British Airways agrees to £1bn committed credit facility November 1, 2021 British Airways (BA) has agreed to a five-year committed credit facility worth £1bn. The agreement – which was announced by British Airways’ owner IAG – was reached between BA, British export credit agency UK Export Finance (UKEF) and a syndicate of banks. The amount is additional to a UKEF guaranteed facility worth £2bn that was [...]
Q&A: How tech is shaking up the banking sector November 1, 2021 A technological revolution is occurring, which is affecting all business sectors. And the Covid-19 pandemic has been accelerating this process. Banking is one area that has been particularly disrupted by technology for some time, but it was during the pandemic that customers really started to change their banking habits. Banking over the counter in High Street branches is [...]
London markets climb as Staley steps aside after FCA Epstein probe November 1, 2021 London markets climbed during the opening session of November as Barclays chief Jes Staley stepped down after UK regulators showed the bank preliminary findings of its investigation into his ties with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. The capital’s FTSE 100 premier index advanced 0.60 per cent to hit 7,280.97 points, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 climbed [...]
Five reasons why energy transition stocks can weather the inflation storm November 1, 2021 The current inflationary pressures putting strain on global equity markets are impacting energy transition equities more than most, with many of its sub-sectors right in the eye of the storm. But while these short-term threats are painful, they should not detract from the longer-term investment opportunity. Inflationary pressures have been at the heart of this disruption. Global supply [...]
How do retail investors feel about returns from sustainable investing? November 1, 2021 We have all heard the story: sustainable funds are in high demand. By the middle of 2021, their assets had reached an unprecedented $2.3 trillion, mainly driven by continued growth in the European fund market (Source: Reuters). Net sales in the first half of 2021 had already overtaken those in 2020, which in turn were more [...]
Five charts which explain what is going on with inflation November 1, 2021 “Output gap”, “bottlenecks”, “core inflation”, “base effects”, “second-round effects” “labour participation rate”. These are some of the key industry terms essential to understanding what’s going on with inflation. Soaring job vacancies reflect the strong economic recovery of the world’s major economies, as Covid-19 induced restrictions have been gradually eased. Shortages of materials, energy and transport [...]
Which stock markets look cheap? November 1, 2021 The last time I wrote an update of stock market valuations was back in January. A great deal has happened in the world since then, but from a valuations standpoint, precious little has changed. Nothing is cheap. And the markets which were most expensive in January are still the most expensive. And those which were relatively [...]
Can UK handle a rate rise as economy rebounds? November 1, 2021 The UK economy grew by 0.4% in the month of August after latest estimates showed GDP contracted in July by 0.1%. July was disrupted by a spike in infections and tougher restrictions on self-isolation and testing for anyone in contact with those testing positive for Covid-19. This was known as the “pingdemic”, referring to the [...]
Beyond GDP growth: why natural capital matters November 1, 2021 As the climate crisis accelerates, financial markets are paying more attention to risks and opportunities stemming from the energy transition, taking into consideration the risks related to fossil fuel production and consumption. While decarbonising the production mix and promoting energy efficiency is essential to fight climate change, we think that markets are underestimating the fundamental [...]
Supply chain breakdowns continue to drag on UK manufacturing November 1, 2021 Supply chain breakdowns continue to drag the UK manufacturing industry down, but greenshoots of stronger growth are emerging. Delays in deliveries for crucial materials, compounded by worker and skills shortages drove slower output growth among British manufacturing firms, a closely watched survey has found. IHS Markit’s latest purchasing managers’ index for the UK manufacturing industry [...]
