Top news
- UK's economic growth better than thought
- 10 million homes have days to check energy meter reading to avoid paying too much
- HSBC says sorry as customers report IT issues with accounts
- Fuel shock could be on the way - as sports shop hit by Nike downgrade
Essential reads
- Save 105 teaspoons of sugar (and money) by switching to classic ice cream
- A week when probable future of mortgage rates became clearer
- Savings Guide:What to look for with 5% rates still available on easy access accounts
- Women in Business: How accident in cafe and £400 turned into a genius business idea that's about to go global
- Money Problem:'I bought a new car but it's been back six times with same fault - what can I do?'
- Best of the Money blog - an archive
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Bank of gran and grandad stepping in as parents struggle to afford school trips
Forget the bank of mum and dad, the bank of gran and grandad is coming into play as parents struggle to afford school trips.
Some 23% of parents say they have had to make cutbacks - even to essentials - to fund them, while 10% said grandparents had paid for the trip and 8% said an aunt or uncle had chipped in.
The research, undertaken by public sector insurer Zurich Municipal, found one in five financially pinched parents felt embarrassed about struggling to pay for trips.
"School trips bring a plethora of benefits to young lives, it's heartbreaking to see so many could miss out due to cost," said Tilden Watson, head of education at Zurich Municipal.
"These trips can also expose some children to new places and experiences that they wouldn't necessarily get to enjoy with their families so they really do offer a window to the world they otherwise wouldn't see."
OnePoll surveyed 1,000 parents of children aged five to 16 across the UK in May.
More than a third (35%) of parents believed school trips are critical to their child's education.
HSBC apologises as customers struggle to access accounts
A major bank has apologised to its customers for IT issues.
In a post on X just before 9.30am, HSBC said: "We’re really sorry that some customers are having issues accessing personal online and mobile banking.
"Our IT teams are working hard to get these services back to normal.
"You can still authorise online card purchases via SMS."
Fuel price shock could be on the way - as sports shop suffers after Nike downgrade
ByJames Sillars, business reporter
The FTSE 100 is on course to end the week on a positive note, opening 0.4% up at 8,211.
Energy stocks are leading a march north following a rough few days for shares generally.
The reason, however, is not great news for us consumers.
Resurgent oil prices are driving the performance, with Shell and BP among the early winners.
The Brent crude contract for August delivery is currently trading just below $87 a barrel, leaving oil costs on track for a third week of gains in a row.
There are a wealth of reasons for the surge but analysts are crediting hopes of a US interest rate cut for the latest lift.
Meanwhile, on the high street, shares in JD Sports are among those dragging.
Its stock opened more than 4% lower after Nike flagged yesterday a downgrade in its own revenue expectations for the current year.
That saw 12% wiped from Nike's price on Wall Street.
10 million households need to read their meters this weekend to make most of cheaper energy
Almost 10 million households need to read their energy meters this week to make the most of the energy price cap change on 1 July.
Missing the first week's worth of cheaper energy would cost them £30m collectively, according to Uswitch.
From 1 July to 30 September 2024, the annual energy price cap will be set at £1,568 for the average household - £122 lower than it is at present.
"Households should be adding 'read my energy meter' to their to-do-list this weekend if they want to take full advantage of lower energy prices from July," said Ben Gallizzi, energy expert at Uswitch.
MoneySavingExpert's Martin Lewis has issued a similar warning.
Without an accurate meter reading, households on standard variable tariffs without a smart meter will be charged estimated ones.
The difference between a week's worth of energy at June's rates compared to July's is £2.78 for the typical household.
Mr Gallizzi said now is also the time to check if you can get a better energy tariff before expected price hikes in October.
Industry analysts suggest energy rates will rise again by 12% to £1,761.
UK's economic growth slightly better than expected
The UK's economy grew slightly more than expected between January and March, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has just announced.
It was previously estimated that it grew by 0.6% during this three-month period.
But the ONS has revised that figure up - ever so slightly - to 0.7%.
Chances are, that won't change how most people feel about their personal finances.
The change could be a talking point in the ongoing election campaign, though.
Follow the latest on the race for Number 10 in our politics blog:
The 'disruptive' ingredients added to ice cream - and how you could save teaspoons of sugar by switching to old favourite
It can be hard to balance the demands of eating well without spending a lot.
In this series, we try to find the healthiest options in the supermarket for the best value - and have enlisted the help ofSunna Van Kampen, founder of Tonic Health, who went viral on social media for reviewing food in the search of healthier choices. We also speak to dieticians each week.
It's important to note from the outset that in this series, we don't try to find the outright healthiest option, but help you get better nutritional value for as little money as possible.
