Latest news with #currentaccount
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Want to bag £180 for switching bank account? You only have days left
This is the last chance for savvy bank switchers to get a £180 bonus for switching their current account. Santander has announced it is ending its switching bonus on Wednesday 30 July at 23:59. Customers switching their current account to Santander before then can still grab the switching cash. Santander's bank account switching deal is available to new and existing customers who switch their current account through the Current Account Switching Service (Cass) to a Santander Everyday, Edge, Edge Up or Private current account. To get Santander's switching cash, customers need to complete a switch request either online or in a Santander branch. They must complete the full switch within 60 days of the initial switch request. This means closing their previous account, and paying in at least £1,500 to their eligible Santander account. This can be done across multiple payments. At least two active direct debits must be set up within 60 days of the switch request. Customers who already had a Santander current account as of 1 January 2025 will not be eligible. Eligible customers will get the £180 payment within 90 days of starting the switch process if all the switching criteria have been met. Where else can you still get cash for switching bank? First Direct is paying £175 to new customers who move their current account to its First Account. Meanwhile Barclays is also paying £175 to new customers who who open a Barclays bank account with Blue Rewards, or a Premier current account by 28 August 2025. Customers opening any other Barclay's current account apart from a Premier account must sign up for a Blue Rewards account which costs £5 a month. Lloyds Bank is offering the biggest cash carrot of £185 to customers who open a Club Lloyds account. The account comes with a £5 monthly fee in exchange for a range of perks and must be funded with £1,500 to get the cash. Santander launches 1% cashback for Edge credit card When Santander launched its £180 switching bonus in May, at the same time it announced it was scrapping its 1 per cent cashback on shopping and travel spending on a debit card for those with its Santander Edge and Edge Up current accounts. It has now added cashback to its Santander Edge Credit Card, and customers no longer need to open a Santander current account to get the credit card. The credit card offers 1 per cent cashback on all purchases made with the credit card, capped at £10 a month. The credit card comes with a £4 monthly fee so customers will pay £48 a year for the privilege.
Zawya
7 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Egypt's current account deficit records $13.2bln in 9 months: CBE
Arab Finance: The Egyptian economy witnessed remarkable developments during the first nine months of fiscal year (FY) 2024/2025, with current account deficit retreating by 22.6% to $13.2 billion from $17.1 billion in the same period of FY2023/2024, the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) data showed. However, the balance of payment (BoP) shifted from an overall surplus of $4.1 billion in the same period a year earlier to an overall deficit of $1.9 billion in the July 2024-March 2025 period. The shift was mainly due to a drop in the net inflows of the capital and financial account, registering $7.7 billion. This is compared to inflows of $20 billion in the corresponding period, which included the Ras El Hekma deal at $15 billion. Remittances of Egyptians working abroad hiked by 82.7% year-on-year (YoY) to $26.4 billion from $14.5 billion, while the investment income deficit declined by 13.4% to $12.2 billion from $14 billion. Tourism revenues jumped by 15.4% to $12.5 billion in the nine months, versus $10.9 billion. This was attributed to the pickup in the number of tourist nights to 134.3 million nights when compared to 116.4 million nights in the same period in FY2023/2024. Non-oil trade deficit increased by $4.3 billion to register $28 billion in the first nine months of FY 2024/2025, marking an annual rise from $23.7 billion. The surge was driven by a jump in the non-oil merchandise imports, which surpassed that of the non-oil merchandise exports. As for the Suez Canal activities, the transit receipts shrank by 54.1% YoY to record only $2.6 billion when compared to $5.8 billion. This was attributed to a 61.9% plunge in both the net to just 360.3 million tons, while the number of transiting vessels dropped by 44.8%. Such a drop was caused by the ongoing Red Sea tensions in maritime navigation, which forced several shipping companies to divert their shipping routes. Meanwhile, the capital and financial account registered a net inflow of $7.7 billion in the period from July 2024 to March 2025, against $20 billion a year earlier. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Egypt recorded a net inflow of $9.8 billion in the first nine months of FY 2024/2025, lower than $23.7 billion in the corresponding period under the Ras El Hekma deal. © 2020-2023 Arab Finance For Information Technology. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
CTV News
22-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
IMF warns tariffs aren't the answer to global imbalances
