With 10-year German bunds now yielding less than nothing, are bond markets a disaster waiting to happen? June 15, 2016 Tim Price, manager of the VT Price Value Portfolio, says Yes. Almost certainly, yes. With 10-year German bond yields having turned negative, there is now $11 trillion worth of sovereign debt around the world that yields less than nothing. And yet there has never been more debt in the system. The word “madness” springs to mind. [...]
EU Referendum: With just over a week to go, you can expect the debate to become even more heated June 15, 2016 Just over a week ago, the chance of Leave winning the referendum was merely 22 per cent according to a prominent betting exchange. Meanwhile, at the time, one pound was worth $1.455 on forex markets. Yesterday, the same betting exchange rated the probability of a Leave vote at 40 per cent, thanks to a series of [...]
It’s time to bring retirement into the twenty-first century June 14, 2016 Few words can stop a conversation as quickly as “retirement”. Many of us can hardly bear to think about it, never mind talk about it. Others – just under half, according to our latest Investor Pulse survey – do save for old age, but with no confidence we’ll get the income we want at the [...]
Who in the City should actually be worried about Brexit? June 14, 2016 Without question, the UK’s financial services have been one of its strongest performing industries over the last 40 years. The sector accounts for 12 per cent of income tax receipts, a net trade surplus of three per cent and provides 1.4 million jobs to boot. What’s more, the UK boasts the highest foreign direct investment (FDI) [...]
Euro 2016: Why those that catch the match should not be red-carded June 14, 2016 The European football championship in France has thrown up something of a dilemma for fans of the beautiful game – and placed the UK’s working patterns under scrutiny. The much anticipated England vs Wales match has been allocated a 2pm kick-off on Thursday 16 June. For the UK’s workforce – and bosses – the timing could not be much [...]
The UK’s construction conundrum – can we trust the numbers? June 14, 2016 Last week we saw some welcome news from the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) as we were told that construction output had risen by 2.5 per cent between March and April. This of course added to the better industrial production and manufacturing numbers which makes April look very spring like. Unfortunately there are real problems with [...]
Do Transport for London’s stricter ad rules present a problem? Not if the rules are applied with common sense. June 14, 2016 The Mayor faces two issues following his decision to have more restive rules on the type of ads that will appear on tube and buses. First is the principle that ads should not encourage impossible or unachievable body images. I think that many Londoners will agree with Transport for London and our new Mayor. These [...]
Fintech boom means Brexit won’t hurt exports June 14, 2016 Exporting can be a powerful driver of business growth, and small and medium-sized enterprises that sell overseas often find themselves more successful in their domestic market as a result of what they learn from exporting. So, I was disheartened to see at a recent seminar hosted by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, that only around 20 per [...]
Microsoft’s LinkedIn deal is right connection June 14, 2016 Microsoft's $26bn bid for LinkedIn is certainly punchy. The company founded by Bill Gates will pay $196 per share, a near 50 per cent premium on Friday's closing price. Analysts see the value in the deal. With the acquisition, Microsoft is delving deeper into the “world of work” according to Martin Garner of CCS Insight. [...]
Leaving the EU is a walk into the unknown that would put our prosperity at risk June 14, 2016 As arguments on either side of the EU referendum debate are increasingly cast as products of fear or fantasy, an objective assessment is becoming, for the many in the undecided camp, increasingly difficult. I appreciate that there are emotional and political considerations in this important debate. But I prefer to see it in purely business [...]