With the weather finally getting warmer, this week we're looking at ice cream.
"With so many options out there, how do you fancy a 63% reduction in your sugar consumption and some savings for your wallet too?" says Sunna.
What's in our ice creams?
"Technically speaking, ice cream is just frozen milk and cream with a bit of added sweetness," Sunna says.
But as time has gone on, we've progressed to less and less cream and more and more sugar.
"To give you an example, Mars Bar Ice Cream is only 31% milk and cream, while the traditional Mackie's ice cream is 81% milk and cream," Sunna says.
"When you remove the cream, quite clearly you lose a lot of the creaminess and smooth texture, so manufacturers have turned to gums (like guar gum, locust bean gum, tara gum) to give the creaminess while lowering cost," he adds.
"The problem is some of these gums have demonstrated to be gut disruptive and hard to digest."
How much sugar can we eat?
The NHS recommends adults have 30g of sugar a day, with that decreasing to 24g for seven to 10-year-olds and 19g a day for four to six-year-olds.
"A cut in sugar is not just good news for our waistlines, but also for our overall health, contributing to a balanced diet without the same spikes in blood sugar levels," Sunna says.
Those spikes can cause sudden drops in energy, spates of hunger and potentially lead to type two diabetes.
How much sugar is in ice cream?
Let's look at some popular examples to compare the sugar content and the impact on your wallet...
- Cadbury Flake 99: £4.25 for 4x125ml and 22.9g sugar per ice cream (5.5 teaspoons)
- Magnum: £3.25 for 3x100ml - 20g of sugar per ice cream (five teaspoons)
- Solero Exotic: £2.75 for 3x90ml - 12g of sugarper ice cream (three teaspoons)
- Mars Ice Cream Bars: £2.75 for 4 x 49.5ml - 12g of sugar per ice cream (three teaspoons)
- Cornetto Classic: £3.50 for 6x90ml - 10g of sugar per ice cream (2.5 teaspoons)
- Milk Choc Ices: £1.60 for 6x70ml - 7.3g of sugar per ice cream (under two teaspoons)
"Assuming you have one ice cream a day across, hopefully, 30 days of sunny weather this summer, and you'll find yourself saving over 105 teaspoons of sugar from your diet this summer if you choose a Choc Ice over a Cadbury Flake 99," Sunna says.
That's a decent saving for your health - but what about your wallet?
"Choc Ice is firmly in the category of win-win, as it's 65% cheaper than a standard Magnum," he adds.
That's a considerable £24.30 saving over 30 ice creams.
The nutritionist's view - fromNichola Ludlam-Raine, dietitian atnicsnutrition.com...
"Shop-bought ice cream isn't a product that I recommend having daily, and luckily for the UK population this isn't something that is too hard to stick to, given the distinct lack of sunny, warm weather.
"I recently had a Mars ice cream and although I really enjoyed it. I needed two to feel satisfied, as they were so small - which doubled my sugar intake (to 24g).
"The good news, though, is not all the sugar quoted on the label is free or added sugar (and under 30g a day of this is acceptable within the context of a healthy balanced diet), as some sugar will be naturally occurring in the milk.
"Choosing ice creams where milk is the first ingredient is always preferable - or plant-based/fruit-based alternatives if you have a milk intolerance or allergy.
"The evidence regarding thickeners and emulsifiers on gut health is still in its infancy, and most of the studies are small and have been done on rodents, with relatively large amounts of the additives being used.
"Some emulsifiers may also confer benefits due to their prebiotic effects - but with gut health, the key is to add in more fibre, natural colour and plants."
Read more from this series...
A week when the probable future of mortgage rates became clearer
Every week we take an overview of the mortgage market with industry experts, while the guys at Moneyfactscompareround up the best rates...
We start this week with the exclusive interview Sky News' Ian King conducted with the chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group - the UK's biggest lender.
Charlie Nunn warned homeowners not to expect a return to the ultra-low interest rates seen for most of the last 16 years.
"We've just come off a decade where mortgages have been in the 1.5-2.5% range," he told King.
"The expectations the market have is that interest rates probably won't get below 3.5%. And that means mortgages, or the new normal for mortgages, will be in that 3.5-4.5% range, not 1.5-2.5%."
Mr Nunn's comments earned applause from brokers and mortgage experts, with the industry news service Newspage speaking to a range of voices...
"I agree with Charlie Nunn: ultra-low interest rates are history. The public is adjusting to the new normal of 3.5% to 4.5% mortgage rates. Nunn's comments highlight market reality and urge borrowers to adapt now."
