Bank of England prepares for crucial QE test August 15, 2016 All eyes will be on Threadneedle Street tomorrow afternoon as the Bank of England gears up for its next bond-buying mission. To the market's surprise, the Bank of England could not find enough willing sellers of long-term government debt on the open market last week, leading to the first ever time when the Bank was [...]
Oil prices hit one-month high as Opec flirts with freeze August 15, 2016 Crude hit a one-month high today, on rising hopes that some of the world's biggest oil producers will help markets which have been drowning in oversupply for the last two years. Brent crude, the global benchmark, swelled 1.66 per cent to $47.75 per barrel on London's ICE Futures Exchange this afternoon, having hit 47.87 earlier in the day. Its US [...]
JP Morgan thinks the Brexit bounce is here to stay August 15, 2016 A leading investment bank expects UK shares to outperform over the rest of the year, as it sees no reason to fear the Brexit bounce is coming to an end. In a particularly bullish note, JP Morgan said today the FTSE 100 is one of the best buys around for investors as the UK is still "cheap" [...]
Sorry, holidaymakers: Sterling hits three-year low against euro August 15, 2016 Sterling has plummeted to a three-year low against the euro today ahead of a big week of post-referendum data. The pound slipped a further 0.5 per cent in the first hours of the week, standing at €1.1517 at lunchtime – its lowest level since August 2013. The €1.15 mark is thought to be a crucial psychological barrier [...]
London Chamber of Commerce warns immigration charges will open up skills gap August 15, 2016 The London Chamber of Commerce warned today that many businesses will struggle to meet the costs of new immigration charges, leading to a skills gap. A survey it conducted with ComRes showed less than a quarter of London business execs believe their firm can afford the £1,000 annual charge per non-EU employee which comes into effect next April. [...]
Three ways life has actually improved for millennials since last year August 15, 2016 Millennials… they might get a bad rap for being lazy, whiney and selfishly obsessed with selfies among other things, but it's a generation that's been saddled with debt, spiralling living costs and lower wages than any previous generation. And the socio-economic situation of young people has remained largely unchanged over the last year, new research reveals, while the bad news is, some areas [...]
FTSE 350 directors sell £10m of shares on Brexit bounce August 15, 2016 The bosses of the UK's largest listed firms may be losing confidence in the post-Brexit stock market rally, according to fresh data on insider dealing. Directors at FTSE 350 firms sold £10.5m worth of shares in their own companies in the final days of July and first weeks of August, according to financial data firm Olivetree – [...]
Japanese economy grinds to a halt in second quarter with zero growth August 15, 2016 Japan has been confronted with a familiar foe this morning, as its economy recorded zero growth in the second quarter of the year. Despite intervention from government and a looser monetary policy, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was unable to heave the world's third largest economy into action, with GDP growth coming it at zero per cent [...]
Premier Oil eyes £2.6bn restructuring deal to complete North Sea oil projects August 15, 2016 Premier Oil is targeting a huge £2.6bn restructuring deal with lenders, ahead of the release of its first half financial results this Thursday. The FTSE 250-listed oil explorer has suffered poor fortunes since the oil price collapse of 2014 and 2015, with pre-tax losses deepening further to $830m in 2015. It has been in talks with [...]
Anglo American under pressure to hive off its South African operations August 14, 2016 Anglo American is being pressured by its largest investor to spin off its South African operations, a move which could lead to the eventual break-up of the mining giant. South Africa’s pension fund, the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), reportedly wants Anglo to package and sell its platinum mines there to a state-backed vehicle. Read more: Unions warn tens [...]