Winners and losers from the great bond market crash of 2013 September 5, 2013 DON’T say you weren’t warned. The great bond market crash is upon us and it has further to go. The cost at which the US, UK and some other governments can borrow is shooting up, with the 10-year gilt and the 10-year Treasury bond both breaching the symbolic 3 per cent yesterday. Mark Carney and [...]
UK’s rebound is becoming a major headache for Mark Carney September 4, 2013 COULD Mark Carney’s luck have already run out? Given that he has only been governor of the Bank of England since July, it may sound churlish even to ask such a question. But the timing of his revolutionary announcement that interest rates would stay on hold for three years – barring a spike in inflation [...]
UK economy continues to accelerate – but dangers loom large September 3, 2013 ECONOMISTS can be divided into two groups: the overly optimistic, and the overly pessimistic. Even less helpfully, they keep changing category, in tandem with the economic cycle. Few saw the recession coming and were subsequently forced to slash their forecasts; most underestimated the depth and duration of the crisis; and today most are being caught [...]
Vodafone rides into an uncertain future after Verizon sale September 2, 2013 The sun was shining brightly yesterday on the first proper day back to work after the summer holidays and unless you were leaving a parked car in the shadow of the Walkie Talkie building in Eastcheap that had to be a good thing. The financial markets were in fine fettle too, with the FTSE 100 [...]
Football’s big spenders get ready for a final day’s shopping September 1, 2013 THE countdown to the football transfer deadline, which is at 23.00 tonight, promises much in terms of excitement and intrigue. Fuelled by a massive increase in broadcast revenues – Premier League clubs will share out £1.6bn, compared to £1.06bn last year – the country’s wealthiest owners are falling over each other to add to their [...]
Cameron will look back on this vote as a political blessing August 29, 2013 SO THE heir to Blair, who seemed so keen to intervene in Syria, has been stopped in his tracks. Prime Minister David Cameron came home early from his holiday to persuade parliament of the need for action against Syria and in the end received a bloody nose himself. It might not look great for him [...]
Financial markets wobble as government delays Syria vote August 28, 2013 As MPs here and politicians around the world discuss the increasing probability of military intervention in Syria, there was a timely reminder yesterday that deciding whether or not to take action is the easy part. Ten years ago Parliament voted in favour of intervention in Iraq and the years since then have seen a tremendous [...]
Foxtons leads way as London awaits batch of new issues August 27, 2013 THERE are still a few days of the summer holidays left for some, but yesterday felt like a proper beginning of term day for the rest of us. For one thing, David Cameron returned from his Cornwall holiday to call for the return of Parliament tomorrow to consider the merits of military intervention in [...]
Ocado and Sports Direct: better to arrive late than not at all August 26, 2013 Whenever bankers are asked to explain why London’s market for new issues – the IPO market – nearly collapsed altogether last year, they cite a number of factors that always include the poor performance of a number of high-profile flotations. The lists are long and varied but almost everybody’s bete noirs include Sports Direct, Mike [...]
There’s much to get the juices flowing as autumn beckons August 22, 2013 THE COMING of the August Bank Holiday traditionally heralds the end of summer and by Tuesday morning, the return to work for many of us begins. This year, the early positioning of the holiday weekend means for many there will be a few extra days off, delaying slightly the time before London becomes fully crowded [...]
