Pulling dead weight through March 1, 2011 EUROPE’S strongest man is Lithuanian this year. But its strongest economy is clearly German. The two have more in common than you think. Both are breaking records and are familiar with lugging around dead weight. The German economy has been pumping out positive figures. Yesterday it announced that unemployment fell to a 19-year low and [...]
TRADING THE NEWS IN JUST FOUR STEPS March 1, 2011 CONSULTING ANALYST, INTERTRADER Formal education doesn’t help you become a good trader. My own mentor told me that “you only see what you have trained your eyes to see.” This short run-through is an insight into how I have trained my eyes to trade news-driven markets. Step 1: First duty every morning is to check [...]
Companies stuck in the Middle East mayhem must act swiftly March 1, 2011 WHILE the headlines from north Africa and the Middle East speak of the human toll and the fate of Britons, the threat to British companies who have contracts in the region which generate substantial revenue remain near the top of company agendas. Having spent 30 years working in Middle Eastern business and law, including in [...]
Lawyers on boards would benefit City March 1, 2011 THE corporate headlines last week focused on women being overlooked for board positions in FTSE companies. They’re not alone: other than as general counsel there’s a similar paucity of lawyers. Presumably female solicitors don’t have any chance at all. This is pretty curious given the many skills that lawyers can add, most notably a willingness [...]
CASE STUDIES| NEWS FROM THE COURTS THIS WEEK March 1, 2011 BGC/TULLETT PREBON APPEAL FAILS The Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal by interdealer broker BGC over its poaching of staff from rival Tullett Prebon. When the CEO of Tullett, Tony Verrier, joined BGC from Tullett Prebon he tried to persuade 13 brokers to go with him. Ten joined but three stayed with Tullett. The [...]
Wait for the pop before profiting from deflation February 28, 2011 EVERYONE has amazing hindsight. To those who go on about the dotcom boom or the credit bubble as being obvious, you should ask how much they made shorting it. The answer is inveterately that they made none. Today as I write there are several bubbles: China for instance. The idea that China is a bubble [...]
EQUITIES DROP IN THE FACE OF OIL PRICE RISE February 28, 2011 LAST week provided a reminder that equities can go down as well as up. Although the sell-off was small in percentage terms, it has been a long time since the major global stock indices experienced a number of successive losing days. The pull-back was triggered by strength in the oil price. Brent crude finished up [...]
You shouldn’t be scared of the fear index February 28, 2011 THIS week has seen a drop in volatility in the markets from the tempestuous times of last month. Six days ago, at the height of the tensions in Libya, the Volatility Index (VIX) hit 22.13 per cent, the highest point seen in 3 months. Despite the fact that it may seem to those concentrating on [...]
THE TIPSTER February 28, 2011 BEING one of the main safe investments, gold is on the up again after its recent correction. With concerns in the Middle East still prominent and ongoing talk of inflation, the demand for the metal is still high. The all-time high was $1,423.75 in December 2010 but with the situation still fragile, we may very [...]
Positive momentum to continue as oil fears lessen February 27, 2011 THE fighting in Libya was a dominant theme for the markets last week, and is set to continue to be so, with Saudi Arabia’s pledge to bridge any shortfalls in oil production stabilising crude prices and likely to provide some underpin to stock markets at least for the open today. