magazine archive
magazine archive
Money Matters
What to do with lockdown cash
Thursday 14 Jan 2021Another lengthy lockdown is upon us and that means few options to spend money on the little pleasures we took for granted before the pandemic. But when you put together all the money spent on meals out, coffee stops, evenings in the pub, or just getting a haircut, it actually adds up to a pretty...
DIY investors are cautiously confident for 2021
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020Few people will shed a tear to see the back of 2020, but as the year draws to a close, it seems that investors are looking forward to 2021 with cautious optimism. AJ Bell has surveyed around two thousand DIY investors to assess their thoughts on the prospects for markets in the coming year. The...
The big changes for personal finance in 2021
Thursday 17 Dec 2020The year 2021 sounds like something you might find in the title of a 1960s sci-fi movie, set a long time in the future, when people are curiously transfixed by handheld computers, and wear strange masks. Well, it’s almost upon us, so it’s a good time to think about what next year holds in store for...
How to give investments without losing to the taxman
Thursday 10 Dec 2020As we approach the festive period, and Santa’s movements may be affected by coronavirus restrictions, the more financially minded of you might be considering gifting shares to children or grandchildren, as well as, or instead of the latest must-have console game. This is a good way to give kids a...
Higher rate pensions tax relief could face the chop
Thursday 03 Dec 2020The Government is facing a large hole in its finances, and while it’s not yet acknowledging the elephant in the room, this almost certainly means tax rises in the near future. The Conservative election manifesto rules out rises to income tax, National Insurance or VAT, which are the three big...
Options for savers as NS&I actions big rate cuts
Thursday 26 Nov 2020Millions of NS&I savers will see lower rates of interest paid on their savings from this week onwards. Over £136 billion of cash held with NS&I is affected, with around £25 billion in accounts where the interest has now dropped to virtually nil. Since lockdown, NS&I has taken in more...
Preparing for a potential capital gains tax raid
Thursday 19 Nov 2020Everyone knows the UK Government is going to have to raise taxes to try and get the public finances in order once the pandemic is in the rear-view mirror. Capital gains tax looks like a prime candidate for a Treasury raid, after chancellor Rishi Sunak ordered a review of CGT in the summer. That...
Managing your finances in lockdown 2.0
Thursday 12 Nov 2020The new lockdown restrictions unfortunately mean the UK economy is going to take a hit again. The Bank of England now expects GDP to fall 2% in the final quarter of this year, meaning that the economy would be 11% smaller at the end of 2020 than it was at the beginning. Beyond that, much is...
Why fund investors are under-allocated to the US and does it matter?
Thursday 05 Nov 2020It’s been a cruel ten years for investors in this country, who have watched the US stock market go from strength to strength while our home market brings up the rear. This is particularly galling because the typical fund portfolio is significantly underweight the US, and overweight the UK. While...
Don’t give up on finding the best rates for cash savings
Thursday 29 Oct 2020The Bank of England’s interest rate committee meets on 5 November to decide whether it needs to inject more money into the economy. The outlook has deteriorated since they last got together in September, with Covid-19 restrictions becoming more widespread, and the Government looking to wean the...