Is globalisation dying out? October 4, 2016 The annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank take place in Washington this week, against a backdrop of gloomy predictions for the future of global trade. According to its latest prediction forecasts, the World Trade Organisation expects total trade to grow by its slowest pace since the financial crisis this year, [...]
IMF steps up attacks on Donald Trump and issues fresh Brexit warning October 4, 2016 Political risks are the greatest threat to the world economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today, in a thinly veiled attack on US Presidential hopeful Donald Trump. In its half-yearly economic outlook, the Fund downgraded its outlook for the world's largest economies over the next two years and warned a growing backlash against trade, [...]
One calculation shows both the UK and the US are in negative interest rates October 4, 2016 Extraordinary monetary policy and the latest extension of its money-printing bond-buying programme could have taken the Bank of England's real interest rate to as low as minus 2.5 per cent. Fresh analysis by investment outfit Hermes has found that adjusting for the impact of quantitative easing on "true" central bank rates, the UK and the US [...]
Back in business: Housebuilding jumps as Brexit fears fade October 4, 2016 Construction activity in the UK has grown for the first time in five months as builders regain their mojo in the wake of the EU referendum. The closely-watched purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the sector came in at 52.3 for the month of September, comfortably above the 50 score which represents stagnation. It was also [...]
Housebuilder shares on the road to recovery after Brexit vote falls October 4, 2016 Housebuilders' shares are on the road to recovering the losses they sustained after the Brexit vote on the back of chancellor Philip Hammond's announcement of a £5bn stimulus package for the industry. Hammond said yesterday that he would be setting aside money to encourage developers to build on surplus public land and to fund more [...]
Gold prices hit lowest level since EU referendum October 4, 2016 Gold prices have dipped to their lowest level since the referendum in a big morning of movers-and-shakers on the global money markets. An ounce of the yellow stuff on the spot exchange markets will set you back $1,292 this morning, down 1.5 per cent from yesterday's close. That is the lowest price for gold since the UK [...]
FTSE 100 smashes through 7,000 as investors cheer falling pound October 4, 2016 The FTSE 100 smashed past the 7,000 mark this morning as the falling pound continued to keep investors' spirits high. The market opened at 7,004 points, 0.28 per cent up on yesterday's closing price, before rising more than one per cent to 7,054 points in early trading. Although the market edged towards the psychologically important milestone yesterday, it finished [...]
Sterling drops below post-Brexit vote low to its weakest since 1985 October 4, 2016 Sterling has dropped this morning to its weakest since 1985, dipping by 0.5 per cent to $1.2779. The pound has been in decline since Prime Minister Theresa May announced the timetable for Brexit negotiations over the weekend, and plunged even further this morning. Sterling has also been pulled down by concerns over the possibility of a [...]
Stress in the City: Let’s move beyond stigmas October 4, 2016 Nearly 80 per cent of City A.M. readers have experienced poor mental health. If you look around your train carriage this morning at your fellow commuters, that should become a sobering statistic. In truth, it’s not our readers that have been surveyed, but employees across the UK. The charity Business in the Community conducted a [...]
Better infrastructure and new houses: Here’s how to invest for a post-Brexit fiscal stimulus October 4, 2016 Chancellor Philip Hammond used his party conference speech yesterday to tell the public that the government is prepared to take “whatever steps are necessary to protect this economy from turbulence”. Though he gave a nod to his predecessor’s commitment to fiscal consolidation, new spending plans are widely expected when he delivers his first Autumn Statement in [...]