Supreme Court ruling pushes sterling down despite forcing Parliamentary vote January 24, 2017 The Supreme Court’s decision to force the government to allow a vote on triggering Article 50 has provided scant consolation to the pound, which has extended losses in volatile trading. Sterling fell to lows of $1.2438 against the US dollar at the time of publication in response to the ruling. It had risen sharply ahead [...]
Oil prices have slipped as increased US production overshadows Opec cuts January 24, 2017 Oil prices have dropped after initially rising this morning as US production growth overshadows Opec's promised production cuts. This morning, global benchmark Brent crude futures were up more than one per cent to $55.82 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) increased to $53.29 before both fell slightly towards the afternoon. Currently, Brent crude is trading at $55.37 per barrel [...]
Will ‘value investors’ win in 2017? January 24, 2017 | City Talk Value investing, the discipline made famous by the legendary investor Benjamin Graham in the 1930s and 1940s, fell out of favour after the global financial crisis. Investors have instead preferred to pay a premium for more dependable stocks rather than back those unloved by the market. That trend may be turning around. What is value [...]
Government borrowing less than predicted putting it on track to undershoot deficit expectations January 24, 2017 UK borrowing was less than expected in December, boosting the government as it aims to eradicate the deficit in spending while avoiding an economic hit from Brexit. Borrowing to fund the deficit fell to £6.9bn in December, according the Office for National Statistics, putting it on track to undershoot the latest forecasts by the Office [...]
Europe’s business hires at the fastest rate since financial crisis as activity measure shows healthy growth across region January 24, 2017 Employment in the Eurozone economy increased at its fastest rate since before the global financial crisis hit in 2008, as surveys of business activity showed healthy activity across the region to start the year. Germany’s powerhouse industry led the way, as activity in the manufacturing sector hit a three-year high. The German manufacturing purchasing managers’ [...]
Trump is wrong: Protectionism leads to misery, not prosperity January 24, 2017 Donald Trump tore up the broad consensus on international free trade with a miserable, protectionist inaugural speech on Friday. So explicit was his outlook that those of us who had become complacent about his economic impact – the “how bad can he be?” crowd – have had to sit up and reassess. In a pugnacious passage, [...]
Britain’s new industrial strategy must not drown out the voices of emerging sectors January 24, 2017 The government has published its long-awaited industrial strategy – its 10 point plan for building a robust economy in the face of economic change, increasing automation and the unknown impact of leaving the EU. Wrapped up in its 125 pages is a strong focus on innovation-led growth, including clarity on the £4.7bn of additional funding [...]
US President Donald Trump gets to work with executive order to scrap Trans-Pacific Partnership and border tax threat January 24, 2017 Donald Trump kicked off his first week as President by signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, branding the move a “great thing for the American worker”. The departure from one of Obama’s signature policies comes after Trump pledged in his inauguration address to “put America first”. Though the deal [...]
Hedge funds struggle against equities as investors look for stability rather than outsized returns January 24, 2017 Hedge funds struggled to keep pace with equity markets over the course of 2016, with an average return significantly lower than benchmark indices. Average hedge fund returns for 2016 hit 7.4 per cent over the course of 2016, according to data from Preqin and the Alternative Investment Management Association (Aima). That performance was the highest [...]
Sterling pushed higher by dollar weakness as Donald Trump fails to reassure investors January 23, 2017 The pound has risen to a one-month high against the dollar as traders failed to be reassured by US President Donald Trump’s inauguration speech. On Monday he pulled the US out of the major Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal with multiple Pacific-rim countries. The pound rose by almost one per cent in intraday trading on Monday. [...]