DEBATE: Do Jerome Powell’s recent comments suggest that Trump is influencing the Fed’s policy? December 3, 2018 Do Jerome Powell’s recent comments suggest that Trump is influencing the Fed’s policy? YES, says Andy Scott, an associate director at JCRA. Since Powell assumed the role from Janet Yellen in February, the US labour market has continued to strengthen, and the economy has grown at the fastest pace in four years. As a result, Powell’s [...]
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 [...]
Five reasons why tech stocks are in trouble November 27, 2018 For months, technology stocks have been the holy grail for growth, with valuations reaching dizzying heights. So, considering that what goes up must come down, perhaps it’s not surprising that stocks started tumbling last week. Share prices for each of the five tech giants – Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (the so-called Faangs) – [...]
The US midterms: Good for Democrats, but better for markets November 13, 2018 American politics is in a febrile state. Deep partisan divisions, heightened by Donald Trump’s controversial rhetoric and policies, have resulted in a historic year for midterm voter turn-out. Last Tuesday, voters on the left and right were spurred on by a conviction that the 2018 midterms were more important than any other in history. Politically, [...]
Debate: Are British high street banks a good opportunity for investors at the moment? September 26, 2018 Debate: Are British high street banks a good opportunity for investors at the moment? Yes – Richard Buxton is chief executive and a fund manager at Old Mutual Global Investors. As a long-term investor in UK banks, the most recent reporting season came as a welcome relief. The litany of conduct charges and regulatory [...]
Instability may put Fed hike on ice August 31, 2015 With oil so cheap, rising employment may not boost US inflation WHEN global markets dived last week, $900bn was wiped off the S&P 500 on Monday and Tuesday alone, and the prospect of a Fed rate hike in September went from consensus view to highly unlikely. But the end of the week brought promising news [...]
September interest rate hike looks “less compelling” in light of China slowdown, says Fed policymaker William Dudley August 26, 2015 A September interest rate rise by the Federal Reserve is now “less compelling”, according to William Dudley, President of the central bank's New York office. "From my perspective, at this moment, the decision to begin the normalization process at the September FOMC meeting seems less compelling to me than it was a few weeks [...]
Fed policymaker Dennis Lockhart says US interest rates should be raised this year August 24, 2015 A senior Fed policymaker has called for US interest rates to be raised this year, despite the panic that has hit global markets over China's economy. Read more: Black Monday 2015: US stocks battered in biggest fall since 2011 Dennis Lockhart, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, said in a speech today [...]
China stocks recover after second day of falls as markets nervously await Fed minutes August 19, 2015 Stocks in China finished today's session up, despite falls in early trading. That followed big losses on Tuesday. The Shenzhen Composite finished 2.19 per cent higher, at 2,222.05 points, while the Shanghai Composite rose 1.23 per cent to 3,794.11 points – having dipped as low as 5.3 per cent and 6.1 per cent respectively during the [...]
Why the Bank of England should follow the Fed and raise interest rates this year July 30, 2015 GDP figures out earlier this week confirmed that the UK economy is growing well. In five of the past six quarters, UK GDP has risen by 0.7 per cent or more. The annualised growth rate over this period has been 3 per cent. The services sector has been the main engine of growth. Retail, distribution [...]