AI’s threat to traditional banking models September 14, 2017 Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things are now defining the future of our economy. The effect of these technologies, made possible by the colossal volumes of data we are able to collect and process, has been described as the “fourth industrial revolution”. There are hundreds of ways businesses can apply AI to [...]
New Queensferry Crossing creating a catalyst for investment September 13, 2017 The royal opening of the Queensferry Crossing, signalled the successful culmination of the biggest infrastructure project in Scotland for a generation. Exactly 53 years since Her Majesty opened the adjacent Forth Road Bridge, The Queen officially cut the ribbon to open the £1.35bn Queensferry Crossing on Monday 4 September 2017. World-class engineering The new iconic [...]
On Your Bike – the Best Cycling Apps September 12, 2017 Ever since Bradley Wiggins kick started the UK's dominance of professional cycling in 2012, the sport has seen massive growth in this country. Five years on and the UK still dominates with Chris Froome recently becoming the first man to win the Tour De France and the Vuelta a Espana in the same year. On [...]
London retains financial services crown: City extends lead over New York, Hong Kong and Singapore in international ranking by Z/Yen September 11, 2017 London has maintained its position as the world’s number one global financial centre, according to a major international study out today, extending its lead over rivals New York, Hong Kong and Singapore. However, City chiefs have warned that London’s supremacy will come under threat if the government does not secure the right kind of Brexit [...]
Lost for words: The indie bookshop has weathered many storms, from the rise of Amazon to rising rents. But its future has never looked so perilous September 7, 2017 Prospero’s Books stood on Crouch End Broadway for 10 years. I remember it, though not well. The bookshops of my childhood memories are all vaguely similar – they were places where I’d be both happy and bored. To hear locals tell it, there wasn’t any sign that Prospero’s was in trouble. It seemed to plod [...]
Solar, bitcoin, tech, Tesla and tea: seven important investment charts from August September 5, 2017 Each month, writers at Schroders pull together the most intriguing charts of the month. Solar production eclipsed (briefly) The US came to a standstill on 21 August as people looked skyward to witness a remarkable solar eclipse. But as the moon blocked the sun it also temporarily blocked solar energy production. California aims to generate [...]
Big Data will make or break the businesses of the next decade August 31, 2017 To survive the next decade, businesses will need to be able to utilise Big Data. Buzzword or not, it’s probably the most important feature of the fourth industrial revolution, a new economic asset that will define the near future of commercial evolution. Structured data has been used by companies for a long time, but Big [...]
The future of shopping malls and what it means for property investors August 30, 2017 The growth of e-commerce is reshaping the retail world. Online sales have been growing globally at an annual rate of close to 25% in recent years. This holds ramifications for the world’s shopping centres and malls as retailers re-evaluate their ‘bricks and mortar’ store strategies. Investors in commercial real estate funds, which often own retail [...]
Is it still possible to find value in retail stocks? August 23, 2017 With the wider market so clearly out-of-love with the retail sector in general, it should come as no surprise that so many of its members are now flashing up as being of potential interest to value investors. On our Value Perspective blog, we certainly anticipate spending a lot of our time over the coming months [...]
Amazon: Is this the end for ‘old-school’ retailers? August 22, 2017 If you are a regular reader of the financial press, you could be forgiven for thinking some kind of corporate serial killer is currently on the loose. On an almost daily basis, fresh obituaries appear for retail businesses and there is a strong consensus on who is to blame – the global phenomenon that is [...]