Pension savers can boost their retirement pots and help businesses to grow by investing in venture capital February 5, 2020 The world is getting richer. Every day, we find ways to do things more efficiently — and when we do, those benefits diffuse across the country and throughout the world. But this diffusion isn’t always noticeable, evenly spread, or quick enough for many. For the economic system to maintain legitimacy, people need to believe that [...]
Record number of tax returns filed online, says HMRC February 3, 2020 A record number of people filed their tax returns online for 2018/19, the government has said. HMRC said 10.4m self-assessment tax returns were filed online, out of a total of 11.1m received by the deadline of 11:59pm on 31 January. But almost 1m people missed the deadline, which can incur an initial fine of £100. [...]
Brexit: what’s next? The crunch dates ahead and what investors expect January 31, 2020 | City Talk The UK voted to leave the European Union by a margin of 52% to 48% in a referendum held on 23 June 2016. Since then, the debate over how and when the UK’s departure would happen has dominated the news in the UK. The December 2019 general election gave the Conservative party the majority it [...]
Quiz: how much do you know about Brexit? January 31, 2020 | City Talk Brexit has saturated the media over the last few years. But how much do you really know about it? Do you know your hard Brexit from your soft Brexit? How closely have you been watching the currency exchange markets since the June 2016 referendum results were revealed? Take our quick trivia quiz and find out… [...]
Thanks to improving tech, tax collectors are no longer the bad guys January 31, 2020 “If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street. If you try to sit, I’ll tax your seat. If you get too cold, I’ll tax the heat. If you take a walk, I’ll tax your feet.” Thus warbled four rockstars from Merseyside. As rebellious as it was melodic, Taxman would become the first track on [...]
Rate decision announcement from the Bank of England January 30, 2020 | City Talk For many investors the outcome was too close to call, and therefore offered potential heightened currency volatility. Foreign exchange markets had attributed a 50/50 chance of an interest rate cut, leaving the pound with a burden of uncertainty in the run up to the decision. It also meant it traded with a softer tone over [...]
Brexit: how did we get here? January 30, 2020 | City Talk How did the Brexit timeline lead us here, what impact has it had on the pound and how can the resulting foreign exchange risks be mitigated? The UK began preparations to withdraw from the European Union back in June of 2016. The process has had an undeniable impact on the volatility of the exchange market [...]
Does higher pay result in greater productivity? January 29, 2020 | Sponsored Henry Ford paid his workers $5 a day, twice the average for the car industry. Instead of setting a high selling price and keeping wages and costs low, Ford incentivised his workers to increase production and reduce costs based on economies of scale. As a result, the price of a Model T fell from $950 [...]
Could the coronavirus derail the global recovery? January 28, 2020 | City Talk Concerns over the spread of the coronavirus are escalating as the death toll has jumped to 81 with 2,744 confirmed cases worldwide (as at 11:00 GMT, 27 January). Travel restrictions on about 40 million people around Wuhan, in the Hubei province of China, have been introduced in an effort to contain the outbreak. However, cases [...]
Can active fund managers beat the index? January 24, 2020 | Sponsored Watch Job Curtis, Fund Manager of The City of London Investment Trust, field questions from an online audience of private investors in the latest episode of Trust TV.