FTSE set to party like it’s 1999 if it can beat psychological barrier
PRINCE proved to be a canny financial commentator when he sang “two thousand zero zero party over” on his hit song 1999.
Markets tumbled shortly after the 31 December 1999 FTSE 100 high of 6,930.2 and the figure has not been topped since.
The FTSE closed at 6,915.2 on Friday, though, leaving many more in the mood to party as they predicted the record may soon be broken – although, incidentally, the same was said in 2014. If The Capitalist is reading reports correctly, one of the main reasons the 7,000 mark hasn’t been topped is that pesky “psychological barrier”. Yes, there’s something in our mindset that always stops us just shy of the mythical FTSE mark.
Clearly we Londoners need to rid ourselves of this mental barricade if we want to break out the raspberry beret anytime soon.
■ Unwell chaps who’ve been teased by their colleagues or spouses can sneeze easy today. Scientists say men are more vulnerable to illness because of the absence of oestrogen in their systems – or to speak plainly: man flu is real. Gender may also explain why men and women react differently to their symptoms. Professor Robert Rosenman, who authored a recent Washington State University study of 1,471 men and 1,388 women, said: “Women are more impacted by illness than men, unless more than one symptom is present. Then men are more impacted than women.” He added: “Personality affects how women handle becoming sick, while men of all types react the same.”
■ As the General Election draws nearer, Ed Miliband will be hoping he can bank on the party’s safer seats. In certain constituencies, there has long been a saying that “a monkey in a red rosette” would be elected to parliament. But now parting Great Grimsby MP Austin Mitchell has reportedly brought the phrase up to date – albeit in a rather strange and unpleasant manner. The Independent reports that Mitchell said Labour would win the seat he is vacating “even if we selected a raving alcoholic sex paedophile”. While that might strike readers as a memorable quote, Mitchell has since said he “can’t remember saying it”, adding: “If that was said, it was as a joke”. How, erm, grim.