Five reasons why tech stocks are in trouble November 27, 2018 For months, technology stocks have been the holy grail for growth, with valuations reaching dizzying heights. So, considering that what goes up must come down, perhaps it’s not surprising that stocks started tumbling last week. Share prices for each of the five tech giants – Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (the so-called Faangs) – [...]
Have faith, the UK can weather the political storm November 27, 2018 Winston Churchill once said that Brits are “the only people who like to be told how bad things are, who like to be told the worst”. In these turbo-charged political times, I would take it one step further and say that Brits not only like to be told the worst, but they often expect the worst. [...]
Forget ‘just deserts’ and keep your nose out of other people’s pay November 27, 2018 Two decades ago, it was considered rude and crass in Britain to openly discuss wages and salaries. Now, everyone seems to have an opinion on how much others should earn. There has always the been broad lament about footballers’ wages being “ridiculous”, of course, or that nurses and teachers were “undervalued”. And after the financial [...]
Open your eyes, Labour is more radically left than it’s ever been November 27, 2018 When something new happens in politics, people like to pretend they’ve seen it before. Look at Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party. In the City, lazy thinking about Labour is everywhere. Pub bores, from Leadenhall to Limehouse, will tell you that Corbyn’s party today is a just bad Betamax video of a 1970s-era Labour government. This is [...]
May needs the stars to align if her Brexit deal is to pass the Commons November 26, 2018 Fourteen days from now, Parliament will vote on the government's Brexit deal. The vote will be preceded by four days of formal debate but by the time MPs pass through the division lobbies of the House of Commons, they will have been arguing over this issue for two and a half years. Many have argued [...]
Why the EU’s approval of May’s Brexit deal failed to give sterling a boost November 26, 2018 Sterling failed to get a significant boost from the EU rubber-stamping the Prime Minister’s draft Brexit deal over the weekend, with markets awaiting the outcome of a crucial parliamentary vote next month. While EU leaders voted in favour of Theresa May’s Brexit agreement despite the threat of a Spanish veto over the future of Gibraltar, [...]
Italian bond yields fall as Rome considers revising budget deficit target November 26, 2018 Italian government bond yields have fallen by over 30 basis points this morning to two-month lows following speculation that the governing coalition is planning to reduce the budget deficit target for next year. Rome had threatened to defy the European Commission by refusing to change its deficit target of 2.4 per cent of GDP and [...]
Bitcoin falls back below $4,000 benchmark as cryptocurrency volatility lingers November 26, 2018 The price of bitcoin showed little sign of an upturn this morning after a weekend that saw the cryptocurrency dip below the $4,000 threshold. Bitcoin's value dipped to $3,930 today, after recovering back above $4,000 late yesterday, when it plunged to $3,474 – its lowest level since September last year, according to Luxembourg crypto-exchange Bitstamp. Yet [...]
Sellers experience a house price ‘reality check’ despite a climb in mortgage approvals November 26, 2018 New home mortgage approvals inched higher in October, the latest data shows. High street bank lending for house purchases grew by 3.6 per cent compared to the same month in 2017, UK Finance figures released today demonstrate. However, remortgaging approvals fell by a huge 13.5 per cent, with total mortgage approvals down 4.1 per cent. [...]
Bitcoin plunges further below $4,000 as cryptocurrencies face scrutiny from regulators November 25, 2018 Bitcoin faced another sharp fall today as the cryptocurrency heads for its worst weekly loss in five years. Bitcoin fell to a low of $3,474.73 today, its lowest level since September 2017, according to data from Luxembourg-based Bitcoin exchange Bitstamp. The sharp fall means bitcoin is on track to see its largest weekly drop since [...]