February’s top and bottom performing funds March 2, 2018 | City Talk Concerns about rising interest rates in the US resulted in a nerve-jangling start of February for share investors. Data released showed that US wages are rising while unemployment is at a 17-year low. Higher wages imply higher inflation, which makes a steeper path of interest-rate rises more likely, and this impacts the cost of borrowing [...]
2017 company earnings in graphs March 2, 2018 | City Talk Each week during the earnings season, Charles Stanley Earnings Tracker looks at reported earnings from major markets across the globe and compares them with analysts’ expectations. It covers the S&P, FTSE 100,FTSE 350 and the Topix and also contains forward-looking earnings forecasts. As central banks prepare to reduce stimulus measures, solid corporate earnings growth is [...]
Last Week in the City: Trump threatens trade war March 2, 2018 | City Talk This week US President Donald Trump threatened a trade war, a number of famous high street names, including Toys R Us and Maplin, got into serious trading trouble and upbeat assessments of the US economy from central bankers helped the US dollar to rally, reversing its recent trend. The FTSE 100 fell 0.2 per cent [...]
Is inflation a bigger concern than bond markets? March 2, 2018 | City Talk Rising bond yields have been cited as the reason behind the sell-off in the equity markets but should investors be just as concerned about a spike in inflation? The 10-year US Treasury yield has been moving ever closer to 3 per cent, a level that could start to concern some equity market investors. While the [...]
The folly of long-term forecasts March 2, 2018 | City Talk In late January, Brexit minister Steve Baker suggested the Treasury had put together 15-year economic projections designed to show “all options other than staying in the customs union were bad.” Though he later walked the statement back, to some, it supported suspicions of government agencies’ complicity in “Project Fear”—an effort to scare Brits out of [...]
The risks of pension drawdown – and how to help combat them March 1, 2018 | City Talk Pension investors have two main options at retirement: Continue investing and take out money from their pot as and when needed (also known as pension drawdown), or buy an annuity that guarantees a regular income for life. This is a complex issue facing retirees, and any decision to use drawdown must be carefully considered. Drawdown [...]
An old bull market ‘red flag’ is back February 28, 2018 | City Talk The recent turbulent nature of world markets has inevitably led to speculation as to whether this could be the ‘beginning of the end’ of the good run share and bond investors have largely enjoyed in the decade or so since the global financial crisis. Many commentators have, however, argued this bull market has further to [...]
Property gloom is not really justified February 28, 2018 | City Talk The amount of construction going on in the City of London makes the British capital look like a boomtown. Yet, following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union, the market has been distinctly downbeat on the value of London office space and the share prices of London-listed real estate investment trusts (REITs) has collapsed. [...]
What is the cost of care? February 28, 2018 | City Talk The number of people who require social care in later life is rising. What is the best way to prepare for this possibility and how can the costs be met? Nearly half of people in independent care homes fund it themselves at the same time local authorities are struggling to meet demand for care. How [...]
Disruption is everywhere – but so are the investment opportunities February 27, 2018 | City Talk I’m not usually a subscriber to “this time it’s different”, but when it comes to the emerging disruption in so many industries, “this time it’s more than average” doesn’t really seem to cut it. This time I have a feeling it really may be different, because today’s disruptions are everywhere, and that means that there [...]