Ranald Mitchell, from Charwin Private Clients
"If you're a first-time buyer, you may not see ultra-low interest rates in your mortgage lifetime. But that doesn't mean a return to good interest rates isn't possible. We should see rates beginning with a 3 or even a 2 in the not-too-distant future, especially for those with good deposits or equity."
Ben Perks, from Orchard Financial Advisers
For now, the focus of many mortgage holders has been on when the Bank of England will start easing rates from the current 16-year high of 5.25%.
June had been touted but this month's meeting came and went without a change - and the delay means more people coming off mortgages secured in the ultra-low era are facing significant hikes.
About three million UK households are still set to witness hikes in their mortgage repayments over the next two years, the Bank has said this week.
Its Financial Policy Committee (FPC) added there were likely to be "very large increases" of more than 50% for the mortgages of around 400,000 households.
At the moment, around 35% of households with mortgages, or more than three million, are paying below 3% for a range of reasons - like existing deals which pre-dated the recent crisis - and are expected to see an increase between now and the end of 2026.
A typical household rolling off a fixed-rate mortgage before the end of 2026 is due to face a jump of around £180 a month, the committee said.
There has been some good news for borrowers this week though, with a handful of major lenders cutting rates in response to falling swap rates (these dictate how much it costs lenders to lend).
"Fixed rate mortgage reductions from prominent lenders such as Barclays and HSBC dominated coverage this week, as last week’s inflation announcement continued to prompt speculation of an imminent cut to base rate," says Caitlyn Eastell from Moneyfacts.
Turning to the best deals currently on the market, Ms Eastell says the lowest two-year fix for first time buyers with a 5% deposit comes from Halifax.
Priced at 5.63%, this deal has a £999 arrangement fee and offers a £250 Green Home cashback incentive to those purchasing eligible properties.
Moneyfacts also rounds up the best overall deals - looking beyond just the headline rate.
Ms Eastell adds: "As a first time buyer, every penny counts and you may have already exhausted your savings building up a 5% deposit, as well as covering legal fees and removal costs.
"It's important to consider the true cost of any deal you commit to, so if you are looking to save on the upfront cost of your mortgage, then a Best Buy mortgage may be a more cost-effective choice.
"This week,Hanley Economic BStakes one of the top spots of our Best Buy tables for a two-year mortgage. Priced at 5.69%, it offers a free valuation and £250 cashback incentive."
Bank of England likely to cut rates in August, economist predicts
There could be good news on the horizon for borrowers, as an economist says the Bank of England is likely to cut interest rates in August.
Michael Saunders, a former member of the Monetary Police Committee (MPC), said the Bank has "clearly signalled" it wants to cut rates soon "if data are okay".
He told the Reuters Global Markets Forum that inflation and wage figures would need to align with the MPC's forecasts back in May.
"If so, I would expect the rest of the internal [members of the MPC] to move as a bloc to vote for a cut," he said, saying that markets had been given enough warning.
The BoEheld interest ratesat 5.25% for the seventh time in a row last weekdespite inflation falling to its target of 2%.
Mr Saunders predicted that the Bank would slash rates seven times in increments of 25 points by the end of next year, bringing the headline rate "close" to what he calls a neutral rate of 3.5%.
"I expect two to three cuts this year, the rest next year - again, depends a bit on the monthly data," he said.
Digital ID apps approved for age-restricted purchases
The government has accredited three new forms of ID for purchasing restricted goods and services.
Lloyds Bank Smart ID, Post Office EasyID and Yoti ID can now be used to watch age-restricted films in cinemas, enter gambling premises, or pay for tattoos and tanning salons.
They cannot be used to buy alcoholic drinks in pubs and shops, but are recognised when buying alcohol online, along with tobacco, vapes, lottery tickets and fireworks.
"More UK businesses can now accept our Digital IDs to reduce the risk of fake IDs, increase compliance and improve the customer experience," saidRobin Tombs, CEO of Yoti.
He said more than four million people have already downloaded a Digital ID app.
"This is a strong sign that people are ready to embrace reusable Digital IDs and want a more secure, private and convenient way to prove who they are."
Each of the Digital ID apps includes the approved PASS hologram.
Late drivers can park their worries about fines - for a few more minutes, at least
Most of us know the feeling of rushing back to your car when you realise your ticket is about to run out.
The good news is, new rules mean you won't have to race back quite as breathlessly in future.
Drivers are to get a 10-minute grace period when their time runs out at private car parks.
The changes are coming in after industry bodies the British Parking Association (BPA) and the International Parking Community (IPC) published a new code of conduct.
However, the AA said it still leaves room for drivers to be ripped off because it misses out "desperately needed" measures such as a cap on charges.
Read the full story below...
