Why has the weaker pound failed to turbocharge the economy? August 5, 2019 | City Talk The sharp fall in the pound in the wake of the 2016 Brexit referendum would help “rebalance the UK economy”, in the words of Mervyn King, former governor of the Bank of England. But since then, the UK has struggled to improve its trade position and has certainly not seen any boost to GDP growth. [...]
Podcast: Funds, dividends and investing basics June 21, 2019 | City Talk interactive investor experts Moira O’Neill, Lee Wild and Richard Hunter kick off ii’s inaugural podcast by focusing on funds and dividends. To listen to the podcast, please click below: Moira O’Neill explains what a fund is, how to start building an investment portfolio, and how ii’s Super 60 funds list could help you get started, as well as [...]
Why the world economy is like a wobbly bike June 14, 2019 | City Talk Three months ago we said “the easing in US-China trade tensions, more flexible central banks and the benefits of lower oil prices should stabilise activity later this year and support an upgrade in our global growth forecast for 2020”. However, two of those supports have now fallen away and we are more reliant on looser [...]
What is the outlook for interest rates in 2019? February 5, 2019 | City Talk US Concern over the outlook for US interest rates was one of the dominant themes of 2018, especially as the year progressed. President Trump got involved in the debate, tweeting in December that it was “incredible” that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) was considering raising interest rates again. Despite the pressure from the president, the [...]
Why 2019 might be a better year for investors December 19, 2018 | City Talk 2018 has been a disappointing year for most investors. Almost all markets, both stocks and bonds, have fallen in value this year, under pressure from rising interest rates, political developments such as Brexit, and the trade dispute between the US and China. With hindsight, markets were priced for perfection at the start of the year [...]
Inescapable investment truths for the decade ahead November 27, 2018 | City Talk It seems clear to us that the world investors have got used to over the last few years is very different to the one we need to get accustomed to in the years to come. We have identified a number of economic forces and disruptive forces we think will shape the investment landscape ahead of [...]
Commercial real estate might be reliably disinteresting now, but don’t get too cosy October 9, 2018 At a time of political and market turbulence in the UK, there is one area where we’ve seen relative stability. Commercial real estate data in recent months has been fairly constant, with no significant changes to the outlook. The returns for commercial real estate have remained disappointing relative to recent years, yet there has been [...]
Pound ends longest losing streak since 2008 September 7, 2015 Sterling has risen for the first time in 10 days, ending what's been its longest losing streak in seven years. Global financial market turmoil and fears about the strength of the UK economy sparked a sell-off which saw sterling shed nearly four per cent of its value in just two weeks. Read more: Carney says China [...]
Mortgage lending increases on low interest rates and rising UK house prices September 2, 2015 The housing market is picking up, with homeowners looking to remortgage to take advantage of low interest rates and unlock some of the climb in property prices. The number of approvals for home purchases was 68,764 in July, compared with an average of 64,186 over the past six months. Approvals for remortgages were 38,042, also [...]
Bank of England interest rate rise threat sends first-time buyer sales to a pre-recession high August 28, 2015 The threat of a rise in borrowing costs led first-time buyers to look through increased deposit costs and indulge in a "summer of white-hot activity" with completed transactions hitting a pre-recession high. Monthly first-time buyer sales rose 4.9 per cent to 29,700 in the month to July, according to an index by estate agents Your Move and [...]