London markets dragged down by tax hikes as City mulls impact on portfolios September 8, 2021 The wave of tax hikes launched by prime minister Boris Johnson weighed on London markets today as investors mulled the implications of higher dividend taxes on their portfolios. The capital’s premier index dropped 0.75 per cent to close at 7,095.53 points, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 slid 1.03 per cent to 23,848.89 points. Markets were [...]
US stocks scale to new heights … again September 2, 2021 Wall Street’s main benchmarks scaled to new record highs once again today, as investors brace for an expected bumper jobs report tomorrow. The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq both hit new peaks today, but pulled back slightly heading into the early afternoon session. The former was up 0.38 per cent to 4,541.45 points and [...]
Barratt profits soar on red hot UK housing market September 2, 2021 A red hot UK housing market drove profits at housebuilder Barratt Developments up sharply over the last year, according to fresh results published today. The housebuilder posted a 65.1 per cent surge in pre-tax profits for the year-ended 30 June, reaching £812.2m, up from £491.8m in the previous year. Despite the recovery in net earnings [...]
US stocks muted as Powell moves to temper inflation fears July 14, 2021 US stocks were broadly flat on Wednesday morning after Fed Chair Jay Powell suggested that inflation could run hot in the coming months. The blue-chip S&P 500 edged up 0.08 per cent, while the Dow Jones added 0.01 per cent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.02 per cent during the morning session. Read more: Powell: US [...]
Barratt expects higher profits as home completions increase July 14, 2021 Barratt expects profits to be at the “top end” of market expectations, it announced this morning, amid a boom in home completions. The housebuilder delivered 17,243 homes in the year ended 30 June 2021 – 5,000 more than the year before, according to the company’s trading update. Despite the pandemic Barratt built more homes than [...]
5 Myths about Women and Investing June 29, 2021 I recently participated in a lively podcast with two fellow women in investing, Jane Barratt, who is chief advocacy officer of the fintech MX, and Meredith Jones, author of ‘Women of The Street: Why Female Money Managers Generate Higher Returns’. Our conversation, hosted by alternative investment platform YieldStreet, explored some of the misconceptions about women and investing. These are abridged [...]
Finance boss at Countryside leaves housebuilder to head to rival Barratt June 29, 2021 Mike Scott has resigned from housebuilder Countryside in order to take up the role of chief financial officer (CFO) at UK rival Barratt Developments. Both UK housebuilders simultaneously announced the move this morning, which sees Scott end a seven-year stint at Countryside, in which he oversaw the group’s IPO in 2016 and acquisition of Westleigh [...]
Queen’s Birthday Honours: the full 2021 list June 12, 2021 Below the full list of names for this year ORDER OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) The Rt. Hon. Frederick Richard Penn Curzon, The Earl Howe. For political and parliamentary service. (Amersham, Buckinghamshire) ORDER OF THE BATH Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) [...]
Wall Street flat but FTSE ticks up as investors await inflation data June 7, 2021 Wall Street’s main indexes were muted this afternoon as investors stayed on the fence ahead of key inflation data this week, while tech stocks shrugged off a G7 agreement on a new global corporate tax minimum. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 dipped 0.46 and 0.26 per cent respectively by early evening trading. [...]
Housebuilder stocks soar as property prices climb another £3,000 to new record high June 7, 2021 House prices in the UK rose again last month by around £3,000, bringing the average property price up to a record high of £261,743. May’s 1.3 per cent price increase means the average home in the UK has increased by more than £22,000 – or 9.5 per cent – in the last 12 months, according [...]