Glitch Causes Items To Be Sold On Amazon For 1p

Businesses are furious after a piece of software used by retailers on Amazon went wrong, causing hundreds of items to be sold for 1p.

Some firms which use RepricerExpress say they risk going bankrupt because the problem has resulted in them losing so much money.

The software is designed to keep businesses competitive by automatically repricing items of stock so they are cheaper than others in the digital market.

The firm states on its website: "We are here to increase your sales on Amazon and Rakuten's Play.com and make your efforts as profitable as possible."

For an hour on Friday, between 7pm and 8pm, a problem with RepricerExpress led to hundreds of items being sold on Amazon at a fraction of their normal price. At the same time, some customers said, Amazon charged its usual fees for every item sold.

One of the sellers, Judith Blackford of Kiddymania, told Sky News she could be forced out of business as result of the error.

She said: "I started using Repricer Express - a repricing tool as did a lot of other businesses a few months ago.

"Last night through an error in their programme they listed my stock on Amazon at 1p per item including delivery.

"I have lost about £20,000 overnight. Having asked Amazon to cancel the orders they are still sending them out and charging me horrendous fees.

"Surely someone has to be accountable for this. I will be bankrupt at this rate by the end of January."

Another online trader Belle thinks her company, which sells toys and games, will lose around £30,000 and she will probably be put out of business.

Belle thinks her firm, which sells toys and games, will lose around £30,000

She told Sky News: "It's disgusting really because this third party software, that is their business, this should not have happened, this is 2014.

"We have to pay for this software every month, we've been using it for 18 months no problem.

"At the busiest time - this was predicted to be our busiest weekend of Christmas - turnover is zero."

As a result of the error, several buyers commented on Twitter at how pleased they were to have bought the items for so little.

One person wrote: "Amazon are having a glitch on their site and loads of stuff is selling for 1p. I just bought an incense holder, don't even need it."

An email to some customers from the CEO of RepricerExpress, Brendan Doherty, said the problems with the software caused incorrect pricing to be sent to Amazon.

A statement on the company's website from Mr Doherty said: "I am truly sorry for the distress this has caused our customers.

"We have received communication that Amazon will not penalise sellers for this error. We are continuing to work to identify how this problem occurred and to put measures in place to ensure that it does not happen again.

"Everyone here is devastated and disappointed that you have experienced this problem.

"We understand that you are angry and upset and we will endeavour to work to make good on this issue."

A spokesman for Amazon said: "We are aware that a number of Marketplace sellers listed incorrect prices for a short period of time as a result of the third party software they use to price their items on Amazon.co.uk.

"We responded quickly and were able to cancel the vast majority of orders placed on these affected items immediately and no costs or fees will be incurred by sellers for these cancelled orders.

"We are now reviewing the small number of orders that were processed and will be reaching out to any affected sellers directly."

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

David Cameron To Launch Home Discount Scheme

A scheme offering 100,000 first-time buyers new homes with a discount of 20% as part of a drive to help people onto the property ladder will be launched by David Cameron later.

Those under 40 who have never owned their own home can register their interest in buying via the Starter Home Initiative from the start of 2015 - six months earlier than planned.

Because of a change to the planning system set to come into force, under-used or unviable brownfield land will be freed from certain costs in return for a below market value sale price on properties constructed on the site.

Developers and councils are being urged to ensure the changes unlock a variety of sites across the country.

Mr Cameron said: "Hard-working young people want to plan for the future and enjoy the security of being able to own their own home. I want to help them do just that.

Video: Stamp Duty: Good News For Buyers

"Under this scheme, first-time buyers will be offered the chance of a 20% discount, unlocking home ownership for a generation.

"This is all part of our long-term economic plan to secure a better future for Britain, making sure we are backing those who work hard and get on in life."

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: "The 2008 housing crash blocked millions of hard-working, creditworthy people from becoming home-owners, at a time in their lives when they should have been able to expect to get on the property ladder.

