The confidence of UK consumers in the economy and their finances has suffered its biggest monthly drop in 16 years, a survey has suggested. Rising VAT was a key factor behind the...

Attempts by the coalition government to reach an agreement with the UK’s biggest banks on the amount they lend to small businesses have stalled, the BBC has learned. The plan, known as Project...

Bank of England policy-makers must “hold their nerve” and leave interest rates at the current record low despite soaring inflation and mounting questions about their credibility,the Ernst...

Demand for secured lending for house purchases fell markedly in the final quarter of 2010 and is expected to fall further this quarter, according to lenders surveyed in the Bank of England’s...

Rising unemployment will cost the government £1.5bn more than expected in welfare benefits, according to official forecasts that reveal the hidden cost of the coalition’s austerity drive....

The average monthly cost of renting a home rose again in November, to a record £692, according to the LSL property index. The survey was based on 18,000 properties let by LSL’s letting...

 The pay freeze will thaw next year with strong rises after two years of flat or falling earnings, the Sunday Times reports. Goldman Sachs has forecast that wages will rise 4.3%, well above the...

Britain’s economy is recovering faster than expected, and thousands of public-sector workers who feared redundancy are now set to keep their jobs, reports the Sunday Times. As many as 90,000...

 Official statistics have revealed the extent to which household wealth has been hit by the financial crisis. Wealth, which includes home ownership and savings, fell to £109,000 per person...

The number of people declared bankrupt in England and Wales during the third quarter of the year fell to its lowest level for almost five years, according to latest figures from the Insolvency...

Proposed changes to pensions and retirement rules will make it more difficult for smaller firms to create jobs, according to The Forum of Private Business (FPB). The trade body claims the...

 House prices dropped in October compared to the previous month as the property market saw an autumn fall, according to the Nationwide. The building society said prices were down 0.7% compared to...

Sales on the high street were higher than a year ago in October, according to the latest monthly Distributive Trades Survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The figure was positive...

 Almost three million homeowners would struggle to pay their mortgage if interest rates rose by just two percentage points, according to new industry figures. This equates to more than one in...

British retailers suffered another shock fall in sales, official figures for September showed, as nervous consumers reined in their spending even before the fiscal squeeze bites. Volumes dropped 0.2pc...

The manufacturing sector expects a solid rise in output over the next three months driven by predictions for a stronger increase in export orders according to the Confederation of British Industry...

The odds seem to be shortening on the Bank of England opting to restart its quantitative easing scheme in November, but it remains unlikely. Minutes of the October monetary policy committee meeting...

Consumer confidence fell to its lowest level for more than a year in September as people worried about government spending cuts, according to research from Nationwide Building Society. The main...

Inflation CPI) remained unchanged in September at 3.1%, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The Retail Prices Index (RPI), which includes a higher proportion of housing costs, fell...

House prices fell by 3.6% in September from the previous month, the largest fall on record, according to the Halifax. However, the bank said it was too early to conclude that this was the start of a...