A tale of two economies: Data to show slower UK GDP growth as European Central Bank acknowledges Eurozone boom January 21, 2018 Economists expect new government data this week to show UK growth slowed down last year, as the European Central Bank (ECB) adjusts to a Eurozone pulling further away in a tale of two economies. Forecasts collected by the Treasury show independent economists expect GDP growth to hit 1.7 per cent for 2017 overall in figures [...]
Investors set to receive £34m in compensation from misleading “closet tracker” fund managers March 4, 2018 Investors who may have been misled into paying higher fees are set to get £34m in compensation from asset managers. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that a number of firms were returning money to investors, though not in any official FCA-backed scheme, after the watchdog launched a crackdown on “closet tracker” funds. These are [...]
Activist investor Edward Bramson’s Sherborne Investors takes five per cent stake in Barclays sending share price higher March 19, 2018 Shares in Barclays rose this morning after activist investor Edward Bramson’s firm Sherborne confirmed it had taken a five per cent stake in the bank. Barclays share price was up more than four per cent in morning trading on the news. Bramson has been an investor for a while, but his stake has now topped [...]
Jupiter vice chair Edward Bonham Carter says asset managers are on the cusp of a revolution, as regulation remains a worry according to a PwC survey March 14, 2018 The vice chairman of London-listed Jupiter Fund Management has said the asset management industry is on the “cusp of a significant change”. Speaking at an event this morning hosted by Byhiras, a fintech firm which provides accountability and transparency across the industry, Edward Bonham Carter said that financial technology and machine learning would play a [...]
‘Trump could be the best president since Reagan’: US ambassador Woody Johnson on trade deals, tariffs, Brexit and London’s ‘surprisingly good’ restaurants March 13, 2018 Six months into his term as Donald Trump’s ambassador to the UK, and newly installed south of the river in a fortress-like embassy, Woody Johnson is enjoying himself. “I’m loving it,” he tells me, in his first interview with a business newspaper since arriving in London last August. At a reception for journalists in the [...]
Tech and Brexit: The challenges and opportunities facing the FTSE 100 April 25, 2018 The challenges that are facing the blue chip businesses forming the FTSE 100 index have been laid bare by a new survey from global legal services firm DWF. The 2018 “City of London: Blueprint for Growth” report contains polling results from 150 c-suite executives from FTSE 100 companies, across a range of business sectors and [...]
Shadow MPC: After the historic hike, Bank of England should hold fire December 13, 2017 Last month the Bank of England raised interest rates for the first time in a decade – a momentous, if expected, moment. After the storm, the calm. It’s no surprise that our shadow monetary policy committee (MPC) has overwhelming voted against raising interest rates at this meeting, arguing the Bank needs to be cautious about [...]
Last Week in the City: Amazon buys a pharmacy June 29, 2018 Garry White, chief investment commentator, looks at the market-moving events that have shaped the UK equity markets this week (25 to 29 June 2018). The FTSE 100 traded little over the week, despite a rally in oil prices. There was more bad news from the retail sector after The John Lewis Partnership warned on profits [...]
UK GDP: Sterling (GBP) rises as the economy grows at faster than expected rate but consumer spending worries persist December 22, 2017 The UK economy has grown at a faster than expected rate over the last 12 months, according to official figures released today. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) revised its estimate for third quarter year-on-year growth from 1.5 to 1.7 per cent. Growth over the three months to September was 0.4 per cent, unrevised from [...]
Fitness challenge: four years on – The new fitness techniques that helped turn our Life&Style editor into a gym bro August 8, 2018 Four years ago I wrote an article about getting fit. For 10 weeks I went to the gym a lot, gave up booze, ate well, and got a hearty spray tan. I looked pretty good, in a ‘didn’t-quite-make-it-to-the-final-round-of-applicants-for-Love-Island’ kind of way. People still ask about it. For a while the story would appear on the [...]