Davies

  28-03-2023 16:26
  
  William Hill has received a record £19.2m penalty, but government must toughen outdated lawsFirm to pay record £19.2m for ‘widespread and alarming’ failuresWhat would a big gambling company have to do in order for its operating licence to be suspended?It’s a question that has been tested to its limits by the behaviour of the £11bn industry over the past decade, culminating in the record £19.2m fine handed down to William Hill this week over a rap sheet t
  
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• UK supermarket inflation hits record high, making shoppers hunt for bargains

  28-03-2023 16:22
  
  Prices rise fastest for eggs, milk and cheese amid shortages of salad and other items Supermarket price inflation in the UK has hit another record high, raising the increase in average annual household bills to £837, as shoppers increasingly turn to multiple supermarkets to hunt for bargains.Year-on-year price increases for groceries hit an all-time high of 17.5% in the four weeks to 19 March compared with a year earlier, according to the latest figures from the data firm Kantar. The price
  
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• Average council tax bill to exceed £2,000 from next month - how much will you pay?

  28-03-2023 16:06 via express.co.uk
  
  Council tax is to increase five percent in many parts of England from next month with many other household bills also increasing in April.
  
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• Diageo appoints Debra Crew as its first female chief executive

  28-03-2023 15:52
  
  Former chief operating officer to be one of fewer than 10 women leading FTSE 100 companiesThe world’s biggest spirits maker, Diageo, has appointed Debra Crew as chief executive, one of few women to lead a FTSE 100 company.The company, which makes well-known brands including Johnnie Walker scotch whisky, Guinness and Baileys, announced that Sir Ivan Menezes would step down on 30 June after 10 years as chief executive. It decided to promote Crew from chief operating officer to the top job, e
  
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• Retirement age increase ‘on the table’ in Social Security overhaul

  28-03-2023 15:29 via express.co.uk
  
  The full retirement age could be raised under proposals being brought forward by lawmakers.
  
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• China spent $240bn on belt and road bailouts from 2008 to 2021, study finds

  28-03-2023 14:06
  
  Rise in emergency financing for other countries since 2016 correlates with drop in infrastructure lendingChina spent $240bn (£195bn) bailing out countries struggling under their belt and road initiative debts between 2008 and 2021, new data shows.Research found that Chinese state-backed lenders released bailout funds to 22 countries, including Argentina, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Ukraine. Almost 80% of the emergency rescue lending was issued after 2016, reaching more than $40bn in 2021. Cont
  
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• UK government drops plans for NFT made by Royal Mint

  28-03-2023 13:22
  
  Labour criticises Rishi Sunak ‘vanity project’ announced weeks before collapse in value of cryptocurrenciesThe UK government has dropped its plans to produce a non-fungible token for sale through the Royal Mint, just under a year after it first announced the project.In response to a question from the Conservative MP Harriett Baldwin, the Treasury’s economic secretary, Andrew Griffith, confirmed the abandonment, saying: “In consultation with HM Treasury, the Royal Mint is
  
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• Royal Mail workers poised for strikes after Easter as talks fail

  28-03-2023 12:58
  
  CWU union lines up action as MP brands bosses’ threat to put service into administration as ‘scandalous’Postal workers at Royal Mail are poised to stage a fresh wave of strikes after Easter as talks stalled, amid a “scandalous” threat by bosses to put the company into administration.The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents about 115,000 postal workers, is close to agreeing multiple strike dates to take place later in April, the Guardian understands, i
  
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• Thames Water ordered to fix leaks before pumping millions of litres from rivers

  28-03-2023 12:54
  
  Environment Agency tells supplier to rethink plans to tackle droughts by pumping water from Thames and SevernThames Water has been told by the Environment Agency it needs to do more to fix the 630m litres of water it leaks a day before it starts taking water from the River Thames or from Wales to tackle drought problems.The company has published its ideas for tackling climate crisis-induced droughts across London and the south-east, which include abstracting millions of litres a day from the Riv
  
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• William Hill to pay record £19.2m for ‘widespread and alarming’ failures

  28-03-2023 11:57
  
  Group admits string of transgressions, days before reforms of gambling laws are finalisedComment: Why won’t regulator suspend licences of firms that break rules?William Hill has been fined a record £19m for “widespread and alarming” social responsibility and anti-money-laundering failures that were revealed just days before long-awaited reforms of Britain’s gambling laws are finalised.The 88-year-old bookmaking brand, owned by 888 Group, admitted a string of transgr
  
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• Grocery shop to increase by £830 a year as food prices rise by record 17.5 percent

  28-03-2023 11:08 via express.co.uk
  
  Families are trying to avoid the soaring prices by increasingly shopping around for the best deal.
  
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• ‘Good as it gets’: Best buy 4.2% cash Isa to beat rivals ‘for foreseeable future’

  28-03-2023 10:30 via express.co.uk
  
  Interest on cash Isas rocketed last year but savings rates have flattened and may soon start falling instead.
  
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• O2 Arena showed a dismal attitude to my disability

  28-03-2023 08:00
  
  The venue boasts of a ‘gold standard’ customer service award, but it made a concert visit impossibleI hope you can help with the dismal way the O2 Arena treats folks with disabilities. In July 2020, I spent £338 on tickets for two Elton John performances – a seat for myself on one night, and one for myself and my daughter on another. The concerts were due in November 2021, but postponed until May this year after Elton John had a fall. In the meantime, I was diagnosed with
  
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• Nationwide Building Society launches ISA account with four percent savings interest rate

  28-03-2023 06:12 via express.co.uk
  
  Nationwide Building Society has announced the launch of a new ISA account with a favourable savings interest rate.
  
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• ‘Sour taste’ as cost of sugar hits Easter eggs and hot cross buns, say UK retailers

  28-03-2023 01:01
  
  British Retail Consortium blames rising price of butter, eggs and cocoa, as food inflation hits record 15%A surge in the cost of sugar on global commodity markets is being blamed for a rise in the price of chocolate eggs and hot cross buns ahead of celebrations over the Easter weekend.Figures from global food markets show that the main ingredients of traditional festive treats – butter, eggs, cocoa and sugar – have risen in price month after month since last summer, with sugar at a s
  
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• Delays to landlord energy efficiency standards will cost England’s renters £1bn

  28-03-2023 01:01
  
  Delays mean private tenants in the 2.4m homes with an EPC rating below C will face years of high billsPrivate renters face paying an additional £1bn in gas and electricity bills because of delays in the introduction of new standards forcing landlords to make their properties more energy efficient.The government has been criticised for dragging its feet on enacting new proposals that would require landlords to improve properties to at least a C rating under the energy performance certificat
  
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• UK energy firms forcibly installed 94,000 prepayment meters last year

  28-03-2023 01:00
  
  Scottish Power, British Gas and Ovo responsible for 70% of forced installations, government saysUK energy companies forcibly installed 94,000 prepayment meters using warrants in 2022, with Scottish Power and British Gas ordering the most, according to government data.The government has been keen to distance itself from the practice of forcible installations of prepayment meters, which are generally used by energy companies for customers who have missed payments in the past. Continue reading...
  
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• Landlords to get power to evict antisocial tenants with two weeks’ notice

  28-03-2023 00:42
  
  Private tenancy agreements in England and Wales will have to include clauses that specifically ban antisocial behaviourLandlords are to be given new powers to evict problematic tenants with two weeks’ notice under government proposals to address antisocial behaviour.The measures would cover tenants who play loud music, use drugs, cause damage to their property or fall behind on their rent. Continue reading...
  
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