If there is something fishy about online influencers, why do we take the bait? April 3, 2019 Social media influencer, Yovana Mendoza, provided an amusing diversion from Brexit last week. The 20-something vlogger built a very lucrative personal brand around veganism. She amassed over 3m followers on YouTube and Instagram by advocating a raw vegan diet and 25-day water fasts. All seemed to be going well until a competitor observed and filmed [...]
Eurozone services sector grows faster than expected during tough time for bloc April 3, 2019 Growth in the Eurozone’s services sector beat predictions in March, with Germany, Spain and Ireland leading the pack, it was revealed today. The services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the single currency bloc rose to 53.3, its highest level since November 2018, and up from a score of 52.8 in February. A number above 50 [...]
Food prices increased at their fastest rate since 2013 in March April 3, 2019 The weekly supermarket shop hit bank accounts a little harder last month as food prices rose at their sharpest rate in five years in March. Food inflation accelerated last month to 2.5 per cent, up from 1.6 per cent in February. This is the highest inflation rate November 2013. The data out today from the [...]
Global trade shrinks in final quarter of 2018 as trade wars drag on global economy April 2, 2019 Global trade shrank at the end of 2018 as trade tensions and increased economic uncertainty took their toll, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) revealed today. The WTO also said that these problems will stick around, predicting in its annual forecast that world merchandise trade is likely to grow by 2.6 per cent in 2019, much [...]
IMF director says majority of countries will see growth slow in 2019 April 2, 2019 The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today that 70 per cent of countries can expect a slowdown in growth in 2019 in the latest gloomy prediction about the global economy. Read more: Escalating trade tensions to harm global growth, IMF warns Speaking in New York, Christine Lagarde suggested that the IMF would [...]
Nouriel Roubini interview (Part I): Expect a ‘synchronised slowdown’ in 2019 April 2, 2019 | City Talk When Nouriel Roubini talks, it’s worth a listen. Not known for his optimism, the well-known American economist bears the moniker ‘Dr Doom’. CFA Institute spoke to him to get his take on topics including the prospects for global growth and technologies. CFA Institute: When you spoke to us in 2015, roughly six years after the [...]
UK inflation rate highest of major advanced economies in February April 2, 2019 The UK’s annual inflation rate was the highest of the G7 countries in February, statistics released today showed, due in part to the fall in the value of the pound pushing up the cost of imported goods. Read more: Inflation edges up from two-year low as food and alcohol prices rise Britain’s inflation rate in [...]
Are emerging markets really worth the risk? April 2, 2019 At a time when the US Federal Reserve has well and truly capitulated on its hiking path, some emerging markets are not showing signs of relief. Against the dollar, Argentina’s peso is close to an all-time low, the Turkish Lira is teetering near a year-to-date low, and the South African rand is creeping back to [...]
Generation Rent needs more help to buy property, not Help to Buy April 2, 2019 Britain is not yet a nation of renters – but it’s getting there. Half of children are now born in rented accommodation, versus a third back in 2003-4. The number of families renting with children has doubled in a decade, according to the insurance provider Royal London. Meanwhile, new analysis shows that the government’s Help [...]
Still doubting the benefits of free markets? Just look at Ethiopia April 1, 2019 “It's a zero-sum game,” says Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s 1987 film, Wall Street. “Somebody wins, somebody loses.” This sentiment relies on the idea is that there is a fixed amount of wealth to go round. It is nonsense – yet many, perhaps unthinkingly, believe it. Read more: Editor's Notes: The future of capitalism deserves more [...]