"We're turning that around with Help to Buy, but today's new Starter Homes scheme will offer a further boost, giving young people (under 40) the opportunity to buy low-cost, high-quality new homes for significantly less than they would normally expect."

Stewart Baseley, executive chairman of the Home Builders Federation, said the initiative is "another positive step" in tackling the shortage of housing.

At the moment, developers can face an average bill of £15,000 per home in Section 106 affordable housing contributions and tariffs.

But under the scheme, developers offering Starter Homes would not have to pay certain charges.

To ensure the savings are passed onto buyers, the homes will not be able to be re-sold at market value for a fixed period.

Video: July: Young Unable To Buy Homes

More than 30 house builders have already backed the plans, and say they would consider bringing forward land to be developed from next year.

A design panel will be set up to ensure the homes are not only cheap, but also high-quality.

Renowned architect Sir Terry Farrell, who is on the panel, said it could make a real difference.

He added it would build on the recommendations of the Farrell Review, which raised the need for more proactive planning.

Sir Terry said: "Only by planning and designing our villages, towns and cities together with local communities can we create the kind of built environment we all aspire to and should be demanding."

Shadow housing minister Emma Reynolds said no-one would believe the PM's promises on the issue, and added: "The only way to restore the dream of home ownership is to build more homes and Labour has a plan to get at least 200,000 homes built a year by 2020.

"We are in favour of building starter homes but it is not clear how the Government is going to deliver these homes 20% cheaper than market price."

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

FTSE 100 Suffers Worst Week In Three Years

More than £110bn has been wiped off the value of Britain's leading companies as the FTSE 100 suffered its worst week in three years.

The index closed down 161.07 points on Friday, a loss of 2.49%, making an overall drop of 6.6% since Monday - the largest weekly fall since August 2011.

The slide reflected a new five-year low for the price of Brent crude and worries about the global outlook, particularly after more disappointing economic figures from China.

The FTSE 100 is dominated by business with an interest in the energy and commodity sectors, meaning it has taken a bigger hit from weak oil prices.

Oil stocks have taken a hit as weakening demand and the prospect of oversupply sparked a fall in the price of oil by 10% this week to around $62 (£39.50) a barrel.

Video: What's Causing Falling Oil Prices?

The International Energy Agency on Friday cut its forecast for global demand for the fourth time in five months.

BP shares have fallen by 9% since the start of the week and are a fifth cheaper in the year to date.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the week down 677.96 points or 3.8%, while markets in France and Germany were down by nearly 3%.

Video: 13 Nov: Why Is The Oil Price Down?

Traders were reacting negatively to the plunge in the oil price despite the likelihood that it could represent a $4bn (£2.5bn) stimulus to the world economy.

Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers, said markets are mulling the question of whether a lower oil price is a "symptom or a cure" for weak global demand.

He said: "The answer is it is probably both, but the restorative qualities of a lower oil price are going to take some time to feed through, and in the meantime markets are focusing on the negatives."

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

Growing Business: Demand Soars For UK Xmas Trees

By Nick Ravenscroft, Sky News Reporter

Families in Britain are increasingly buying Christmas trees that were grown in the UK rather than ones that have been imported, according to UK suppliers.

The British Christmas Tree Growers' Association (BCTGA) estimates that in the last six years the total number being grown here in the UK has risen by as much as 20%.

This is reflected in the proportion of British and imported trees being bought at shops and markets across the country.

Six years ago it was evenly split with approximately half being shipped in from Europe, according to the BCTGA.

The association's members now say British-grown plants account for some 70% of the total number of trees sold in the UK.

Harry Brightwell, secretary of the BCTGA, told Sky News: "People are much more conscious of environmental issues and the fact of buying a British grown tree usually means the transport is less."

At Yattendon Estates, a Christmas tree farm in West Berkshire, a cold and frosty morning was no deterrent to customers looking to buy a tree as the calendar counts down the days to Christmas.

