Chancellor George Osborne has delivered his Autumn Statement. Here are the key points: BUSINESS Credit easing programme to underwrite up to £40bn in low-interest loans to small and medium-sized firms £1bn business finance partnership to help secure funding for medium-sized firms Regional Growth regeneration fund to get £1bn in extra funding £250m support package...
Chancellor George Osborne said he was determined to see Britain through the financial crisis as he outlined his plans to boost the stuttering economy in his annual Autumn Statement – with the latest gloomy forecasts suggesting the country is again teetering on the edge of recession. He was forced to admit that GDP has...
House prices have inched up by a better-than-predicted 0.4% this month, according to Nationwide building society, but they are expected to ease again over the next 12 months as activity remains subdued. The month-on-month rise is the third straight monthly increase. In a year-on-year basis, the increase was 1.6%, beating a forecast of 1.3%....
HSBC has appointed Paul Wood as senior corporate banking manager for the South West. In his new role Paul will focus on the extensive corporate market in the region, supporting businesses with a turnover of £25m-plus and ensuring that HSBC continues to meet the needs of its corporate clients. Paul will report to Mark...
Bath-based publishing group Future has crashed to a £19.3m annual loss as a result of a poor performance by its US printed magazines. The group, which owns around 90 magazines including Total Film, Classic Rock and Fast Car, had made a profit of £5.5m in the previous year. Revenues for the year to the...
Eleven new family homes are to be created on the site of the Jubilee Inn overlooking a picturesque valley on the southern outskirts of Bath. The derelict pub premises on Whiteway Road, Southdown, was affected by fire last year and has now been demolished by new owners Westrock, who are pressing ahead with the development plans. Closed...
Avon Rubber, the West Wiltshire-based rubber products manufacturer, expects to continue to grow despite a weak economic outlook and a fall in annual sales. Revenue dropped 8% to £107.6m in the year to September 30 at the Melksham group, mainly due to falling orders with the US Department of Defense. The group supplies respirators...
Bath Building Society has welcomed the Government’s new housing initiative aimed at kick-starting the UK’s stagnant domestic construction sector. The society, which is already at the forefront of developing innovative mortgages to help new entrants into the housing market, believes the broad perspective of the Government’s policy will create real benefits for the economy...
1pm, the Bath-based specialist lender to small and medium-sized businesses, has agreed a £1m increase in the amount it will be able to offer to firms. The increase is a 50% rise on 1pm’s existing block discounting facility with one of its funders. In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, it said the...
