Defending champion Spieth soars, Europeans threaten and world No1 Day wilts in opening round of Masters at Augusta April 8, 2016 Unflappable reigning champion Jordan Spieth defied his recent form to make a blistering start to his Masters defence with a flawless six-under-par opening round of 66 at Augusta National yesterday. Spieth holds a two-shot lead from Ireland’s Shane Lowry and Danny Lee of New Zealand after a bogey-free round, while world No3 Rory McIlroy is [...]
US economy is about to be “swept away by a tidal wave of corporate default”, roars Societe Generale uber bear April 7, 2016 A Societe Generale analyst has predicted the US economy is about to be “swept away by a tidal wave of corporate default”. Albert Edwards has not shied away from bearish comments in the past and has been dubbed an "uber bear". In February 2014, amid turmoil in emerging markets, he described the unravelling as "the final tweet of [...]
China’s foreign currency reserves have just grown for the first time in six months April 7, 2016 China has recorded a surprise jump in its foreign currency reserves in March, potentially ending a slide which has seen its stash of overseas cash fall by 20 per cent since 2014. Official data – out today – confirmed that China amassed an extra $100bn last month, taking its total reserves to $3.21 trillion (£2.28bn), in [...]
US Federal Reserve looks abroad as it finds reasons to hold back on interest rate rises April 6, 2016 A weak global economy and volatility on the financial markets stopped the US Federal Reserve from raising interesting rates for only the second time since the financial crisis last month. Minutes from March’s meeting of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), released this evening, showed that even though the US jobs market continued to perform [...]
Masters prize money 2016: How much can Jordan Spieth, Jason Day and Rory McIlroy win in Augusta? April 5, 2016 Not only does winning the Masters seal your name in history, earn you the first Major of the golf season, and reward you with the prestigious Green Jacket – winning it also comes with a seven-figure prize money cheque. A total prize money pool of $10m (£7m) is on offer at the tournament, which could mean [...]
Brent crude and WTI: Oil prices continue to fall as oversupply concerns grow April 5, 2016 Oil prices fell for the second day in a row this week, as weaker demand for petrol fed into concerns that the world's oil producers will be unable to agree a freeze deal. Stronger appetite for petrol in both North America and Asia has helped put a floor under Brent crude prices which have tumbled around 70 [...]
Are global markets underestimating the strength of the US economy? April 4, 2016 David Morrison, senior market strategist at Spread Co, says Yes. While GDP growth is somewhat tepid (annualised, the economy grew 1.4 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2015), there is evidence that the US economy is picking up steam. Just last week we saw strong numbers for pending home sales, Chicago PMI and the all-important [...]
Well that was unexpected – US jobless rate rises for the first time in months but non-farm payroll beats expectations April 1, 2016 The US jobless rate rose in March, the first time since May 2015 it has done so – but the number of job openings beat expectations. Unemployment edged back up to five per cent, having dropped to 4.9 per cent last month, while the number of job openings hit 215,000, against forecasts of 205,000. That follows [...]
April Fools Day 2016: From breast milk protein to McDonald’s landing on the moon, here are the best, worst, laziest and weirdest fake tech stories April 1, 2016 When in comes to April 1st, Britain's press officers like to break the boundaries of physics. City A.M. has been drowning in scientific discoveries, technology advancements and new product launches ahead of April Fools, but did any of them catch you out? Food for thought Upmarket takeaway group Deliveroo has pledged to make eating a burrito even easier, as [...]
How the entrepreneurial spirit of the Isles of Scilly produced some pretty amazing food March 30, 2016 Everything about the Isles of Scilly is ever-so-slightly different; not quite English, but not exactly foreign, either. When you walk through the doors of the tiny Land’s End Airport terminal, you’re greeted by a modernist fireplace – giving guests a sample of the islands' comparatively warm climate – hanging artworks and a vista of the [...]