Manager Alastair Jeffrey said: "Ten years ago our European competitors stole a march on us… now UK industry has really concentrated on making sure we're right up to spec… quality is the name of the game."

The majority of trees sold in Britain are Nordmann Firs which, for a six foot tree, will cost upwards of £45.

Among the Nordmann Firs grown in Britain are those supplied to Downing Street, which this year took trees from Herefordshire and the Gower, according to BCTGA.

With up to eight million trees already being sold by British producers, the move away from European imports spells continued growth for this part of the rural economy.

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

Treasury To Unveil 'Landmark' Bank Agreement

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Ministers will next week hail a "landmark" deal with Britain's nine biggest lenders to offer millions of consumers a new fee-free basic bank account.

Sky News has learnt that the Treasury will announce on Monday that the banks will establish accounts which end charges - whcih can be as high as £35 per item - for failed direct debit or standing order payments.

The new product will be provided by institutions which between them have more than 90% of the current account market, and will be available to people who are not eligible for a bank's standard current account and either have no bank account, or cannot use their existing accounts because of financial problems.

The participating lenders - which have agreed to launch the accounts by the end of next year - are Barclays, the Co-operative Bank, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, National Australia Bank (which owns the Clydesdale and Yorkshire), Nationwide, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander UK and TSB.

Andrea Leadsom, the economic secretary to the Treasury, is expected to hail the development as a "landmark" agreement, saying that it should bring to an end the problem of consumers being locked out of their accounts when payments fail.

Sky News had previously revealed that some banks had expressed concerns during negotiations with the Government about the terms of the deal.

The provision of basic bank accounts, of which there are estimated to be more than 9m in the UK, is estimated to cost the industry more than £300m annually, with the new accounts likely to add substantially to that bill.

Earlier this year, a European Union Directive ordered member states to supervise the introduction of basic accounts which must charge fees described as "fair".

Ministers are understood to be pleased that they have secured an agreement to launch accounts with no fees, with customers offered services on the same terms as other personal current accounts provided by each participating lender.

This will involve customers having access to all standard over-the-counter services in bank and Post Office branches, as well as access to the entire national ATM network.

Some bank executives have warned that the structure agreed with the Treasury will mean that the new accounts are ultimately subsidised by consumers elsewhere in the banking system.

A further concern was raised that the new account could attract demand from large numbers of consumers who are not benefit claimants, but this is likely to have been alleviated by the eligibility restrictions agreed between the lenders and the Treasury.

The Government estimates that up to 7m people will participate in the Universal Credit welfare programme by 2019, with the new basic account expected to be restricted to that population.

The British Bankers' Association (BBA) has been leading the negotiations with the Treasury about the framework of the plans.

Neither the BBA nor the Treasury would comment on Friday.

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

FTSE 100 Suffers Worst Week In Three Years

More than £110bn has been wiped off the value of Britain's leading companies as the FTSE 100 suffered its worst week in three years.

The index closed down 161.07 points on Friday, a loss of 2.49%, making an overall drop of 6.6% since Monday - the largest weekly fall since August 2011.

The slide reflected a new five-year low for the price of Brent crude and worries about the global outlook, particularly after more disappointing economic figures from China.

The FTSE 100 is dominated by business with an interest in the energy and commodity sectors, meaning it has taken a bigger hit from weak oil prices.

Oil stocks have taken a hit as weakening demand and the prospect of oversupply sparked a fall in the price of oil by 10% this week to around $62 (£39.50) a barrel.

Video: What's Causing Falling Oil Prices?

The International Energy Agency on Friday cut its forecast for global demand for the fourth time in five months.

BP shares have fallen by 9% since the start of the week and are a fifth cheaper in the year to date.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the week down 677.96 points or 3.8%, while markets in France and Germany were down by nearly 3%.

Video: 13 Nov: Why Is The Oil Price Down?

