City of London braces for coronavirus: Banks, insurers and audit firms activate contingency plans March 5, 2020 With health secretary Matt Hancock warning that the UK should prepare for “widespread transmission” of coronavirus, City of London firms have braced for impact. Banks, insurers, law firms and accountancy giants have dusted off contingency plans, instituted travel bans and cancelled events to try and mitigate the effects of the coronavirus outbreak. HSBC and Deloitte [...]
Coronavirus: the economic impact March 5, 2020 The coronavirus threatens to derail the revival in global economic growth which began in the latter part of 2019. Economic indicators up to January continued to show an improvement in activity with business surveys signalling rising orders and output. However, confidence in the sustainability of the upswing has been undermined by the virus, officially known [...]
IMF provides $50bn for countries hit by coronavirus outbreak March 5, 2020 The International Monetary Fund has announced $50bn (£39bn) of emergency funding for countries hit by the coronavirus epidemic. The IMF warned last night that the Covid-19 outbreak, which has reached 70 of the organisation’s 189 member countries, has already pushed global growth for 2020 below last year’s level. “Global growth in 2020 will dip below [...]
New Bank governor seems open to battle of ideas March 5, 2020 Andrew Bailey will take the governor’s seat at the Bank of England later this month amid a global health emergency that threatens to undermine the world economy and shape the Bank’s course of action for many months to come. So pressing is the issue that Bailey has effectively started work early, telling the Treasury Select [...]
Investors demand companies manage climate change risk ahead of AGM season March 5, 2020 Investment managers will demand to know what companies are doing to manage climate change in this year’s AGM season. The Investment Association (IA), whose members own one third of the value of UK listed companies, is asking companies to report the impact of climate change will have on their business model and how it will [...]
Next Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey: Firms should expect coronavirus help March 4, 2020 The next Bank of England governor has said Threadneedle Street and the government is likely to provide loans to small and medium-sized firms to help them deal with supply chain disruptions from the coronavirus outbreak. Andrew Bailey told MPs that coronavirus was “going to be the first most pressing issue that we face”. He added [...]
Andrew Bailey says he is ‘proud’ of record as FCA chief March 4, 2020 The incoming Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has defended his record as head of the City watchdog, saying he is “proud of what we’ve achieved” but “not proud of some things that happened”. Critics say Bailey did not deal adequately with a number of financial scandals that occurred on his watch as chief executive [...]
FCA admits seven funds breached ‘trash ratio’ March 4, 2020 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has revealed the extent to which UK fund managers breached European rules designed to limit liquidity issues behind high-profile scandals. Regulators across Europe have scrutinised how closely fund managers adhere to Ucits fund rules that limit holdings in unquoted securities to 10 per cent of their portfolio. Responding to a [...]
UK coronavirus: Brits don face masks (and Tesco bags) on public transport March 4, 2020 British commuters are taking the UK coronavirus threat seriously, it appears, donning heavy duty face masks – and Tesco bags – on Tube trains and buses. A man on a London Underground train appeared to decide to keep himself safe on his commute to work by donning a serious-looking gas mask, along with thick rubber [...]
UK bond yields hit all-time low on coronavirus fears March 4, 2020 UK government bond yields have fallen to an all-time low after the economic threat of coronavirus led the US Federal Reserve to slash interest rates, a move traders increasingly think the Bank of England will copy. The yield on the 10-year UK Gilt touched 0.335 per cent this morning as investors rushed to buy one [...]