Election 2019: From Cities and Kensington to East Devon and Esher – these are the seats where (almost) anything could happen December 10, 2019 It might have felt inevitable since Boris Johnson took the reins this summer, but the 2019 election is still hard to call. A consensus is building up around a slim majority for the Conservatives of around 20-30 seats – enough for Johnson to return to Number 10 and push his vision of Brexit through. But [...]
Business groups call on next government to boost lacklustre growth December 10, 2019 Business groups have called on the next government to tackle the slowing UK economy after data today showed British GDP stagnated in October. The economy’s performance was below expectations of a 0.1 per cent expansion, but marked an improvement from the 0.1 per cent drop witnessed a month earlier, figures from the Office for National [...]
US Congress and White House agree ‘best deal ever’ to replace Nafta December 10, 2019 US President Donald Trump and Nancy Pelosi have agreed on a replacement for the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) with Canada and Mexico. The Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives gave her support for the USMCA this afternoon. Read more: US and Canada quash fears with last-minute deal to revamp Nafta In exchange [...]
Pre-Election market update December 10, 2019 | City Talk The famous (or infamous) cliché ‘Buy the rumour, sell the fact’ is commonly used in the financial markets. But it contains a significant element of truth. It has been seen in the performance of the pound versus the dollar and euro since Boris Johnson ascended to the premiership. Having suffered heavily for most of 2019, [...]
Eight reasons the Tories are a safer bet than Labour this election December 10, 2019 This election will define our country. Either Britain will continue to be a liberal open democracy continuing what frankly has been a very successful recovery from a global crisis – or the UK will slip towards a highly centralised command and control model that has failed the world over. My last article outlined just what [...]
Are there any safe bets for investors this election? December 10, 2019 | City Talk Political parties have not been able to agree on much this election. Whether it is Brexit or how the economy is run, the Conservatives and Labour have opposite views on almost everything. The Conservatives want to ‘get Brexit done’ so the UK is out of the EU by January, have a new trade deal signed [...]
Election promises little relief for troubled UK markets December 10, 2019 | City Talk The election represents another ‘key risk’ moment for UK assets. Depending on the result, some parts of the UK stock market could suffer heavily, while others might be beneficiaries of a surprise result. This is the dangerous part – trying to work out what comes next. Memories of the predictions made before Brexit and Trump [...]
How do UK general elections impact the stock market? December 10, 2019 | City Talk General elections can have a profound long-term effect on the economy and people’s lives. The impact of elections on the stock market is less understood. Analysing the last seven UK elections, there is no definitive pattern as to how markets react, although there are historical patterns that may help investors and traders prepare for the [...]
Whoever wins this election, our politics will remain in flux December 10, 2019 Nothing except an election lost can be half so melancholy as an election won. That’s what the Duke of Wellington might have said after he swapped the battlefield for politics. Come Friday morning, each of the major parties will be reckoning with the result — and may find pain in victory as well as defeat. [...]
General Election: Who are City workers voting for? December 10, 2019 Two days ahead of the general election, politicians are travelling up and down the country to hammer home their campaign messages. However, for many in the City, neither Labour nor the Conservatives offer stability or financial certainty. Financial services will be the primary target of a Jeremy Corbyn-John McDonnell government, but Boris Johnson’s promise to [...]