FTSE 100 hits monthly high after retail boost and fresh hopes of US-China trade deal January 8, 2019 The FTSE 100 has risen to monthly highs as investors return to retailers and US-China trade deal talks resume. The blue chip index has climbed one per cent today after US stocks bounced last night on fresh hopes of a resolution to the trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies. US Commerce Secretary Wilbur [...]
Softbank shares up on reports it will scale back Wework investment amid tech rout January 8, 2019 Shares in Softbank rose more than five per cent this morning following reports it has scaled back its new investment in Wework. The Japanese conglomerate reportedly plans to invest $2bn (£1.6bn) into the shared workspace startup, down from the original sum of $16bn. The investment will no longer involve Softbank’s prolific $100bn Vision Fund, the [...]
From Carillion to Connaught, here are four clues that a company is tipped for disaster January 8, 2019 It is said that we learn as much from failure as we do from success. This is just as true in investing as in life: we can learn from the struggles of companies that have gone bust, as well as those that have survived. While there are tell-tale signs that a company’s share price is [...]
Apple analysts have let us down yet again January 8, 2019 Apple analysts, huh, what are they good for? Absolutely nothing. Say it again… Yep, that’s right, I just butchered one of the most powerful lyrics of the past 50 years. Lyrics immortalised by Edwin Starr in the 1970 Vietnam protest song, but for me it kind of grabs your attention and makes the point rather [...]
Financial markets 2018: the year in review January 7, 2019 | City Talk After two years of steady growth in asset prices, 2018 proved more of a challenge for investors, particularly in the last three months of the year. US president Donald Trump’s tax cuts had provided an added boost for investors heading into 2018, and US GDP growth accelerated to 4.2 per cent on an annualised quarterly basis [...]
Oil prices head up as US and China start trade talks January 7, 2019 Oil prices have ticked up again today as markets react to Opec’s oil cuts and hopes of a thaw in US-China trade relations. International standard Brent crude had jumped over two per cent in the morning, but fell back to a 1.5 per cent rise at $57.94 in the early afternoon. Meanwhile, US standard WTI [...]
Asset managers to move away from equities in 2019 amid fears of economic downturn January 7, 2019 Funds are set to cut their exposure to equities in 2019 as worries grow about a downturn in the economic cycle, a new survey showed. Over half of clients surveyed by asset manager Blackrock described the economic cycle turning as one of the most important macro risks influencing where they put their money in 2019. [...]
FTSE 350 defined benefit pension scheme deficit soars at close of 2018 amid falling stocks January 7, 2019 Defined benefit pension scheme deficit among FTSE 350 firms surged to £41bn by the end of 2018, up from £32bn the previous year, driven by falling asset prices. The figure, a 28 per cent increase, came at the end of a volatile year which saw pension schemes in surplus for five months from May to [...]
Ethereum hard fork: Just a temporary distraction from the crypto gloom January 7, 2019 | City Talk Ethereum has started 2019 on strong form. Its native Ether cryptocurrency gained 10 per cent in the first week of January, and has doubled in value since bottoming out at $75 in mid-December. It has usurped Ripple to reclaim the latter’s title as the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency. Traders are snapping up the currency ahead of next [...]
What’s in store for equities in 2019? January 7, 2019 | City Talk There does not appear to be a lot of cheer for markets as 2019 begins. Risk appetite is strained, and havens are bid with some soft data from China and a rare profits warning from Apple combining to spook equity investors. Volatility came back with a vengeance in 2018 as a turn in the US [...]