Jeremy Corbyn’s beloved Venezuela is sinking further into the socialist abyss May 8, 2017 The definition of a fanatic is someone who doesn’t let the facts get in the way of their theories. By this standard, hapless, gormless Jeremy Corbyn is truly (if serenely) living in another galaxy. Heroes are important and Corbyn is crystal clear that Hugo Chavez and his charismatic, populist, socialist Bolivarian movement – long in [...]
Saving for a £1m Isa: How the sums have changed March 29, 2017 British savers have grown used to getting an annual increase in the amount they can tuck away in a tax-efficient Isa. But the increase this year is far bigger than usual. In the new tax year, which starts on 6 April, the allowance will increase from £15,240 to £20,000. This changes the sums for those [...]
Consumer spending growth heading for four-year low as wages stagnate March 20, 2017 Real earnings growth is forecast to be up just 0.1 per cent in 2017, slowing sharply from 1.8 per cent in 2016. As a consequence consumer spending will rise by only 1.7 per cent, its weakest rate since 2013, according to the EY ITEM Club. Last year saw a 12-year high of 3.1 per cent [...]
How inflation helps ‘value investing’ March 17, 2017 ‘Value investing’ has been resurgent since last summer, as explained here. Inflation can help this type of investing. Kevin Murphy, an author on The Value Perspective blog, explains why. At the very end of last year, in our post Three important investment lessons to take from 2016, we noted in passing that President Trump’s intention to [...]
This stock market index rose 289% but could still be good value March 17, 2017 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 in a [...]
Why does inflation tend to be good news for value investing? March 17, 2017 ‘Value investing’ has been resurgent since last summer, as explained here. Inflation can help this type of investing. Kevin Murphy, an author onThe Value Perspective blog, explains why. At the very end of last year, in our post Three important investment lessons to take from 2016, we noted in passing that President Trump’s intention to [...]
Sainsbury’s share price dips after it warns of “uncertain” inflation impact and “competitive” conditions as retail sales decline March 16, 2017 Sainsbury’s reported retail sales excluding fuel fell in the last quarter and said it faced an “uncertain” impact from rising costs and warned the market environment remains competitive. Shares in Sainsbury's dipped as markets opened to lows of 263p, but recovered some of their gains to a loss of around one per cent at the [...]
Sterling falls to lowest since before Theresa May’s Brexit speech as Lords vote looms March 7, 2017 Sterling fell to its lowest value since mid-January ahead of the resumption of voting in the House of Lords on the government’s bill on Article 50. The pound fell below $1.22 against the US dollar on Tuesday morning for the first time since 17 January, when Prime Minister Theresa May announced the UK would leave [...]
Supermarket sales grew at their fastest rate since June 2014 in the last 12 weeks March 7, 2017 Supermarket sales were growing at their fastest rate since June 2014 over the past three months as inflation started to bump up prices for key items such as tea, butter and fish. According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, supermarket sales grew by 2.3 per cent year-on-year for the 12 weeks ending 26 February. Kantar said [...]
Retail sales fell in February as non-food retail sales decline for first time since 2011 according to early indicator March 7, 2017 Retail sales fell in February as non-food purchases recorded their first quarterly decline in more than five years, a survey ahead of official data shows. Like-for-like sales fell by 0.4 per cent compared to February 2016, according to the retail sales monitor reported by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG, despite food sales rising [...]