London-listed miner Kennedy Ventures to raise £2m towards lithium project July 20, 2016 Kennedy Ventures is raising £2m to help fund the miner's potential lithium project in Africa. The Aim-listed firm will issue 66.7m shares at 3p each, nearly 40 per cent below its closing price on Tuesday. Read more: General Electric backs German renewable battery start-up Sonnen The cash will be used by its 75 per cent [...]
The Brexit vote will halve expectations of economic growth for the UK’s largest cities, according to the CEBR July 20, 2016 Some of the UK's largest cities will see economic growth drop by as much as half next year, according to one think tank, although some will be set to recover by 2018. A study of 38 cities by the Centre for Economics and Business Research found that while all would continue to grow, the expectations for [...]
FTSE 250 approaches pre-referendum highs as equities bounce continues July 20, 2016 Stock markets have surged again today on the back of strong employment data, as the closely-watched FTSE 250 hits a new post-referendum high. The mid-cap index, which is seen as a better gauge of the UK economy than the larger FTSE 100, climbed back above the 17,000 mark this afternoon, and is now down by [...]
BHP shares fall as iron ore output disappoints due to Samarco shutdown July 20, 2016 Shares in BHP Billiton fell today, after iron ore output from the world's biggest miner came in below expectations. Iron ore output fell 2.58 per cent on an annual basis to 227m metric tonnes in the year ended 30 June, below its original estimate of 247m metric tonnes. Read more: Industry veteran to head firm formed from Tata's [...]
Turn that frown upside down: Seven reasons Brexit is a good news story July 20, 2016 Brexit is not going to be a bed of roses but I’m not entirely convinced by the doom-mongers. In my view, and that of many others, Brexit came just in time. Europe is going down – fast Since the result, I’ve spoken to a number of economists and City figures. A growing number believe a [...]
Four European hidden gem stocks for your portfolio July 20, 2016 Europe's investment markets are wallowing in an unprecedented level of support from the European Central Bank (ECB). They are being cossetted by a massive €1.7 trillion QE programme, much of which is likely to find its way into stock markets and raise share prices. Negative interest rates are also encouraging banks to invest and the ECB [...]
Anglo American shares slip as bad weather takes shine off copper target July 20, 2016 Anglo American cut its annual target for copper output today, after severe winter weather chilled the miner’s operation in Chile. Its full-year guidance for copper output was slashed to between 570,000 and 600,000 tonnes for 2016, down from as much as 630,000 tonnes. The 2017 target was also revised lower. This year's output target for [...]
Pound jumps as unemployment falls to 2005 low – but economists warn on Brexit effects July 20, 2016 Finally, some relief for currency traders, after the pound jumped this morning on new figures showing unemployment has reached its lowest since 2005. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the unemployment rate ell to 4.9 per cent in the three months between February and May this year, down from 5.6 per cent a year [...]
Bank of England: “No clear evidence” of business slowdown since Brexit vote (yet) July 20, 2016 The Bank of England has said there is "no clear evidence" yet of a slowdown in business activity since the Brexit vote. But it also noted that "business uncertainty had risen markedly" after the referendum. In its monthly agents' summary of business conditions, the Bank said: "As yet, there was no clear evidence of a [...]
Why the UK will need more than rate cuts to offset Brexit shock July 20, 2016 Although growth has been less vigorous than in previous recoveries, the UK economy has made real progress since the Lehman-crisis — the private sector has deleveraged, household balance sheets have strengthened and labour market participation has reached a record high. The near-term Brexit-induced confidence shock promises to reverse some of these positive trends. Uncertainty will reign [...]