Europe has suffered from the stultifying impact of the euro – just ask the Greeks January 9, 2019 One of the entertainments of the holiday period was reading Adults In The Room, the book by Yanis Varoufakis. It describes his time as finance minister of Greece, and his negotiations with the IMF, the European Central Bank, and the European Commission. Varoufakis was only in the job between January and July 2015. He had [...]
Instability is the new norm, and banks must learn to weather it January 9, 2019 Global financial markets stumbled into 2019, having endured their worst December since 1931. Both the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 indices fell by nearly nine per cent over the Christmas month. For the financial sector, this has refocused attention on the worsening political and economic backdrop for 2019. Politically, instability is becoming the new [...]
The Brexit film was fun, but don’t mistake fiction for history January 9, 2019 I expect, as a piece of history that the vast majority of viewers will have lived through and probably voted in, that Brexit: The Uncivil War was highly entertaining to most people who caught it on Monday night, irrespective of which way they had voted in the EU referendum. There was some impressive acting and [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Son of Frankel to show he’s Simply Brilliant in Group class January 8, 2019 A STAR-studded cast lines up for the Group Three January Cup (Handicap) over 1m1f at 1.45pm – Happy Valley’s only Group race. Hong Kong champion and two-time Group One-winner Time Warp heads the weights and returns to action following a creditable third behind Glorious Forever in the HK Cup on International Day at Sha Tin [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Cannon can fire at Valley’s first meet of the year January 8, 2019 HAPPY Valley hosts its first meeting of 2019 today and favourite-backers will be hoping it proves as profitable as the Sha Tin action on New Year’s Day. Eight of the market leaders came home in front during the 11-race card. However, that hasn’t been a regular occurrence in Hong Kong this season. Especially at Happy [...]
The impact investing trend is here to stay January 8, 2019 From recycling waste to reducing plastic consumption to going vegan for the month of January, more and more people today are conscious of the impact they have on the planet. This outlook has extended to investing, as a new generation of finance customers start to raise questions about exactly where their money is being directed. [...]
A Brexit negotiated by Trump would have been a wild ride January 8, 2019 How would Donald Trump have approached negotiating Brexit? A few months ago, several commentators mused over this exact question. The current game of chicken between the President and Democrats in Congress, resulting in a partial US government shutdown, is perhaps the best insight we’ll get. And it shows the wild ride that a Prime Minister [...]
Time for a super-ministry to lead the fourth industrial revolution January 8, 2019 When I was elected to parliament, one of the first things that I campaigned on was the need to develop a comprehensive industrial strategy. The future of the country depends on a strong industrial base – not least because this is the starting point for the innovation that will maintain the UK’s position as a [...]
DEBATE: Should we celebrate the fact that car sales are down for the second year running? January 8, 2019 Should we celebrate the fact that car sales are down for the second year running? Benedict Spence, a freelance writer, says YES. For all the talk of a fall in car sales in the UK, well over two million new vehicles were registered in Britain last year. It’s a staggering number, and it was only a [...]
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 [...]