While many economies are still struggling with high inflation there are signs that the pace is starting to slow, which could pave the way for interest rate cuts later this year. To reflect this, the OECD has lifted its 2024 global growth forecast by 0.3%, when compared to the end of 2023, to 2.9%. However,
Humanity is becoming increasingly aware of how we treat our planet. With more people experiencing the effects of climate change and global warming than ever before, the campaigns to protect the Earth are becoming more urgent. Earth Day has advocated for permanent, global change to save our planet for over 50 years. Named the planet’s
The month got off to a gloomy start, especially if you are a Guardian reader. Five signs the global recovery may be an illusion was the headline on one of its main analysis articles, which pointed out that the world of 2014 was not very dissimilar to the world of 2004 – when (we now
Company directors and owners of SMEs make plans and do forecasts all the time. Cash flow forecasts, SWOT analyses, plans for renewals and refurbishment; there’s hardly a day when they’re not eyeball to eyeball with a spreadsheet. So why do so many of them fail to plan their own retirements properly? In our experience company
The average UK household overall is 26 days from the breadline, but this reduces to just 11 days for those of working age (18-64 years old). People estimate their savings will last them 72 days – almost three times the actual deadline to exhausting reserve funds. Wales and the North East have the shortest deadlines
If you are lucky enough to have a pension pot or a pension plan that works out your savings as being worth more than £1.5 million, then when you take your benefits, it is likely that you will have to pay a lifetime allowance tax charge on the excess. The existing fixed Lifetime Allowance (LTA)
Virtually all the headlines surrounding George Osborne’s recent Budget were about the changes to the pensions rules. Rightly described as the biggest changes to pensions legislation for a hundred years, they will have far-reaching implications for the financial planning of many of our clients. With all the attention devoted to pensions, it was easy to