GDP will take less of a hit in third lockdown: ING January 7, 2021 After nearly a year of coronavirus restrictions the effect of a third lockdown on the UK economy will be less severe than the initial shock last March, in part because companies are far better prepared. News of a mutant Covid strain that is more transmissible and has sent cases skyrocketing will see GDP dip around [...]
US jobs: Employment falls by 123,000 in December January 6, 2021 Newly released US jobs figures reveal a fall of 123,000 private sector jobs from November to December. The stats paint a grim picture of the US economy at the end of a pandemic-affected year, with the fall reversing months of gentle growth in non-farm employment. Most of the job losses came in large firms, with [...]
UK on course for double-dip recession amid lockdown ‘gloom’ January 6, 2021 The UK is on course for a double-dip recession as a fresh lockdown compounds the “strikingly downbeat” end to 2020, according to a new report. After the sharpest decline in history in the second quarter last year, indicators showed economic activity improved only slightly in the last three months of the year and remained well [...]
World Bank: Delays to vaccine rollout will dent recovery January 5, 2021 Global economic output is expected to increase this year but it is largely dependent on the success of a vaccine rollout, the World Bank has warned. The lender forecast that global GDP will expand four per cent in 2021 but will remain well below pre-pandemic projections due to a surge in new cases. The “heightened [...]
Sustainability investing: what does the future look like? January 5, 2021 | City Talk ‘Future of Sustainability in Investment Management: From Ideas to Reality’ is a newly published CFA Institute report. The 60-page publication was informed by the views of more than 7,000 industry participants, including 3,500+ retail investors, 920+ asset owners and 3,050+ investment practitioners. Research included virtual roundtables across 31 markets. Here we summarise its findings. The [...]
It’s over: FTSE 100 finishes down 15 per cent on start of the year December 31, 2020 The FTSE 100 ended 2020 appropriately, sliding on the last day of trading and finishing 15 per cent down on the year. The market was on half-day duty today with traders able to celebrate New Year a little earlier. Optimism which powered gains earlier this week has dissipated, with dispiriting news on vaccines rollout in [...]
The year in charts: From the FTSE to Zoom’s share price December 31, 2020 2020 has been quite the ride. So, to cap it off, we worked with our friends at Flourish to look at *quite* how wild it was… Global stock markets have had an odd year – from optimism to collapse to guarded positivity for the future. Here’s how the FTSE 100 fared. Currency markets were all [...]
Three quarters of small businesses set to hire next year as vaccine boosts confidence December 31, 2020 Small businesses are looking forward to hiring further staff in 2021 as the vaccine rollout boosts confidence for the year ahead. Some 77 per cent of businesses plan to increase their workforce, with four in ten aiming to do so as early as Q1. The research, conducted by Starling Bank and the Great British Entrepreneur [...]
Wall St closes higher, dollar drops as remarkable year winds down December 30, 2020 By Stephen Culp NEW YORK (Reuters) -Wall Street ended the session in positive territory and the dollar dipped to its lowest in more than two years on Wednesday, the penultimate trading day in a remarkable year of pandemic, recession and recovery. All three major U.S. stock indexes gained modestly, but short of all-time closing highs [...]
FTSE flat despite Oxford jab approval giving cause for 2021 optimism December 30, 2020 The FTSE 100 nibbled upward in early trading but fell to flat by lunchtime, as traders looked forward with some optimism to 2021. The index gained Tuesday, with many stocks hitting pre-pandemic highs. Traders were less bullish today, and after reaching gains of 0.3 per cent this morning the index has settled flat. Read more: [...]