Gold demand in third quarter weakest for eight years November 9, 2017 Gold demand dropped to an eight-year low in the third quarter as flows into exchange-traded funds (ETFs) weakened and jewellery demand in India dragged. Demand for the yellow metal fell by nine per cent year-on-year to 915 tonnes, according to data published today by the World Gold Council (WGC). ETFs inflows added 144 tonnes of [...]
Brexit and the City: Unpicking 10 myths that refuse to die as the City grapples with the vote to leave November 6, 2017 More than a year after the vote to leave the European Union, the debate is still raging over the potential impact of Brexit on the City of London – although it is often dominated more by heat than light. This is a short attempt to put some of the zombie myths from both sides of [...]
President Xi’s economic aim and the China Dream October 27, 2017 Following the opening of the 19th National People's Congress in Beijing, our chief economic strategist Gerard Lyons gave his personal view on President Xi's main speech. Our investment committee keeps fully abreast of global affairs, both in terms of the opportunities they offer and the wider implications. The Chinese NPC is a political gathering and [...]
Chinese owner of Edinburgh-based Skyscanner plans to open a call centre in the city creating up to 200 jobs October 23, 2017 The Chinese owner of Edinburgh-based travel search site Skyscanner plans to open a call centre in the city, creating up to 200 jobs over the next few years. Ctrip is the second largest online travel agent in the world and the largest in China. Founded in 1999 by James Liang, Neil Shen, Min Fan and [...]
China’s paradoxical growth plan is still attractive for global funds: Why President Xi’s pursuit of unity as well as expansion is working for now October 23, 2017 When President Xi first gained the position of President of China five years ago there was considerable western enthusiasm. He came across as a keen reformer willing to push on with China’s enterprise revolution. He wanted to open China’s markets more to the west, to liberalise foreign exchange, privatise more industry and even introduce more [...]
Bitcoin surge continues as $6,100 mark left behind for new record high October 21, 2017 The US dollar value of bitcoin flew past $6,100 (£4,600) today to hit a new record high as the astonishing acceleration of the cryptocurrency continued. Bitcoin only broke through the $6,000 mark for the first time on Friday afternoon, but a surge of buying quickly pushed its value almost as high as $6,200. One bitcoin [...]
Bitcoin just broke past the $6,000 mark after reports China is rolling back on cryptocurrency ban October 20, 2017 Bitcoin has surged past the $6,000 mark. A tweet by Swiss blogger @Russian_Market attributed the increase to the fact that China has published no further ban on the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin is surging after no further ban published in China— Russian Market (@russian_market) October 20, 2017 The news comes a month after China clamped down on [...]
London’s office market is “highly overvalued” and set for a correction, ratings agency Fitch says October 20, 2017 A leading ratings agency has said London’s overvalued office market is set for a correction next year due to Brexit uncertainty. Fitch Ratings said the core London office market had cooled since the Brexit vote last year, but it remains “highly overvalued”. “Tight office supply has supported prices to some extent, while sterling’s weakness has [...]
Everything Under Heaven: Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road could cement China as the world’s superpower October 19, 2017 “Everything under heaven is in utter chaos; the situation is excellent,” wrote Mao Zedong in his little red book. With every crisis comes opportunity, he thought. The motto is as apt today as it was half a century ago. As an increasingly isolated America crawls from the world stage, the EU grapples with internal conflicts. [...]
RBS chairman Howard Davies: Banks set to trigger Brexit contingency plans in March 2018 without details of transitional period October 8, 2017 The chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland has said he’s not concerned that the government has taken its “eye of the ball” when it comes to Brexit amid continued in-fighting in Theresa May’s government. But Howard Davies warned that “some” jobs at the bank will go and that the damage of leaving the EU on [...]