Why UK-focused stocks look their cheapest in a decade March 19, 2018 Uncertainty about the country’s long-term relationship with the European Union, its biggest trading partner, has left many international investors nervous about investing in UK companies. One recent poll showed that UK stocks were the least popular asset class among global fund managers. I disagree. I can see bright spots in the UK stock market that [...]
This stock market index rose 289% but could still be good value March 17, 2018 Over time, smaller company shares have outperformed larger ones, research shows. The FTSE Small Cap index has risen 289% since its nadir in February 2009, compared with a 158% rise for the FTSE 100. Because of their size, “small caps” have the potential to grow more quickly. The quicker a company can grow its earnings [...]
Eurozone inflation dips back down to give European Central Bank further cause to pause February 28, 2018 Inflation in the Eurozone fell back in February as growth in the cost of services fell back in a development which will confirm European Central Bank (ECB) bosses’ hesitance to signal a tightening of policy. Prices grew by 1.2 per cent over the year to February, down from 1.3 per cent in the previous month, [...]
Venezuela is a socialist horror show – time for the British left to admit it February 23, 2018 What do you do if you are a tyrannical leader who has run your country’s economy into the ground, devalued its currency to the point where you can barely afford the paper that banknotes are printed on, and face fierce public and political opposition? If you are President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, the answer is [...]
Stock markets slide and bond yields jump as US inflation surprises on the upside February 14, 2018 US inflation rose faster than expected in January, sending bond yields higher amid fears over central bank tightening which triggered last week’s stocks sell-off. The consumer price index of inflation rose by 2.1 per cent in the year to January, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, faster than the 1.9 per cent expected [...]
The Bank of England will almost certainly hike rates in May February 14, 2018 The question of the next rise in UK interest rates has shifted definitively from if to when. Last week an uncharacteristically hawkish press conference by the Bank of England Governor Mark Carney left the markets in little doubt that it could come as early as May. At the start of the week the probability of [...]
Inflation stays at three per cent despite expectations of a dip February 13, 2018 Consumer price inflation (CPI) remained at three per cent in January, unchanged from the month before, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). CPI is the rate at which the prices of goods and services bought by households rise or fall. CPI including owner occupiers’ housing costs was 2.7 per cent, also unchanged month-on-month. [...]
How will Mark Carney respond to the FTSE 100 sell-off? The shadow MPC votes to hold as market bets on May hike pull back February 7, 2018 Markets have dialled back their bets on a May rate hike from the Bank of England after the massive market sell-off at the start of the week, with Mark Carney due to make his first public statements since the turmoil tomorrow. Investors are currently pricing in a 37 per cent probability of a rate hike [...]
Leisure spending to hold up in 2018 but fails to give boost to struggling eating out industry February 6, 2018 Leisure spending will hold up in the UK this year as millennials flock to the pub. Consumers reported that they expected to spend more on enjoying themselves in 2018, according to Deloitte’s quarterly survey. Spending held up in the final quarter of 2017, especially amongst millennials who drove a resurgence in spending at pubs and [...]
Inflation hit costs British households £24bn in 2017 January 15, 2018 The rising tide of inflation has cost British households an extra £24bn in 2017, with commuters suffering the most, new analysis to be published today will reveal. The increase in inflation seen from 2016 to 2017 cost Britons more than £900 per household, according to Simon-Kucher and Partners, a consultancy. The rise in transport prices [...]