The Greek referendum may be off but the Eurozone crisis is far from over.

The headlines coming from the G20 meeting, the Greek parliament and – well, the Eurozone in general – have been pretty grim. First the Greek bailout was agreed, then the Greek Prime Minister said he wanted to call a referendum, and yesterday the referendum was called off. But the problems for the Eurozone are far from over and the FTSE 100 index finished a volatile week down 19 points. What could the Greek bailout and Eurozone crisis mean for the UK?

More »

What does the stock market fall mean if you have a pension, stocks and shares ISA or other investments?

Updated 1st January 2012

A big fall in the stock market index such as the FTSE 100 always gets covered by the media - and the headlines alone are enough to unsettle all but the calmest investors. Earlier today the FTSE 100 lost 2.5% of its value (it recovered briefly this afternoon but - as I write this - it's fallen back to this morning's lower levels). So should you ignore the fall in the FTSE, think about selling or buy while prices are low?

More »

Financial documents may be clearer than they used to be but they are rarely straightforward.

Updated 1st January 2012

Be honest; what do you do with all the bumph that you receive from financial companies? Perhaps, you put it straight in the bin if it’s junk mail and in a file or drawer if it looks more important. Financial companies often seem to delight in constructing the most complex documents crammed full of gobbledegook and jargon. So, how do you decode it?

More »