WASHINGTON — Global current account balances widened sharply in 2024, reversing a narrowing under way since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday, warning that tariffs were not the answer. In its annual External Sector Report, which assesses imbalances in the 30 largest economies, the IMF noted that external surpluses or deficits were not necessarily a problem, but could cause risks if they became excessive. It said prolonged domestic imbalances, continued fiscal policy uncertainty, and escalating trade tensions could deteriorate global risk sentiment and elevate financial stress, hurting both debtor and creditor nations. The report took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump's imposition of higher import tariffs against nearly every trading partner, which his administration says is aimed at increasing revenues and righting longstanding trade deficits. 'A further escalation of the trade war would have significant macroeconomic effects,' it said, noting that higher tariffs would reduce global demand in the short term and add to inflationary pressures through rising import prices. Rising geopolitical tensions could also trigger shifts in the international monetary system (IMS), which in turn could undermine financial stability, it said. This year's report, based on 2024 data, showed the widening of global current account balances was due largely to increased excess balances in the world's three largest economies - the United States, China and the euro area. The deficit in the United States widened by US$228 billion to US$1.13 trillion or one per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP), while China's surplus increased by US$161 billion to US$424 billion and the euro surpluses expanded by US$198 billion to US$461 billion. Domestic solutions In an accompanying blog, IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said excessive surpluses or deficits stemmed from domestic distortions, such as overly loose fiscal policy in deficit countries and insufficient safety nets that caused excessive precautionary savings in surplus countries. Changes aimed these domestic drivers - not tariffs - were needed, he said. That meant China should focus on boosting consumption, Europe should spend more on infrastructure and the U.S. needed to reduce large public deficits and rein in fiscal spending, he said. The report was based on data collected before approval of a massive tax cut and spending bill, which the Congressional Budget Office on Monday said would add US$3.4 trillion to the U.S. deficit over 10 years, causing further pressure. 'Public deficits in the United States remain excessively large and the recent broad depreciation of the Chinese yuan - together with the U.S. dollar - runs the risk of widening current account surpluses in China,' he wrote. Rising tariffs had little impact on global imbalances, Gourinchas said since they tended to reduce both investment and savings in the tariffing country, leaving current account balances little changed. 'Softening' U.S. role as world banker Uncertainty about tariffs could also undermine consumer and business confidence, increase financial market volatility and lead to persistent appreciations of the U.S. dollar, the IMF report said. However, it noted the dollar had depreciated eight per cent since January, its largest half-year decline since 1973. It acknowledged the continued dominance of the U.S. dollar, but said growing geoeconomic fragmentation could pose risks in the future, and recent weaker demand for U.S. Treasuries could reflect concerns about the U.S. fiscal trajectory. Increased use of China's yuan in international trade and finance, a 'softening in the United States' role as world banker and insurer' and the emergence of alternative payment systems and private digital assets could eventually lead to changes in the use of international currencies. 'While the risks of serious dislocation in the IMS remain moderate, rapid and sizable increases in global imbalances can generate significant negative cross-border spillovers,' Gourinchas wrote in the blog. 'A major risk for the global economy is that countries will instead respond to rising imbalances by further raising trade barriers, leading to increased geoeconomic fragmentation. And while the impact on global imbalances will remain limited, the harm to the global economy will be long-lasting.' --- Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Sam Holmes
Reuters
22-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Egypt current account deficit narrows to $13.2 billion in nine months through March
DUBAI, July 22 (Reuters) - Egypt's current account deficit narrowed to $13.2 billion in the nine months through March 2025, from $17.1 billion in the same period a year earlier, Egypt's central bank said on Tuesday. The bank attributed the slimmer deficit to an 86.6% increase in remittances from Egyptians working abroad, as well as a rise in the services surplus due to 23% higher tourism revenue. Oil exports declined by $430.5 million to $4.2 billion, from $4.6 a year earlier, while oil imports increased by $4.8 billion to $14.5 billion, from $9.7 billion. Egypt has been seeking to import more fuel oil and liquefied natural gas this year to meet its power demands after enduring blackouts during periods of shaky gas supply in the past two years. Concerns intensified after the supply of natural gas from Israel to Egypt dropped during Israel's air war with Iran. Suez Canal revenues declined to $2.6 billion, from $5.8 billion in a year earlier, as revenue from the vital global trade route continued to suffer because of Yemeni Houthis' attacks on ships in the Red Sea. The Iran-aligned group says it attacks ships linked to Israel in support of Palestinians in Gaza. Meanwhile, Egypt's tourism revenue reached $12.5 billion from July 2024 through March 2025, compared to $10.9 billion in the same period a year earlier. Remittances from Egyptians working abroad increased to $26.4 billion, from $14.5 billion. Foreign direct investment hit $9.8 billion, compared to $23.7 billion.
