Will Axa’s decision to quit investing in tobacco have a negative impact on the industry? May 24, 2016 Jasper Lawler, a markets analyst at CMC Markets, says Yes. Axa stubbing out its £1.3bn in tobacco investments could have both short and long-term negative consequences for the industry – a physical overhang of shares, and setting a precedent among insurers. In the short term, pouring its holdings onto the market will create a supply of [...]
Bayer’s $62bn Monsanto bid: Are European firms about to take over the world? May 24, 2016 Just when you thought the dearth of outbound M&A in Europe was here to stay, Germany’s Bayer sweeps in with a $62bn bid for US agrichemicals giant Monsanto. Not only would the tie-up create the world’s largest agricultural supplier, more significantly for Europe, it would be the biggest outbound takeover by a German corporate on [...]
Why it’s time to start taking Donald Trump seriously May 23, 2016 Despite his stunning victory in the Republican primaries, a new conventional wisdom has already settled around Donald Trump’s chances of winning the White House. He can’t do it, we’re told, because he’s an offensive show-off who has alienated women, the well-educated, and non-white voters. While not an inaccurate description, as so often, the conventional wisdom [...]
EU referendum: Why the smallest firms must make EU politics their business May 23, 2016 It’s exactly a month to the day to the EU referendum. It’s also the moment Britain’s army of small businesses have been dreading. For them there’s more than just the most desirable shape of a banana, open borders, the Greek question or Brussels bureaucracy at stake, it’s making a decision about the future of their [...]
Barack Obama must nail down his free trade deals before the protectionist takeover May 23, 2016 Washington – A few years ago, in a predictably thorough fashion, the Chinese government commissioned a study of the documented historical cases where rising powers had challenged dominant powers for leadership of the international system. The currently-rising Chinese (who went all the way back in time to mine valuable lessons from Thucydides about Athens and [...]
Nine Brexit myths rebutted: Why the City would suffer if Britain votes to leave the EU May 23, 2016 The Prime Minister came to the City last week to address a packed room full of senior business leaders as part of a World Economic Forum event. Here he helped dispel nine of the myths put forward so vigorously by the Leave campaign as to why we should exit the EU. Here are my views [...]
How government spending cuts can be a catalyst for radically better public services May 23, 2016 In the fallout over the recent Budget, government spending was once again in the spotlight. But while the row centred on benefits at a national level, it’s social care managed by local authorities that is currently entering a period of intense crisis. Faced with unprecedented cuts, local government chiefs now have to find a way to conjure [...]
With Uber joining the driverless car race, will autonomous vehicles be the end of public transport? May 23, 2016 Tim Worstall, senior fellow of the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. Whether it’s Uber that perfects the autonomous vehicle is yet to be revealed: but they will be perfected and they will destroy the entire public transport system. Given the sheer number of people that a commuter train system can move, that section of the system [...]
No turning back from either Bremain or Brexit for insurers May 22, 2016 There was always a danger that the debate surrounding the EU referendum in June would generate more heat than light. When it comes to the impact on some of the most significant elements of the UK economy – such as the insurance sector – it is vital to identify the issues that will arise for [...]
Plain packaging: The starting gun has been fired on the tobacco industry May 20, 2016 Today the government fired the starting gun on a controversial new policy and a significant market intervention – the introduction of standardised pack designs for tobacco products. After the High Court yesterday ruled against a legal challenge brought forward by big tobacco companies, from today most tobacco products destined for the UK must be in standardised packs. [...]