Financial news

• US to scrap ‘junk fees’ airlines charge for parents and children to sit together

  01-08-2024 19:43 via theguardian.com
  
  A family of four would have to pay as much as $200 to sit together, but new rule does away with such costsMost US airlines currently charge to seat young children with their parents, forcing a tough choice: either spend the flight apart, or pay as much as $200 more for a family of four.On Thursday the Biden administration proposed to do away with such “junk fees” and require airlines to seat parents next to their children where adjacent seating is available at booking. Continue readi
  
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• The Guardian view on interest rate cuts: helpful for some, but costs are too high for too many | Editorial

  01-08-2024 19:43 via theguardian.com
  
  Even after the base rate reduction, businesses and households will still be paying record sums to borrowBeware the narcissism of small differences. On Thursday, the Bank of England cut UK interest rates by 0.25%, reducing the base rate from 5.25% to 5%. This is not a large cut. It was narrowly approved by a single vote, five to four, on the Bank’s monetary policy committee. It is not expected to be the first of a cascade of similar reductions. It cannot therefore be claimed as marking a re
  
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• Bank of England dismisses Tory claims public sector pay rises will stoke inflation

  01-08-2024 19:28
  
  Bank’s governor says planned awards of 5-6% would have relatively small impact on headline inflationBank of England cuts interest rates to 5% in first reduction since March 2020The governor of the Bank of England has dismissed concerns raised by the Conservatives that the new government’s plans for public sector pay rises would risk stoking inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer.After the Bank cut the cost of borrowing for the first time since March 2020, senior Tories i
  
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• Inheritance tax for an inherited mess | Brief letters

  01-08-2024 19:23 via theguardian.com
  
  Economic shortfall | Hopes for new chancellor | Kemi Badenoch | Pylon teaching aids | Olympic medalsI lost count of the number of times the chancellor mentioned Labour’s “inheritance” from the last government in her speech and subsequent answers to questions (Report, 29 July). It is almost as if she sees inheritance tax as being apt for dealing with that inheritance. We shall know on 30 October.Alan Fairs
  Bewdley, Worcestershire• It’s not only far-right female politi
  
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• Billionaire former Glencore oil trader charged with corruption in West Africa

  01-08-2024 19:06
  
  Alex Beard and four other executives charged with conspiring to make corrupt payments in long-running SFO investigationThe UK’s Serious Fraud Office has charged Glencore’s billionaire former head of oil trading with conspiring to make corrupt payments to benefit the commodities company’s oil operations in West Africa.Alex Beard, who ran Glencore’s oil division from 2007 until his retirement in 2019, will face charges alongside former Glencore executives Andrew Gibson, Pau
  
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• How Rolls-Royce’s winning run could go on and on

  01-08-2024 19:00
  
  Return to engines for narrow-body aircraft, and order for small modular reactors, could propel firm forwardThe main news in Rolls-Royce’s half-year numbers was obviously further proof that the engine-maker and defence group, which was virtually bust during the Covid pandemic, is now in soaraway financial form.Dividends are coming back; the chief executive, Tufan Erginbilgiç, increased forecasts for profits and cash generation; and the shares went on another tear. Congratulations if
  
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• DWP urged to extend £550 payments scheme as deadline looms

  01-08-2024 18:20 via express.co.uk
  
  The Household Support Fund grants are given through local councils to help with the cost of living.
  
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• NatWest and Virgin mortgage changes rolled out before base rate drop

  01-08-2024 18:09 via express.co.uk
  
  The base rate cut today was already pre-empted by banks like NatWest and Virgin Money long before the announcement, they say.
  
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• I have three daughters. These are the ways the two-child benefit limit affects us every single day | Anonymous

  01-08-2024 17:18 via theguardian.com
  
  As politicians go back and forth on scrapping the policy, four of us are barely getting by on the money provided for threeI’m a single parent from Bradford with three daughters, aged 15, 12 and four. I’m affected by the two-child limit on benefits and get no help for my youngest child. When you live in a situation for so long, when there’s not enough money, you get used to it. It’s almost become our daily routine. But as politicians debate removing the cap, repeatedly put
  
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• Paris 2024 Olympics: Brit tourists warned of potential £12,000 fines for legal breaches

