Our nation of shoppers is not about to quit the habit yet July 14, 2010 SINCE the onset of the recession, the pressure has increased to turn the UK economy into a manufacturing centre of excellence and at the same time become a nation of savers. But has the nation really turned its back on its former favourite pastime, shopping? Well, the hard data would suggest no. According to the [...]
There’s an ETC for your every need July 14, 2010 FANCY investing in emerging market equities, hedge fund performance or copper? If so, then there’s almost certainly an exchange-traded product (ETP) for that. For ETPs are rather similar to the ubiquitous smartphone application: they are cutting-edge, give users fast, simplified exposure to investments and providers can quickly launch in response to user demand. And as [...]
THE TIPSTER July 14, 2010 THE combination of a falling dollar and rising gold prices lends yet more support to the theory that precious metal traders were spooked by the massive quantities of gold that were deposited with the Bank for International Settlements last week. While the spectre of sovereign debt default still can’t be ruled out, the market seems [...]
LISTED PRODUCT NEWS July 14, 2010 HSBC WELCOMES NEW BRAZIL ETF The global investment bank has decided to increase its suite of ETFs and now offers one that tracks the Brazilian stock index. This is the first BRIC ETF launched by HSBC. However, it plans to increase its range further to include the other emerging powerhouses in coming months. The fund [...]
City men should think of pre-nups July 14, 2010 PARTNER, MISHCON DE REYA A DECADE ago this October, English divorce law was revolutionised by the case of White v White. Firstly, it recognised the non-financial contributions of the wife, and secondly it said that the default position when dividing assets at the end of a marriage should be to share them equally. Given this [...]
It’s time to wave goodbye to the lockstep July 14, 2010 SENIOR HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER, OLSWANG THE legal industry is changing. The traditional lockstep model of career progression – where a lawyer would qualify and then work for several years before hopefully being made a partner, with pay rises reflecting the number of years they had been in the firm – is increasingly viewed as outdated. [...]
Euro is not out of the woods yet July 13, 2010 THE worst is over for Europe. That’s according to Nobel prize-winning economist Robert Mundell. The Columbia University professor, who was speaking to Bloomberg, said he was happy with the euro in the mid $1.20-$1.30 range against the US dollar. He said that the $1.18 area, which was the low reached at the end of May, [...]
Land of the sinking yen July 13, 2010 COMPLETE political gridlock, severe indebtedness and weak economic growth would normally point to a ratings downgrade, deterioration in the currency and a lack of economic reform. But not if you happen to be Japan. Although all three of the big ratings agencies gave the country another warning shot, none hinted at an imminent downgrade. Despite [...]
THE TIPSTER July 13, 2010 Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s fired another warning shot across the bows of sterling with a suggestion that the UK’s prized AAA status is still under threat. The emergency Budget doesn’t seem to be making much of an impression and although the October spending review could yet prove the saving grace, there’s clearly concern that [...]
FX RECOVERY TRADE STILL UNCERTAIN July 13, 2010 DIRECTOR OF CURRENCY RESEARCH, GFT THE central question facing the currency market is whether the economy will maintain its pace of recovery. Last week the recovery trade received a substantial boost when both Australia and Canada reported better than expected employment numbers. Australia added 45,900 jobs and the country’s jobless rate fell to an enviable [...]
