High global bond yields cause concern – New York Report May 12, 2015 US STOCKS fell yesterday after a recent run-up in global bond yields unsettled investors already concerned about an eventual Federal Reserve interest rate hike. Stocks recovered from steeper losses after Treasury yields slid back slightly from six-month highs. The recent, unexpected leap in yields on US Treasuries and German Bunds has been a thorn in [...]
Polling errors and the financial crisis: Why groupthink is to blame for both May 12, 2015 The election is done and dusted, but many interesting questions remain. Was there a swing to the Conservatives at the very last minute, or was it indeed possible to foresee the victory in advance? Snippets are emerging which suggest that the electorate had made up their minds well before polling day. Rod Liddle, the entertaining [...]
How to trade the notoriously ruthless FTSE All Share – DailyFX Tips & Picks May 11, 2015 WHILE the FTSE All Share Index ended higher in 21 out of the last 29 years, trading the FTSE 100 or FTSE All Share can be ruthless. This is because of the intra-year swings these markets exhibit. But by knowing about these swings, you could use them to your advantage. With the markets tending to [...]
Strong close as global debt worries fade – New York Report May 7, 2015 US stocks ended higher yesterday, helped by a jump in tech stocks and a reversal in surging global interest rates. Strong quarterly results from Alibaba as well as speculation that consumer review website Yelp.com could be for sale drove technology stocks higher, with the S&P tech index up 0.87 per cent. The number of Americans [...]
City pay revolts make a return: Investors are once again feeling uneasy about executive rewards May 6, 2015 Three years on from the so-called “shareholder spring” and listed hedge fund Man Group is again facing murmurs of discontent from investors over pay. The FTSE 250 group, led by chief executive Manny Roman, has put forward a plan to boost executive pay rewards and make it “competitive in the marketplace”. However influential advisory firm [...]
Fed comments weaken stocks – New York Report May 6, 2015 US STOCKS ended weaker yesterday after US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen warned of high valuations, adding to anxiety about future interest rates and a global bond rout. The S&P 500 ended at a low not seen since early April after Yellen said high equity valuations could pose dangers, although she also said she does [...]
With Australia’s central bank the latest to cut interest rates, is the global recovery at risk? May 5, 2015 Steven Feng, a research fellow at Griffith University Asia Institute, says Yes The global economy risks slipping into a deflationary trap. The US recovery is built on shaky ground, the Eurozone faces an imminent threat to its integrity, hopes for supply-side reform in Japan have faded, and China is in de facto deflation. Emerging economies [...]
City brushes off General Election jitters: Markets too pumped up with cheap money for investor fretting April 29, 2015 Fears that London markets could be rocked by the outcome of next week’s General Election have been overstated, analysts said yesterday, arguing that shares will continue to be propped up by global monetary stimulus. Despite an apparent ideological gap between the Tories and Labour, and extremely tight opinion polls, UBS analysts do not expect market [...]
Bernanke becomes bond giant Pimco’s latest major signing April 29, 2015 BEN BERNANKE the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, has joined bond giant Pimco as a senior advisor to the firm. The news comes after he announced last week that he would be advising hedge fund Citadel. He also works full-time for the Brookings Institute. In an interview Bernanke said that he would not be [...]
Investor caution leads FTSE to a three-week low – London Report April 29, 2015 BRITAIN’S top share index slipped to a three-week low yesterday as a slowing US economy and caution before the end of a Federal Reserve policy meeting led some investors to take profits from recent highs. The US reported its economy grew in the first quarter at just a 0.2 per cent annual rate, well below [...]