How to lose money: Our flawed fixation on the safety of cash is losing us billions every year June 7, 2015 Savers in the UK rely far too heavily on cash. Between us, we have an astonishing £729bn sitting in savings accounts of various kinds, and it’s been earning only around 1 per cent a year on average since 2009. Fifty per cent of that money is in instant access accounts earning less than half that. The [...]
Can a currency save an economy? What the UK example teaches us June 2, 2015 Much has been said of global currency wars in the past few years. If there has been such a war, then arguably the UK fired the opening shot with a trade-weighted depreciation in the value of the pound of nearly 30 per cent between the summer of 2007 and the end of 2008. This was [...]
London mayor elections 2016: Diane Abbott launches bid to become Labour candidate – and the next Boris Johnson May 13, 2015 In the race to replace Boris Johnson as mayor of London, Diane Abbott has officially launched her campaign to gain Labour's backing as the party's candidate in the 2016 election. The veteran MP, who was re-elected as representative for Hackney and Stoke Newington with a comfortable majority in this General Election, is seeking to replace Boris Johnson, [...]
Can companies thrive in times of uncertainty? May 6, 2015 Resilience lets firms turn disruptions into new opportunities. We live in an increasingly interconnected and volatile world, so companies can find it hard to anticipate risky events that can cause significant financial losses. From minor shipment delays and weather disruptions to a major crisis like Ebola, it’s clear that things can often go wrong. [...]
Behold the era of market meddling: Whoever wins the General Election, the age of intervention is upon us April 23, 2015 In the run up to every General Election, the business community voices its concerns over what a Labour government would mean for UK plc. There is the regular letter to The Telegraph, signed by 100 business leaders, in a show of support for the Conservatives. There is much worry, and some hysteria too. Many readers [...]
Greens’ boy band just the latest in long history of bonkers broadcasts April 8, 2015 THE GREEN party launched a somewhat eyebrow-raising election broadcast last night, with David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage depicted as a rather bizarre boy band. Visit cityam.com/electionvideos to watch the video in all its glory, where we also dissect some of history’s equally odd party political broadcasts. There’s John Cleese urging voters to back [...]
Asset bubbles may be forming but rapid rate hikes would only jeopardise growth March 24, 2015 Everybody seems to agree on the need for full employment and price stability. But these objectives leave central bankers with a perennial dilemma when managing an economy: act too soon in normalising monetary policy and they’ll prevent the attainment of full employment; act too late and they’ll damage price stability. It is less a matter [...]
Why the public finances may improve even faster than the Budget forecasts March 18, 2015 The chancellor delivered an astute Budget yesterday. Some politically safe revenue raising measures (a raid on the banks, a further crackdown on tax avoidance and evasion, and a reduction in the lifetime allowance for pensions) raised enough money to pay for some politically popular giveaways: an increase in personal income tax allowances, a new tax [...]
Budget 2015: Here are George Osborne’s best quotes plus his Budget speech in full March 18, 2015 George Osborne's final Budget during this parliament had few surprises but plenty of great quips, including – to the dismay of bookies everywhere – a quip about Ed Miliband's now-infamous second kitchen. Here's a selection of our favourites from today's big speech. (Source: Getty/City A.M.) (Source: Getty/City A.M) (Source: Getty/City A.M.) [...]
Amazing Spaces’ George Clarke on how to deal with empty homes March 12, 2015 Last week, over a thousand City workers stood at the bottom of Tower 42’s monumental staircase and thought, “Why did I sign up for this?” Joining them was City A.M.’s digital team and architect-turned-TV personality George Clarke, who reached the top of the skyscraper in a very respectable nine minutes and 29 seconds, all in [...]