Brexit not even close to the top spot in list of investors’ top concerns May 31, 2016 Retail investors are shrugging off concerns about the EU referendum, as they turn their attention to bigger events on the horizon. More than nine in ten investors said they could think of an issue which was more worrying than the possibility of Brexit, in new research from The Share Centre. Top of investors' minds was the Chinese [...]
Australia set to auction off bitcoin stash as Chinese demand propels the price higher May 30, 2016 Australia is going to sell off £7.5m worth of bitcoin it confiscated as “proceeds of crime” during 2015. The auction will be the first of its kind outside of the US. Separately, the price of bitcoin has jumped over the last few days after a surge in demand out of China. Read more: Ethereum's value is already up 1,100 [...]
Anglo American’s diamond business De Beers names new chief exec Bruce Cleaver May 27, 2016 Anglo American's De Beers said today it had appointed Bruce Cleaver as chief executive from 1 July. Cleaver will replace Philippe Mellier who decided to step down after five years at the world's biggest diamond producer. Cleaver had been group director of strategy and business development at Anglo. Prior to this, he'd served as exec director for strategy and commercial relationships at [...]
China raises £300m in London as part of first ever overseas RMB bond May 26, 2016 China's finance ministry today issued a three billion yuan (£312m) international bond, its first ever outside China or Hong Kong. The bond, set to be listed on the London Stock Exchange, was managed by HSBC and China's finance ministry. In October last year, China's central bank debuted on London markets with the sale of its first [...]
Should you start hoarding gold? Some say China’s gold ambitions mean you should keep some stashed at home May 26, 2016 China’s decision to buy its second gold storage vault in London last week was another step towards total dominance of the market. The vault is in a secret location and was bought by Chinese state-owned bank ICBC Standard Bank from Barclays. It could store $90bn of gold at today’s prices, and follows the purchase of [...]
Tata Steel still considering bids for its UK assets May 25, 2016 Tata Steel is still considering bids for its loss-making UK business, despite hopes for a shortlist of bidders to be revealed after its board meeting today. The announcement came after Tata execs scrutinised the details of the bids, as well as discussing the British government's support for a potential sale in Mumbai. Finance director, Koushik Chatterjee, subsequently told reporters: [...]
Don’t blame the global slowdown for Brazil’s economic ruin May 25, 2016 If the diverging fortunes of Africa make it palpably clear that the Brics hysteria about the inevitable rise of most emerging markets is intellectual fool’s gold, what is going on in South America definitively drives a stake through the heart of that argument. For yesterday’s darling Brazil continues to fall off the table, just as [...]
America under Trump: What would Donald do to trade, the dollar and investment in the US? May 25, 2016 Donald Trump is the last man standing in the Republican race for the White House. With six months to go until November’s presidential election, it’s almost certain Trump will stand against Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton. A businessman with no political experience, Trump has been pretty vague on policy details and some of his claims are so [...]
China just joined a major blockchain consortium May 24, 2016 A Chinese insurer is the latest business to join the major R3 blockchain consortium and the first financial institution in the country to become a member alongside the likes of Barclays, HSBC and Goldman Sachs. Ping An, the second largest insurance firm in China, has joined the group, which was formed late last year to work on [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open May 24, 2016 China is trying to smooth US trade ties after threats of a tax hike on imports from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and the European Commission could decide today whether to allow ABInBev to buy SABMiller. Here's what you need to know before the open at 2:30pm London time. In the pre-market futures are pointing up. The [...]