  01-08-2024 16:32 via express.co.uk
  
  France has some strict laws that Brit tourists could accidentally break - and it could end up being very expensive indeed
  
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• A woman brought her own snacks to Despicable Me 4. Then the police arrived | Stuart Heritage

  01-08-2024 16:32 via theguardian.com
  
  Many struggling cinemas depend on sales of pricey food and drink as ticket revenue mainly goes to film studios. But does banning outside supplies really add up?Look, there is a lot going on in the world at the moment and tensions are high, and the last thing I want to do is to fan the flames by bringing up a subject so divisive that it risks tearing apart the fabric of humanity any further.And yet I must, because a cinema in New Zealand has just ejected two women for sneaking in their own snacks
  
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• Huge savings on offer to help fund green home improvements such as heat pumps with Halifax

  01-08-2024 16:15 via express.co.uk
  
  The offer from Halifax - which is mirrored by Lloyds Bank - comes under the Green Living Reward cashback scheme.
  
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• Building Society raises interest on fixed Cash ISA to 5.05% and earns ‘excellent’ rating

  01-08-2024 16:07 via express.co.uk
  
  The new Cash ISA deal secures a ‘competitive' position within its sector.
  
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• DWP PIP update over plan to scrap £9,583 payments with vouchers

  01-08-2024 15:48 via express.co.uk
  
  The DWP has issued an update on plans to scrap £9,583 payments for PIP.
  
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• Dance and celebrate for free at Wembley Park’s Sounds of the World

  01-08-2024 15:23 via express.co.uk
  
  Dance your heart out for free and learn some show-stopping new moves at "Sounds of the World," a fabulous celebration of global music and culture that comes to Wembley Park, Wembley Park, in north west London on Sunday, August 4. The family-friendly event will take place at the Sound Shell stage, located on the iconic Olympic Way in front of Wembley Stadium, transforming the neighbourhood into a melting pot of musical diversity featuring talented artists from around the world.
  
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• DWP August benefits changes as state pension and Universal Credit affected

  01-08-2024 14:57 via express.co.uk
  
  The DWP has changed state pension and Universal Credit in August.
  
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• Enjoy the BoE rate cut – it may be the last one we get

  01-08-2024 14:43 via express.co.uk
  
  We all know the feeling. You look forward to something for months, yet when the big day comes, it falls a bit flat. That's how I feel about today's interest rate cut.
  
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• How will Bank of England interest rate cut affect my finances?

  01-08-2024 13:37 via theguardian.com
  
  From mortgages to savings and from loans to credit cards, we look at impact of quarter-point cut to base rateBank of England cuts interest rates to 5% in narrow voteRelief for borrowers as UK interest rates cut but little sign big reductions to comeBusiness liveThe Bank of England has voted to cut the cost of borrowing, reducing the base rate from 5.25% to 5%. It is the first cut since March 2020 and follows a succession of increases that have taken the rate from a record low of 0.1% nearly thre
  
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• UK house prices rise at fastest rate in 18 months, Nationwide reports

  01-08-2024 13:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Annual growth rate was 2.1% in July but building society says high mortgage rates still pose challengesUK house prices have grown at the fastest rate in 18 months but high mortgage rates mean many prospective buyers still face affordability challenges, Nationwide has said.The building society said the average house price in the UK was £266,334 across July, up 0.3% on the previous month. Continue reading...
  
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• Google listed my restaurant’s number as its British HQ

  01-08-2024 08:00 via theguardian.com
  
  It mistakenly entered all my business details in the search results for ‘How to contact Google in the UK’Four years ago, Google mistakenly published my restaurant business’s details, including the phone number and address, in the search results for “how to contact Google in the UK”.At first I got just a few calls from people trying to get through to it but now I receive up to 300 a week, including on my personal mobile, as well as messages and letters. I have more t
  
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• Teenagers displaying ‘problematic phone use’ more likely to be depressed

  01-08-2024 01:01
  
  About one in five teenagers aged 16-18 display problematic behaviour with their phones, study findsTeenagers who fall prey to “problematic smartphone use” are more likely to suffer from insomnia, anxiety and depression, a new study suggests.About one in five teenagers aged 16-18 displayed problematic behaviour with their phones, with many saying they wanted help cutting down, experts from King’s College London found. Continue reading...
  
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