Traders were reacting negatively to the plunge in the oil price despite the likelihood that it could represent a $4bn (£2.5bn) stimulus to the world economy.

Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers, said markets are mulling the question of whether a lower oil price is a "symptom or a cure" for weak global demand.

He said: "The answer is it is probably both, but the restorative qualities of a lower oil price are going to take some time to feed through, and in the meantime markets are focusing on the negatives."

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

MPs Summon FCA Bosses Over Insurance Probe

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Two City watchdog executives who were criticised on Wednesday over the disclosure of a probe into the insurance industry are expected to give evidence on the crisis to a powerful panel of MPs.

Sky News understands that Clive Adamson, the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) director of supervision, and Zitah McMillan, its communications chief, are likely to appear before the Treasury Select Committee before Christmas.

A further session with Martin Wheatley, the FCA's chief executive, is expected to be held in the new year.

Mr Adamson and Ms McMillan are leaving their FCA roles in the coming weeks, ostensibly as part of a restructuring which the regulator has insisted is unconnected to a report published on Wednesday by Simon Davis, a leading City lawyer.

Mr Davis's report said the FCA's approach to briefing a national newspaper about a proposed review of an area of the pensions market was "high risk, poorly supervised and inadequately controlled.

When it went wrong, the FCA's reaction was seriously inadequate and fell short of the standards expected of those it regulates."

Mr Adamson, Mr Wheatley and Ms McMillan were all criticised in Mr Davis's report, alongside David Lawton, the FCA director of markets.

Their ponderous response to the appearance of the newspaper story about their probe in March meant that panicked selling by investors in insurance companies such as Aviva and Phoenix went on for more than six hours the following morning.

All four forfeited their bonuses for last year as a result, while any discretionary payouts for the current year are also under threat because of the £3.8m cost of the inquiry, Sky News has learnt.

In a statement on Wednesday, Andrew Tyrie, the TSC chair, said the report's findings illustrated a regulator "pursuing the wrong strategy in the wrong way".

He accused the FCA of falling "well below the standards it requires of the firms it regulates" and said further investigation was required.

"The Committee will, among many other things, examine whether these errors were a one-off or whether they reveal something amiss, perhaps seriously amiss, with the standards and culture of the FCA. We will also examine remedies, both those proposed or already announced, and others."

George Osborne, the Chancellor, said he was confident that the FCA would learn the lessons of Mr Davis's report.

The FCA declined to comment.

12.07 | 0 komentar | Read More

Russia Raises Interest Rate Amid Economic Woes

The Bank of Russia has increased its key interest rate to 10.5%, to help spur the economy amid sanctions and sliding oil prices.

The bank raised the rate from the previous figure of 9.5%.

It confirmed it would also continue to raise the rate even higher if inflation continues to accelerates.

The central bank predicted inflation reaching 10% by year's end due to the plunging value of the rouble, and now expects growth to be flat through to 2016.

"Annual GDP growth is expected to be close to zero in 2015-2016," the bank said in a statement.

Video: Deciphering The Putin Speech

It cited depreciation of the currency and the "external conditions" of Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis and sliding oil prices.

The rouble dropped to new record lows against the US dollar on Thursday after the announcement was made.

The rate rise is insufficient to thwart further currency pressure, according to Rabobank International emerging markets foreign exchange strategist Piotr Matys.

"This is not enough to stabilise the rouble and increases the risk of a full-scale currency crisis," Mr Matys told Sky News.

"The central bank may intervene more aggressively on the market.

"But selling hard currencies already proved an insufficient tool as reflected in the worst rout since the 1998 crisis and the sharp drop in Russia's foreign reserves of almost $80bn (£64bn) so far this year."

Experts believe the central bank may need to raise rates again, at the next planned meeting on January 30, as more pressure is applied.

Mr Matys added: "In the meantime, the central bank is likely to continue selling US dollars to stem the pace of rouble depreciation, which will inevitably lead to another fall in Russia's foreign reserves."

