S&P 500 dips after its long winning streak January 28, 2013 THE S&P 500 eased slightly yesterday after an eight-day run of gains, while the Nasdaq edged higher as Apple shares rebounded. The index remained above 1,500, however, after closing above that level on Friday for the first time in more than five years. The S&P 500’s eight sessions of gains was its longest winning streak [...]
Austerity can’t have hurt UK growth because austerity hasn’t yet begun January 28, 2013 IN ORDINARY parlance, “austerity” means a period of cutbacks, spending reductions, and debt being paid down. So when voters hear talk of government austerity, most of them assume that’s what the government is doing. When they hear (a few) economists saying that weak growth has resulted from “austerity”, voters think cuts to public sector pay [...]
The failure of QE isn’t an excuse for further Bank of England experiments January 28, 2013 QUANTITATIVE easing (QE) is like macroeconomic doping. America is like Lance Armstrong.” Or so a British journalist overheard at Davos. Relative to the size of the economy, of course, the UK is a more likely Armstrong than the US. Central bank asset purchases here have been about 25 per cent of GDP, compared to less [...]
HS2 cost-benefit is a worrying mix of naive projections January 28, 2013 BACK in the 1840s, almost the entire rail network we use today was built over just one decade. Yesterday, the government set out the route that its proposed new high speed rail line – known as HS2 – will take to Leeds and Manchester. It wants to build this new line in two decades. Is [...]
The Debate: Should banks be concerned by the amount of bad debt sitting on their balance sheets? January 28, 2013 YES Michael Ingram There is too much debt in our banking system, and not enough growth to service it. While a degree of forbearance by banks is desirable – to consumers and companies – it is toxic in the long term. If this continues, we run the risk of ending up like Japan, where low growth [...]
Letters to the editor January 28, 2013 Effective cuts [Re: The state is still growing – this isn’t the right kind of austerity, yesterday] The coalition’s failure to make any real dent into the deficit is indicative of its failure to undertake any meaningful reform of the state and its functions. We’ve seen salami-slicing – costs squeezed down and some salaries cut. [...]
The UK equity explosion: Safer than it may appear January 28, 2013 THE FTSE posted another day of gains yesterday, continuing what has been a resiliently bullish trend. And while it is probable that we will see a plateauing of the stock rally this week, or even some retracement, the trend is likely to remain intact. This may not be a stock picker’s market, but the global [...]
Carney talks up growth policies January 28, 2013 Chief Market Strategist, Cantor Index LAST week’s desperately disappointing GDP data has attracted comment and consternation from government supporters and critics alike. The fact that GDP fell by 0.3 per cent in the last quarter of 2012 tells us that the UK economy flat-lined over the year. Clearly, the recovery process is teetering on the [...]
The Tipster | Astrazeneca takes its medicine January 28, 2013 INVESTORS are eagerly waiting to hear from AstraZeneca’s new chief executive, when the company reports on Thursday. The new boss has the challenge of reinvigorating the pharma giant after recent investor frustration, and has already shuffled the boardroom. As well as headline numbers, traders will be focusing on the company’s strategy to boost its pipeline [...]
US data looms over stock markets January 28, 2013 But the end of recent rallies could be useful corrective for investors TOO good to be true? That’s the growing worry among US equity investors. Consider that the Dow Jones Industrial Average, up roughly 6 per cent since 1 January, is off to its best start in more than two decades and now sits within [...]
