Editorial: Business now has little to fear from Biden – so a victory for the rules can be toasted November 6, 2020 In the run-up to the UK election in 2019, this newspaper said that whether you agreed with Jeremy Corbyn’s (ruinous) economic plans or found granting Boris Johnson a free hand with Brexit too much to bear, that Corbyn and his Labour Party did not deserve your vote. The reason? The culture of unchecked anti-Semitism and [...]
DEBATE: Did Chinese regulators have a legitimate reason for halting the IPO of Jack Ma’s Ant Group? November 6, 2020 Did Chinese regulators have a legitimate reason for halting the IPO of Jack Ma’s Ant Group? Tim Focas, head of capital markets at Aspectus Group, says YES. For any public listing, but in particular one of this magnitude, smart and sound regulation is of paramount importance. It can’t be one rule for one firm looking [...]
With America divided, the spotlight once again falls on the Fed November 6, 2020 Amid the continued uncertainty of the US presidential election, one thing is clear: Joe Biden’s White House, should he secure victory in the coming days, will struggle to deliver its desired fiscal stimulus package through a Republican Senate. The US economy’s path through the Covid recession will therefore be shaped by the actions of a [...]
America fought the drugs — and this week, the drugs won November 6, 2020 As the results continue to trickle in across America, there is one clear winner from the 2020 US election: drugs. From Montana to New Jersey, South Dakota to Arizona, in every state that had relaxing restrictions on the use of cannabis on the ballot, voters backed pot over prohibition. Oregon went further, with the sweeping [...]
We cannot stand by and let lockdown London become a ghost town November 6, 2020 A second lockdown is upon us, and many in the business community are understably frustrated. Some, in fact, have argued that we didn’t need to end up in this position at all. I believe that it is important we do all we can to adapt to the new restrictions and support the government and NHS [...]
Editorial: Chancellor’s move is a five-point-turn that has already cost jobs November 5, 2020 If it wasn’t such a serious matter, Rishi Sunak’s description of his furlough u-turn today as the result of a flexible and agile approach would have been darkly comic. Because a U-turn it most certainly is, albeit not of the handbrake variety. Instead, it has been by degree, a five-point turn that has already cost [...]
The polls failed again, and blindsided businesses are crying out for better corporate intelligence November 5, 2020 So Joe Biden will be the 46th President of the United States. Or Donald Trump will squeeze home (though, at the time of writing, that seems less likely). It has been a nerve-wracking 48 hours for anyone who watches US politics — and one of the reasons for that is that commentators and pollsters got [...]
Separatist Scots beware: A new Scottish currency would be catastrophic November 5, 2020 Some 12 out of the last 15 opinion polls on Scottish secession have shown majority support for splitting up the United Kingdom. During a period of unprecedented crisis, Scots have chosen to rally round the flag — only this time the flag is that of Scotland, not the UK. However, while polling numbers may be unnerving [...]
There is another way out of these Hotel California lockdowns November 5, 2020 With the nights now drawing in, the weather growing more miserable by the day, and another lockdown starting today, this is beginning to feel more like being trapped in the Hotel California. We’re all just prisoners here, of our own device. But what if there was a better way out? According to official figures, Covid-19 [...]
Thanks to reverse mentoring, I am confident that our uncertain future is in safe hands November 5, 2020 It is difficult to recall a time when the future looked less certain than it does today. Perhaps the only thing we can be sure of right now is that we are at the beginning of a challenging period, as we grapple with the impacts of the pandemic on the economy. For younger people, the [...]