Brent Crude inched above $65 a barrel on Thursday, as the slide in prices approaches six months.

Russia gets much of its foreign currency from petroleum products and the drop towards five-year lows further exacerbates the problems caused by sanctions.

12.06 | 0 komentar | Read More

HSBC Sacks Top Foreign Exchange Trader

The London-based HSBC head of foreign exchange trading for Europe, the Middle East and Africa has been sacked.

Stuart Scott was dismissed from his role on Tuesday, according to sources. HSBC declined to comment.

The dismissal comes in the wake of the investigations launched by authorities on both sides of the Atlantic.

In 2007, Mr Scott won the FX Week annual award for Best Bank for Emerging European, Middle-Eastern and African Currencies.

Last month, a forex trader at investment bank Goldman Sachs' London office left his job following claims of misconduct during previous employment at HSBC.

During his time at HSBC the trader, Frank Cahill, worked for Mr Scott.

Mr Cahill has not been accused of wrongdoing at Goldman Sachs.

The HSBC dismissal is the latest chapter in a succession of wrongdoing claims to hit the banking sector.

Other banks, including Barclays, remain under investigation into allegations that manipulation occurred in the forex industry.

Foreign exchange is a massive industry, with trades globally valued at more than £3tn daily.

City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) previously said that forex manipulation occurred at six banks during a five-year period to 2013.

HSBC has been fined a total of $618m (£394m) by US and UK authorities following investigations into rate-rigging.

The FCA discovered that trader groups gave themselves names such as The 3 Musketeers, The Co-operative and The Players amid attempts to rig key benchmarks.

The groups used chat rooms to swap information and prompt trades for their own benefit and not clients.

12.07 | 0 komentar | Read More

FCA Bosses Face Second Bonus Blow Over Probe

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The City watchdog's top executives could have their bonuses withheld or reduced for a second consecutive year following a coruscating report on its handling of an inquiry into the insurance industry.

Sky News has learnt that the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) board will review later this year whether the £3.8m cost of an independent probe into the regulator should be partly absorbed by variable pay awards.

The FCA said on Wednesday that the £3.8m, which included more than £1m for legal representation for senior officials, would be "absorbed" by the current year's budget, but did not specify exactly how this would happen.

The latest development came after the watchdog confirmed that four executives criticised in the report had given up their bonuses for 2013-14, with the other five members of the FCA's executive committee seeing their awards cut by 25%.

On a sobering day for the City regulator, Simon Davis, a lawyer, published his report on the FCA's briefing of a review it intended to carry out of around 30m life insurance policies.

The 226-page document painted a picture of poor communication and inadequate systems, for which John Griffith-Jones, the FCA chairman, issued an abject apology.

Clive Adamson, the director of supervision, and communications director Zitah McMillan, resigned as part of a restructuring announced earlier this week, but no FCA officials have left as a direct consequence of the botched briefing in March.

As Sky News revealed last week, Mr Davis made a series of recommendations relating to the disclosure of price-sensitive information, and criticised Martin Wheatley, the FCA chief executive.

Mr Wheatley is eligible for an annual bonus of up to £115,000 - or one-quarter of his basic salary - but insurance company executives said on Wednesday that it was "unthinkable" that he would be considered for a bonus this year.

"It is extraordinary that an organisation which says in its public pronouncements that it will live by the sword is not willing to die by the sword," said a board director of a FTSE-100 insurance company.

A review which was to appear in the FCA's annual business plan was briefed in advance to The Daily Telegraph, but sparked panicked selling by investors in insurance companies such as Aviva and Phoenix.

The regulator then failed to issue a statement clarifying the terms of its review for more than six hours after the market opened.

George Osborne, the Chancellor, said he was confident that the FCA would learn the lessons of Mr Davis's report.

Sky News was also the recipient of an advance briefing of a separate FCA review into the resilience of banks' IT systems in March.

The FCA declined to comment further.

12.07 | 0 komentar | Read More