Bricks or clicks? Rumours of the high street’s demise have been greatly exaggerated November 28, 2017 The way we shop may have changed markedly over time, but the nation’s appetite for shopping is as voracious as ever. This was shown, once again, in the frenzy around Black Friday and Cyber Monday, now important landmarks in the retail calendar. Early estimates suggest that spending exceeded £7bn. The fundamental shift has been driven [...]
Think locally, invest globally: Why Brexit isn’t the calamity some fear November 1, 2017 A year after the Brexit vote, the UK has managed to avoid a bear market and recession. Still, global diversification remains a key tool for investors. Fifteen months after Brits voted to leave the EU, the UK government is slowly ploughing ahead with Brexit. Invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty in March was the [...]
The gender retirement gap: Why women are more likely to fall into poverty in retirement August 14, 2017 “The retirement issue is the single largest issue we will be facing in the 21st century.” Diane Garnick told participants at the 2017 CFA Institute Wealth Management Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, USA that “when people do not save for retirement, they are in big trouble.” Advisers must be ready to address these concerns. “The big [...]
London Stock Exchange chief executive Xavier Rolet backs FCA review of listing rules that could pave way for Saudi Aramco IPO August 3, 2017 London Stock Exchange boss Xavier Rolet today defended the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) review of listings rules that could pave the way for a Saudi Aramco mega-float. The Institute of Directors this week joined the Investment Association and Royal London Asset Management in speaking out against the proposals, which would ease rules for state-owned companies [...]
The global financial crisis 10 years on: six charts that tell the story July 31, 2017 It is hard to believe but it is 10 years since the start of the global financial crisis. Triggered by a collapse in the US housing market it caused the deepest recession in living memory and the near-collapse of the financial system. Banks failed, government institutions were bailed out, stockmarkets crashed and countries had to [...]
Divorce slices £3,100 off annual retirement incomes and makes it more likely you’ll be laden with debt May 11, 2017 Divorcees can expect substantially lower retirement incomes, according to a study prepared by insurance giant Prudential. Individuals who haven’t been through a divorce can expect pension pots to generate average annual incomes of £19,400, if retiring this year. This compares with divorcees, whose annual retirement income will average £16,300. Prudential pensions specialist Clare Moffat explained [...]
Active versus passive: What Warren Buffett really thinks about passive fund management March 28, 2017 We are all familiar with the famous investment market phrase “in the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine”. Some may know that this is attributed to Benjamin Graham, the British-born US investor, economist and professor recognised as the “father of value investing”. Fewer [...]
The BCC is demanding action over mounting business rate concerns March 6, 2017 Almost 40 per cent of UK firms are more concerned about business rates than three months ago, according to new research. Figures from the British Chambers of Commerce show that business rates (39 per cent) were second only to exchange rates (42 per cent) in the number of firms reporting increased worries. And among small [...]
Budget 2017: Philip Hammond could raise the pensions Lifetime Allowance to fund social care and end inheritance tax discrimination to improve the nation’s finances March 1, 2017 The weeks leading up to George Osborne’s Budget statements were filled with frenzied speculation. Famed for his tinkering, the former chancellor’s Budgets enshrined a number of eye-catching and popular reforms, including landmark pension freedoms, and some not so popular ones, such as a reduction in the amount an individual can put into their pension and [...]
“Rise up”: The full text of Tony Blair’s Open Britain speech on Brexit February 17, 2017 Tony Blair has been absent from British politics for years, now – but today he returned in spectacular style, urging the UK's population to "rise up" against Brexit. Although some (including former deputy PM Nick Clegg) liked it, the majority of reaction has been that he missed the mark. Not sure what you think? Here's [...]