It may not be Hammond’s cup of tea, but we deserve some tax-cutting champions May 31, 2019 I for one am thrilled to see politicians not just talking about tax cuts, but competing for the best policy to reduce a tax burden that is at a near 50-year high. Sure, it took a leadership contest to get them properly talking about it, but from the home secretary’s endorsement of the Adam Smith [...]
Markets brace as Trump threatens Mexico with 25 per cent tariffs over immigrants May 31, 2019 US President Donald Trump is set to slap fresh tariffs on all Mexican imports next month, in a shock move that could threaten a recently-agreed major trade deal between the two sides. Read more: Mueller says 'not an option' to charge Trump over Russia inquiry The White House warned late last night that the US [...]
Tory leadership contest can spark a much-needed debate on the future of tax May 31, 2019 Should the Conservatives slash taxes? Social media star Liz Truss certainly thinks so, arguing yesterday that "taxes hold back growth, and by cutting rates in a targeted way we can turbocharge economic growth and boost wages so the overall tax burden falls." Her leadership rival Dominic Raab has also made headlines this week by pledging [...]
UK consumer confidence holds up in May despite Brexit impasse May 31, 2019 Consumers were feeling more upbeat about the British economy in May than they were in April despite Brexit, a new survey has shown, although confidence was well below the longer-term average. Read more: Warm-weather pub trips boost tepid consumer spending growth in April Meanwhile, more people felt positive about their personal financial situation than during [...]
Activist Icahn sues Occidental over ‘misguided’ $55bn for rival Anadarko May 30, 2019 One of the world’s most famous activist investors is suing Occidental Petroleum over its $55bn (£44bn) takeover of rival Anadarko claiming the bid was too expensive, it was revealed today. Carl Icahn, who has a $1.6bn stake in Occidental, said it should have looked to sell itself instead. Read more: Chevron drops out of $38bn [...]
Gazprom profits soar 44 per cent after energy prices boom May 30, 2019 Profits shot up at Gazprom in the first three months of the year, the company reported today after months of international energy price rises. Sales at the firm rose 6.8 per cent to 1.3 trillion Russian roubles (£15.8bn) in the first quarter of 2019, even as the amount of gas it sold dropped 8.6 per [...]
US first quarter growth revised down to 3.1 per cent May 30, 2019 US first quarter economic growth was revised down slightly to an annualised rate of 3.1 per cent, according to the second estimate released today by the country’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Read more: Global markets sink into the red as technology front opens up in trade war The annualised growth rate is nonetheless one of [...]
Chevron divests $2bn North Sea fields to Delek subsidiary as US majors scale back in the UK May 30, 2019 Israeli-backed Ithaca Energy took a major holding in the North Sea this morning with a $2bn deal for Chevron, as the US oil major looks increasingly likely to pull out of the UK altogether. The deal moves around 500 staff to Ithaca, which is owned by Tel Aviv-listed Delek, and quadruples its expected production for [...]
Interest rates would be hiked if Britain achieves orderly Brexit, says Bank of England May 30, 2019 Deputy governor of the Bank of England Dave Ramsden has said interest rates would need to be hiked if Britain leaves the European Union in an orderly manner with a transition deal. Read more: Hammond may topple new PM to prevent no-deal Brexit Ramsden, speaking in Inverness, Scotland, said although he expected growth to pick [...]
Should you really sell in May and go away – What is the truth of the old stock market saying? May 30, 2019 There are many phrases used to try to capture trends or patterns that supposedly appear in the movement of share prices over the years. For example, the concept of a “Santa Rally” suggests that stock prices increase in the run up to Christmas. Yet one of the oldest such phrases is “sell in May and [...]