EU securities watchdog calls for stricter regulation on greenwashing January 29, 2021 The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) said today EU rules are needed to regulate ratings on the environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects of companies to avoid investors being deceived by “greenwashing”. Asset managers use ESG ratings to make “green” environmentally conscious investment decisions. Greenwashing refers to inaccurate claims that investments are sustainable and [...]
Are any stock markets cheap going into 2021? January 27, 2021 | City Talk Where is the value in stock markets today? This is a difficult question to wrestle with. At face value, the bad news is that everywhere looks to be at nosebleed-red levels of expensiveness. Of the 25 measures in our regular stock market valuation grid below (five markets and five measures for each), 16 are more [...]
Taper Tantrum 2: is there a sequel in the making? January 26, 2021 | City Talk Sequels – occasionally they’re better (The Godfather Part II), but most of the time they’re worse. Often far worse (Jaws: The Revenge). As investors and economists look for the next market risks after the pandemic, some are now expecting a follow-up to 2013’s blockbusting Taper Tantrum. This sequel could even be coming to (trading) screens [...]
Covid’s catapult: four positive trends for women January 26, 2021 | City Talk Women have been making progress for years, but at a glacial pace. Year after year, I see the same bleak numbers: the more or less stagnant percentages of women in senior management, on boards, in finance, in tech, in investing. However, Covid-19 has been a catalyst and change accelerator in many areas, and while its burdens [...]
Eurozone business activity shrinks sharply in January as lockdowns batter services January 22, 2021 Economic activity in the eurozone has plummeted in January as lockdown measures hit the bloc’s dominant service industry, a survey showed today. IHS Markit’s guide to economic health fell further below the 50 mark to 47.5 in January, a further dip from December’s 49.1. Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, believes a double-dip [...]
Has Covid-19 changed the conversation around sustainable investing? January 22, 2021 | City Talk Sustainable investing is not just about a company’s financial success, but how it achieves that success. The importance of considering all stakeholders is intrinsic to the approach. Those stakeholders range from employees to shareholders to wider society. The Covid-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on how companies treat their employees, protect their customers, and help [...]
IRSG sets out financial services roadmap for UK’s G7 presidency January 21, 2021 | City Talk The International Regulatory Strategy Group (IRSG) has set out its key areas of focus in financial services as the UK takes over the presidency of the G7 from the USA this month. The recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and digital agenda will all be central to the UK’s presidency, including at the 47th G7 Summit [...]
How finding the quality within value was crucial in 2020 January 20, 2021 | City Talk There are two broad areas of value in the UK market, financials and commodities, that in aggregate make up around a third of the FTSE All Share index. Within this, however, there are vast differences in both quality and performance. (Please see the end of this article for a glossary of terms). 2020 was a [...]
UK inflation doubles in a month as transport prices rise January 20, 2021 UK inflation doubled in December as prices rose during the festive period, the Office for National Statistics has announced. Prices in the run-up to Christmas were up 0.6 percent compared to a year earlier and rose from 0.3 per cent in November. Higher prices for transport, recreation and culture were flagged by statisticians, despite food [...]
Why everyone’s talking about hydrogen January 14, 2021 | City Talk What is all the excitement about? Renewable energy can and will decarbonise power generation. Renewable energy and batteries can and will decarbonise the automotive sector. But these technologies will not be as viable for aviation, shipping, commercial vehicles, steel or fertiliser manufacturing. In all of these vital industries it looks as though hydrogen will be [...]