Why Chinese equity crowdfunding is taking its lead from the UK – and what challenges the sector faces March 3, 2016 Despite a relatively slow start, the past two years have seen exponential growth in the Chinese equity crowdfunding sector, and there are indications that it could skyrocket in the 12 months to come. Chinese New Year on 8 February kicked off the Year of the Monkey, but will 2016 be a year of alternative finance [...]
EU referendum: Lord Mandelson warns Brexit would lead to tariffs of up to 20 per cent on UK exports, inflicting “serious damage on competitiveness” March 1, 2016 Labour peer Peter Mandelson has warned Britain leaving the European Union would lead to tariffs of up to 20 per cent on UK exports, inflicting "serious damage on the competitiveness" of some industries. The former European Union trade commissioner said in a speech today that those campaigning for a so-called Brexit are "trying to sell people a fantasy” [...]
EU referendum: Brexit could affect property prices – but the Chinese slowdown and a potential interest rate rise are greater causes for concern February 29, 2016 The date has been set and the die has been cast – after 40 years this June voters will have a chance to decide if Britain should stay in the EU and speculation on the possible impact of a Brexit has reached fever pitch. While politicians, businesses and industry experts are willing to throw their [...]
So-called Chinese Google Baidu sees share price rocket as profit jumps 663 per cent and revenue climbs in fourth quarter February 25, 2016 Shares in Chinese internet giant Baidu have rocketed by 13.13 per cent in after hours trading, after the company reported 663 per cent growth in profit in the final quarter of 2015, up to 24.7bn yuan (£2.7bn) from 3.2bn yuan in the same period of 2014. The group,sometimes referred to as China's Google, also posted revenue [...]
City Airport sold to consortium of Canadian and Kuwaiti investors led by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Borealis Infrastructure February 25, 2016 City Airport has been sold to a consortium made up of Canadian and Kuwaiti investors, led by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Borealis Infrastructure, for around £2bn. The group also includes AimCo and the infrastructure investment vehicle owned by the sovereign wealth fund of Kuwait, Wren House. It beat out bids from Chinese airline owner [...]
Back to the drawing board: Chinese shares on track for their biggest fall since January as oil drags down Shenzhen Composite and Shanghai Composite indices February 25, 2016 Chinese shares were down more than six per cent in afternoon trading, their biggest fall since the end of January, as oil lost gains made in recent days. The Shanghai Composite was more than six per cent lower, at 2,750 points, in mid-afternoon trading in China, while the tech-focused Shenzhen Composite was 6.5 per cent down, [...]
The 21st century liquidity trap: Our only way out is for policy-makers to end their austerity policies and restart QE policies February 24, 2016 The 2008 crisis started with a solvency problem that led on to a liquidity problem, which resulted in an economic slump. Today, we start from a liquidity problem that is causing an economic problem, which may ultimately lead on to a solvency problem. Global liquidity is becoming ‘trapped’, an idea first popularised by John Maynard [...]
InterContinental Hotels Group share price climbs on $1.5bn special dividend February 23, 2016 InterContinental Hotels' share price jumped 4.7 per cent this morning as the group revealed plans for a $1.5bn (£1.1bn) special dividend. The figures Group revenues for the year to 31 December dropped three per cent to $1.8bn, slightly lower than the $1.83bn that was expected, but fee revenue was up seven per cent to $1.35bn. Operating [...]
Metal prices soar on fears of supply shortage: Zinc, iron ore, copper all climb higher February 22, 2016 Fears over a supply shortage have pushed up the price of base metals, with zinc hitting four month highs. On the London Metal Exchange (LME) the price of three-month zinc hit an intraday peak of $1,790 a tonne, up over two per cent, the highest price since late October. It closed at $1,781 a tonne, after [...]
West End residential sales jump despite stamp duty fears, says CBRE February 22, 2016 CBRE said it has seen no let-up in demand for homes in London’s West End despite concerns over stamp duty reforms and that overseas demand may be slowing. A third of homes (33 per cent) sold by CBRE in the fourth quarter reached prices of more than £2,250 per square feet, which was 23 per [...]