Retailers face soaring theft bill
SHOPLIFTING together with theft by employees is costing Scottish retailers more than £300 million a year – with meat, razor blades, condoms and power tools among the most frequently stolen items.More...
View ArticleHolidaymakers facing their own euro crisis
PEOPLE travelling to the eurozone this summer could be missing out on millions of euros worth of holiday money by failing to shop around for the best currency deals.New research carried out by foreign...
View Article£100,000 claims over agents’ letting fees
Private-sector tenants are bidding to recover more than £100,000 in unlawful letting agent charges after a Shelter Scotland campaign against the fees attracted more than 800 claims in just two months....
View ArticleCrackdown on packages that cost bank customers a packet
Banks will be forced to ensure customers are eligible for the benefits sold with packaged accounts, under a new crackdown aimed at tackling the mis-selling of the products.The Financial Services...
View Article‘Bankruptcy is too easy’
Almost two-thirds of Scots think bankruptcy is too easy and allows people to get away with reckless spending, according to research out today showing a hardening of attitudes towards insolvency. It...
View ArticleTop Ten Tips: Cohabiation and financial assets
THE recent case of Gow v Grant in the Supreme court seemingly rubber-stamped Scottish laws giving non-married cohabiting couples more claim on each other’s financial assets in the event of separation....
View ArticleTax Matters: Journey into space can be profitable, just be sure that you set...
Sometimes the answer in difficult financial times lies close to home. In many cases, it lies in the spare room.The number of people letting out rooms in their homes has grown rapidly over the past two...
View ArticleGareth Howlett: Forgo the brilliant mutt myth for some simple dog sense
I READ a brilliant story the other day about a dog with a talent for investment. His owner, who was an avid watcher of stock market news on the financial channels, noticed that the dog would bark...
View ArticleSteve Wilkie: Your home, your castle … and an early legacy
FOR people either approaching retirement or there already, consideration of financial legacy and what support they can leave for the generations that follow are often front of mind. With most people,...
View ArticleConsumer helpdesk
Q: I AM writing with reference to the company EasyLife which caused us major problems last year.In July 2011, we put in a mail order for goods to the value of £65.23 and a cheque. By October, nothing...
View ArticleMarkets: Enthusiastic show led by Aggreko
TEMPORARY power supplier Aggreko shared in Britain’s golden Olympic glory today as it basked in the glow of its London 2012 contract.The Glasgow-based firm jumped 5 per cent – closing up 105p at 2,205p...
View ArticleStephen Hester bullish on RBS’s recovery despite half-year losses of £1.5bn
ROYAL Bank of Scotland boss Stephen Hester yesterday attempted to placate critics by insisting his five-year restructuring plan remains on track.He said the bank, 82 per cent owned by the taxpayer, had...
View ArticleTesco building its banking empire with move into mortgage market
Tesco Bank will launch its delayed push into the mortgage market next week with a deliberate targeting of the supermarket group’s army of shoppers.Chief executive Benny Higgins hailed the launch as the...
View ArticleMarkets up after US posts better jobs news
Stock markets rallied yesterday after better-than-expected jobs figures from the US helped investors shrug off disappointment about a lack of immediate action to tackle the eurozone debt...
View ArticleWood Group extends its reach with deal in Texas
WOOD Group, the Aberdeen-based energy services firm, yesterday snapped up Texas-based engineering and maintenance company Duval to extend its presence in North America’s shale oil market.Duval, which...
View ArticleDrilling update sees Smith leaves Xcite Energy on a high note
RICHARD Smith, chief executive of Aberdeen-based driller Xcite Energy, yesterday announced his retirement after unveiling a positive drilling update from its Bentley field in the North Sea.Smith, one...
View ArticleAsco on track to double in size through acquisitions and growth
Asco Group, the Aberdeen-based energy logistics specialist, said yesterday that it was on track to double in size within five years after gaining additional financial muscle from last year’s sale to...
View ArticleBusiness briefs: Ryanair | LinkedIn | BoI extends Post Office contract | OFT...
BUDGET airline Ryanair said July passenger numbers rose 8 per cent on the same month last year, bringing the total number of flyers for 2012 to 77.7 million.But load factor – the number of passengers...
View ArticleCaledonian Heritage sees strong rise in turnover but profits drop to £5.4m
DIFFICULT trading conditions at Kevin Doyle’s pubs, property and plant hire business empire contributed to a sharp fall in operating profits last year despite turnover rising to almost £40 million.His...
View ArticleSharp sinks as investors hit the off switch
shares in electronics group Sharp tumbled nearly 30 per cent yesterday, hitting their lowest closing level since 1976, as investors questioned whether Japan’s last major maker of televisions will...
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