Explainer: What are green bonds? And how will the UK’s first green gilts work? What are green bonds? And how will the UK’s first green gilts work? Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced yesterday that Britain will issue its first green government bond next year, in a bid to capitalise on growing investor demand for assets that fund environmentally-friendly projects. The market for investments with an environment, social, or governance (ESG) focus has increased exponentially in recent years. Around $250bn (£189bn) of green bonds [...]
UK regulators prepared to intervene if Brexit disrupts markets, says FCA FCA: UK regulators prepared to intervene if Brexit disrupts markets British regulators are prepared to intervene if the UK’s full departure from the European Union on 31 December risks disrupting financial markets, an executive from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said. While Britain has already left the bloc, post-Brexit transition agreements gives banks and trading platforms full access to EU markets until the end of [...]
FTSE 100 and US stocks tumble as Covid-19 vaccine rally runs out of steam FTSE 100 and US stocks tumble as vaccine rally runs out of steam Global markets largely slipped lower today as the three-day equity rally sparked by news of a breakthrough in the hunt for a Covid-19 vaccine began to lose momentum, with the FTSE 100 and US stocks both falling. London’s blue-chip index ended an eight-day winning streak, falling 1.19 per cent to 6,305.85 by 2.45pm. The midcap [...]
US jobless claims fall to seven-month low but pace of decline slows November 12, 2020 The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits dropped to a seven-month low last week, official figures showed, but the rate of decline in jobless claims slowed. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits hit a seasonally adjusted total of 709,000 for the week to 7 November, the US Department of Labor said. This [...]
Legal & General shares fall after insurer scales back dividend plans due to Covid-19 November 12, 2020 Shares in Legal & General fell today after the insurance giant kept its final dividend payment for 2020 flat due the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and cut its five-year dividend growth target. In an update to the stock exchange this morning, Legal & General said it had delivered a “resilient” performance so far this [...]
Disappointing GDP figures show UK recovery lost momentum ahead of second lockdown November 12, 2020 UK GDP grew by a record quarterly amount in the three months to September, but failed to make up for its historic slump the previous quarter as Covid-19 brought large swathes of the economy to a halt. The UK economy grew by a record 15.5 per cent in the third quarter, the Office for National [...]
Brexit news could change outcome of BoE’s December meeting, says Bailey November 12, 2020 Developments in the ongoing trade talks between the UK and EU could affect the chance of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) taking action at its December meeting, governor Andrew Bailey said. Asked if Brexit developments could make the MPC’s next meeting “live”, Bailey said: “I’m sure we will have more information, so [...]
Tech rally drives US shares higher as FTSE 100 continues to climb November 11, 2020 US shares opened higher today as signs of a possible vaccine for Covid-19 raised investor hopes of a faster-than-expected recovery from the pandemic-induced economic crisis. Wall Street’s main indices opened higher, with technology stocks recovered from heavy losses earlier in the week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.27 per cent shortly after the open, while the [...]
ECB to focus on bond buying and bank liquidity to keep eurozone afloat, says Lagarde November 11, 2020 The European Central Bank (ECB) will focus on emergency bond purchases and cheap loans for banks when it puts together its new stimulus package for the coronavirus-hit eurozone economy, president Christine Lagarde said. Lagarde told the ECB’s annual central banking conference that inflation in the eurozone was now likely to remain negative for longer than [...]
All pro-democracy Hong Kong lawmakers resign as China moves to quash opposition November 11, 2020 Hong Kong’s pro-democracy opposition lawmakers have resigned en masse in protest against the ousting of four of their colleagues after Beijing gave local authorities fresh powers to quash dissent. The Chinese parliament adopted a resolution earlier on Wednesday allowing the city’s executive to expel legislators deemed to support Hong Kong independence bypassing the courts. Moments [...]
