Oil price sinks after Iran and Saudi Arabia play down prospects of an output freeze September 27, 2016 Oil prices have sunk today as investors scale back their expectations of a deal to curb output between some of the world's biggest suppliers. Rival producers Iran and Saudi Arabia have both poured water on the possibility of a deal being reached to limit oil exports, which have remained at record highs all year. Both [...]
Mums could boost London economy by £16bn with more flexible working September 27, 2016 A lack of flexible work for stay-at-home mums is costing the capital up to £16bn in lost economic activity every year, a new report has found. Over three quarters of stay-at-home mums in London would go back to work if there were more flexible options, according a survey by Digital Mums and the Centre for Economics and [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open September 27, 2016 A rise in US stock futures suggests investors are feeling more confident about a Clinton victory in the US election following the first candidate debate last night. Here's what you need to know before the US open at 2:30pm London time. The S&P is set to rise by 0.27 per cent at the open, while [...]
Analysts fear Deutsche Bank could become Europe’s Lehman Brothers September 27, 2016 The misery for Deutsche Bank continued this morning as shares continued to slide to fresh record lows. The German lender has seen its share price lose 30 per cent in the last three weeks and was hit by a new round of selling this morning, as shares dropped 3.3 per cent to €10.20 (£8.86). The latest slide [...]
Global trade growing at slowest pace since financial crisis September 27, 2016 Trade is growing at its slowest pace since the financial crisis amid crumbling commodity prices and a globalisation backlash, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has said. The body which sets the standards for global trade said the total value of exports and imports will rise by just 1.7 per cent this year, a massive reduction from its [...]
US Presidential Election 2016: How did financial markets react to the first debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump? September 27, 2016 Financial markets have decided Democrat Hillary Clinton came out on top in the first US presidential debate last night, as stock markets rallied and key currencies soared. In a pattern which should sound familiar to UK market-watchers over the last few months, markets have started to move back-and-forth in response to developments on the campaign trail. [...]
The great fall of China: If the Chinese economy sinks, it’ll take Britain down with it September 27, 2016 Forget the chatter around the economic risk posed by Brexit, for a more dangerous spectre looms: China’s massive debt pile and the potential for a painful slowdown in the Asian powerhouse. Former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, Ken Rogoff, said yesterday that a slowdown in China is the greatest threat to the global [...]
Chinese officials cautious despite three-year record industrial profits September 27, 2016 China’s industrial firms grew profits at the fastest rate in three years during August. Profits for the month in the world’s second-largest economy grew by 19.5 per cent to 535bn yuan (£62m) according to data released by the country’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) – the best monthly growth since August 2013. Read more: China sees [...]
As a beleaguered Deutsche Bank faces a $14bn fine, Angela Merkel has ruled out state aid, but could a bailout be on the cards? September 27, 2016 Recent discussion of possible European bank bailouts has focused on Italy. Saddled with €360bn of souring loans and enfeebled by a stagnant, over-regulated economy, a number of Italian lenders face a very real risk of insolvency. In July, the country’s third largest, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, failed a stress test set by the European Central [...]
Investors turn bearish on global business cycle amid uncertainty September 27, 2016 Rising uncertainty has led to investors feeling less confident about the global business cycle. Those expecting global equities to rise has dropped to under half (47 per cent), down from 70 per cent just under two years ago, according to the latest Absolute Strategy Research (ASR) survey. Respondents think there is a 41 per cent [...]