investment

Next year could see the start of a long-term restriction in US and UK economic growth rates sparked by excessive personal and government debt loads, warns Aberdeen Asset Management.

Chancellor Gordon Brown has just confirmed early in his 2006 Pre-Budget Report Isas will continue to exist to 2010 and beyond.

Nearly 80% of retail investors are confident the stock market will do well over the next 12 months, according to a TD Waterhouse survey of about 1,000 UK adults who also traded stocks and shares in the past year.

Close Investments, the property, tax and investments specialist, is set to launch its rebrand in the next couple of months, including a new colour scheme and new website.

Clerical Medical says it has identified and corrected "discrepancies" in some of its unit-linked funds, brought about because of data input errors.

The social networking phenomenon fuelling the rapid growth of websites such as YouTube and MySpace could be about to threaten the dominance of the big banks, says the Guardian .

National Savings & Investments has increased the rates it pays out, in line with the 0.25% increase announced recently by the Bank of England.

Trustees and actuaries of pension schemes which have an investment strategy which is "too safe" could be open to claims of negligence.

With latest research suggesting advisers intend to pile into the UK Reits market when it opens in January, it is perhaps time to pause for reflection.

Figures published by Reita suggest advisers are expressing increasing interest in the vehicles ahead of the opening of the UK Reits market in January.