Stars align for shoppers: Experts predict a consumer boom amid low inflation and cheap energy October 6, 2015 All the ingredients for a consumer boom are appearing, experts say, as turbulence in Asia keeps commodity prices and inflation down. Oil prices remain low amid global oversupply and market worries about slowing demand in China. Meanwhile, Beijing’s devaluation of the yuan means lower inflation – in the form of cheaper goods from China [...]
Commodity prices: Low point for investors? Wait until 2017 October 6, 2015 Investors have over the past week questioned whether major commodities names are like the lyrics of the 1980s Bon Jovi hit Livin’ On A Prayer – spot prices might relapse, or prices may remain battered for years. Glencore has been in the thick of it, defending its liquidity, debt maturities and bank loans after [...]
Business lessons from the Rugby World Cup 2015 October 6, 2015 Rugby is a thug’s game, played by gentlemen”. So goes the adage, but it’s not the only tough game in town. England’s premature exit from the World Cup has demonstrated how uncompromising rugby can be, but the world of business is just as rough. Smaller companies and startups must be prepared to take a few [...]
Rugby World Cup 2015: Andy Farrell denies having an excessive influence and defends Stuart Lancaster October 6, 2015 England defence coach Andy Farrell has denied having a disproportionate influence over team selection in the wake of his side’s humiliating poolstage exit at the World Cup. It has been suggested that Farrell championed the cause of rugby league convert Sam Burgess against the wishes of players, while his objectivity has been questioned in relation [...]
Conservative party conference 2015: Clouds may threaten George Osborne’s roof-fixing – The City View October 5, 2015 George Osborne has good grounds for painting a bright picture of Britain’s economic future during his speech to the Tory party conference yesterday. The chancellor was always going to talk up the achievements of his five-year tenure at Number 11 Downing Street – and moreover, he is keen to be seen as a man [...]
City Moves for 6 October 2015 | Who’s switching jobs October 5, 2015 ETF SECURITIES The provider of exchange traded products has appointed James Butterfill as head of research & investment strategy. Based in London, he will report direct to Mark Weeks, the firm’s chief executive officer. Prior to joining ETF Securities, Butterfill worked at HSBC, and most recently at Coutts, as a multi-asset fund manager and global [...]
Why Britain’s savings crisis is worse than you think October 5, 2015 We all knew Britain had a long-term savings crisis, but it’s now looking more like a disaster. For all the effort the government has put into liberalizing the pensions system, boosting personal responsibility by giving everyone the choice of what to do with their pots at retirement, one simple fact has not been addressed: we’re [...]
World oil rally pushes Wall St acceleration – New York Report October 5, 2015 RISING oil prices boosted energy stocks in the US yesterday, with the S&P 500 up for a fifth day in a row for the first time this year, while investors also bet the Federal Reserve would delay raising interest rates until 2016. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 304.06 points, or 1.85 per cent, to [...]
Conservative party conference 2015: Why the Tories’ infrastructure plans won’t cut the mustard October 5, 2015 Party conference season is in full swing, and infrastructure is at the top of the agenda for good reason. The announcement to restart the electrification of the two key railway lines last week, coupled with the chancellor’s four-point infrastructure plan announced at the opening of the Conservative party conference, show this government’s commitment to overhauling [...]
Conservative party conference 2015: George Osborne’s tax credit reforms are flawed – and his party is beginning to realise it October 5, 2015 Having won a majority, and with Labour’s new leader polling worse than any in history, one might have expected a jubilant Conservative party conference. But scratch beneath the surface in Manchester, and there’s great concern about the recent Budget’s changes to tax credits. With The Sun newspaper now campaigning against the cuts (having waxed [...]
