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What are the next steps for Brexit?
Thursday 19 Dec 2019The big majority secured by prime minister Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party means the UK is almost certain to exit the European Union on 31 January 2020 in an orderly fashion. Attention will then switch to the deal on future trade between the UK and EU. With a 31 December 2020 deadline,...
Premier Oil becomes major short-selling target
Thursday 12 Dec 2019Asia Research & Capital Management, a privately-owned asset management firm based in Hong Kong, has built up one of the largest ever short positions (£132m) in the UK market, targeting oil firm Premier Oil ( PMO ) . Short-selling is betting that a share price will fall. It involves borrowing...
Property sector faces new crisis as dealing in two funds suspended
Thursday 12 Dec 2019The risks associated with open-ended property funds have been brought home to investors again as trading in M&G Property Portfolio (B89X8P6) and Prudential M&G Property Portfolio (0537296) is suspended. These events provide an uncomfortable reminder of the immediate aftermath of the Brexit...
Stock market winners and losers from climate change
Thursday 12 Dec 2019Carmakers switching to electric vehicles and utilities moving to renewable energy could see their market values double in the next five years. That’s according to a study by Vivid Economics, commissioned by the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). The research looked...
Japan’s public pension fund bans short-selling on ESG grounds
Thursday 05 Dec 2019Japan’s public pension fund GPIF, the largest in the world with $733bn of assets, will no longer allow shares to be loaned out from its global equity portfolio according to the Financial Times . Hedge funds and other investors who engage in ‘short selling’, betting that shares will fall, need to ‘...
Black Friday boost for retailers including Boohoo
Thursday 05 Dec 2019Despite expectations Black Friday could prove a damp squib early indications bode well for the UK’s hard-pressed retail sector. According to the latest BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor, like-for-like retail sales increased by 0.4% this November when adjusted to take into account Black Friday and Cyber...
Good and bad: how the Tories and Labour could impact your wealth
Thursday 05 Dec 2019The general election date is nearing, and all the parties have pledged changes that will impact your personal finances. But how will each party’s policies affect your pocket? TAXES The Tory manifesto makes clear that they would raise the threshold at which you pay National Insurance from the...
Investors ‘may only see small UK market bounce’ on a Tory majority win
Thursday 05 Dec 2019The FTSE 250 index may only jump by 5% in a month if there is a Conservative majority after the forthcoming general election, according to predictions by Waverton Investment Management’s chief investment officer William Dinning. This may be viewed as a relatively small increase by many investors...
Activist investor accuses mainstream managers of ‘greenwash’
Thursday 05 Dec 2019Activist investor Chris Hohn, founder and manager of The Children’s Investment fund (TCI), has launched a broadside at the asset management industry for not forcing companies to act on climate change. He also accused BlackRock, the world’s largest money manager, of ‘greenwash’ for not requiring...
What are the prospects for oil prices and big oil firms?
Thursday 05 Dec 2019On 5 and 6 December oil producers’ cartel OPEC and affiliate nation Russia (often given the shorthand OPEC+) will meet to decide whether or not to prolong current production cuts beyond the slated expiration point in March 2020. The level of supply versus demand has a major influence over...