Finance Matters

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has today revealed the UK’s trade deficit narrowed in February. According to the ONS, the global goods trade gap narrowed to £6.8 billion in the month from £7.8 billion in January. Analysts had expected a widening in the deficit to £8.1 million. Stripping out oil and erratic items, the [...]

Official data from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) today revealed UK house prices rose by 0.3% in February compared with January, with the average UK home costing £204,164. On an annual basis, house prices rose 0.7% – beating expectations for a 0.1% rise. The data from the DCLG is based on mortgage [...]

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has today reported mortgage lending increased in February. Mortgage lending rose by 8% in February on a monthly basis but was down 12% on the year. There were 32,300 approvals during the month with first-time buyers making the biggest contribution with 12,400 mortgages worth £1.4 billion. First-time buyers are [...]