Sterling hits $1.40 for the first time in nearly three years February 19, 2021 Sterling hit $1.40 against the dollar for the first time in nearly three years this morning on vaccine optimism and better than expected PMI readings. The UK’s PMI reading during the third lockdown showed the downturn was less severe than anticipated, pushing cable above the $1.40 mark for the first time in 34 months. “Although [...]
Pound sterling in touching distance of $1.40 as currencies enter ‘post-Covid world’ February 18, 2021 Pound sterling in touching distance of $1.40 as currencies enter 'post-Covid world'
Exclusive: Brewin Dolphin’s CEO on Brexit, pandemic market sentiment and why ESG is not so clear-cut February 18, 2021 As the City comes to terms with a new post-Brexit reality and slowly looks towards a post-pandemic recovery, City A.M sits down with the CEO of one of the Square Mile’s best-known investment managers, Robin Beer of Brewin Dolphin. Beer, who joined the firm in 2008, initially managed the Nottingham office and was regional director [...]
Sterling climbs to 10-month high against the euro February 17, 2021 Sterling reached a 10-month high against the euro following encouraging data fromthe UK vaccination program. The UK has jabbed nearly 16m people in the Covid-19 vaccination rollout. The pound rose to €1.150, surpassing yesterday’s record valuation and making it the highest since April 2020. However it did lose ground to the US dollar today, down [...]
UK’s tech stocks outperform main market by 19 per cent February 17, 2021 Interest in technology stocks has piqued during the pandemic and are now outperforming their FTSE peers, according to exclusive data shared with City A.M. The FTSE techMARK 100, London’s technology index, rose seven per cent last year as the FTSE floundered and shed 12 points, research by Bowmore Asset Management shows. After what has essentially [...]
Plus500 plots share buyback as profit soars on record performance February 17, 2021 After a record performance in 2020, online trading platform Plus500 is planning a further buyback program of up to $25m of its shares. Plus500 reported a pretax profit of $523.3m up from $189.3m the previous year with revenue rising 146 per cent to $872.5m. Shares dipped 0.9 per cent this morning. The FTSE 250-listed company [...]
Why I can stomach higher equity valuations – Schroders CIO February 17, 2021 | City Talk The rising involvement of retail investors has been an intriguing trend during the pandemic, culminating in the surge and slump of GameStop shares. As an industry, we worry about the disconnection of individual investors from financial markets, the hubs of wealth creation. Direct ownership of shares by individuals has been declining for decades. For that reason, [...]
London’s small-cap firms fall behind FTSE 100 on diversity targets February 17, 2021 The lack of diversity in boardrooms goes well beyond the FTSE 100 with new research showing just how little progress small-cap firms have made. A staggering 84 per cent of AIM and 78 per cent of Small Cap 100 companies have all white boards, over double the proportion seen in the FTSE 100. Some progress [...]
Rio Tinto to pay record $6.5bn dividend after ‘robust’ year February 17, 2021 Rio Tinto will pay out a record $6.5bn (£4.7bn) dividend to investors as it hailed “robust” results despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The FTSE-listed mining giant said it will pay a final dividend of $3.09 per share and a special dividend of $0.93 per share. Combined with its half-year dividend, this takes the total payout for [...]
Peter Hargreaves to sell £300m worth of shares in Hargreaves Lansdown February 16, 2021 The co-founder of Hargreaves Lansdown, one of the UK’s largest financial services firms, has announced he is selling £300m worth of shares in the company. Peter Hargreaves, the largest shareholder in the firm he set up in 1981, will sell the shares through an accelerated bookbuild offering to institutional investors. Barclays, which is acting as [...]