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IMF warns tariffs aren't the answer to global imbalances
By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Global current account balances widened sharply in 2024, reversing a narrowing under way since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday, warning that tariffs were not the answer. In its annual External Sector Report, which assesses imbalances in the 30 largest economies, the IMF noted that external surpluses or deficits were not necessarily a problem, but could cause risks if they became excessive. It said prolonged domestic imbalances, continued fiscal policy uncertainty, and escalating trade tensions could deteriorate global risk sentiment and elevate financial stress, hurting both debtor and creditor nations. The report took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump's imposition of higher import tariffs against nearly every trading partner, which his administration says is aimed at increasing revenues and righting longstanding trade deficits. "A further escalation of the trade war would have significant macroeconomic effects," it said, noting that higher tariffs would reduce global demand in the short term and add to inflationary pressures through rising import prices. Rising geopolitical tensions could also trigger shifts in the international monetary system (IMS), which in turn could undermine financial stability, it said. This year's report, based on 2024 data, showed the widening of global current account balances was due largely to increased excess balances in the world's three largest economies - the United States, China and the euro area. The deficit in the United States widened by $228 billion to $1.13 trillion or 1% of global gross domestic product (GDP), while China's surplus increased by $161 billion to $424 billion and the euro surpluses expanded by $198 billion to $461 billion. DOMESTIC SOLUTIONS In an accompanying blog, IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said excessive surpluses or deficits stemmed from domestic distortions, such as overly loose fiscal policy in deficit countries and insufficient safety nets that caused excessive precautionary savings in surplus countries. Changes aimed these domestic drivers - not tariffs - were needed, he said. That meant China should focus on boosting consumption, Europe should spend more on infrastructure and the U.S. needed to reduce large public deficits and rein in fiscal spending, he said. The report was based on data collected before approval of a massive tax cut and spending bill, which the Congressional Budget Office on Monday said would add $3.4 trillion to the U.S. deficit over 10 years, causing further pressure. "Public deficits in the United States remain excessively large and the recent broad depreciation of the Chinese yuan - together with the U.S. dollar - runs the risk of widening current account surpluses in China," he wrote. Rising tariffs had little impact on global imbalances, Gourinchas said since they tended to reduce both investment and savings in the tariffing country, leaving current account balances little changed. 'SOFTENING' US ROLE AS WORLD BANKER Uncertainty about tariffs could also undermine consumer and business confidence, increase financial market volatility and lead to persistent appreciations of the U.S. dollar, the IMF report said. However, it noted the dollar had depreciated 8% since January, its largest half-year decline since 1973. It acknowledged the continued dominance of the U.S. dollar, but said growing geoeconomic fragmentation could pose risks in the future, and recent weaker demand for U.S. Treasuries could reflect concerns about the U.S. fiscal trajectory. Increased use of China's yuan in international trade and finance, a "softening in the United States' role as world banker and insurer" and the emergence of alternative payment systems and private digital assets could eventually lead to changes in the use of international currencies. "While the risks of serious dislocation in the IMS remain moderate, rapid and sizable increases in global imbalances can generate significant negative cross-border spillovers," Gourinchas wrote in the blog. "A major risk for the global economy is that countries will instead respond to rising imbalances by further raising trade barriers, leading to increased geoeconomic fragmentation. And while the impact on global imbalances will remain limited, the harm to the global economy will be long-lasting." Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
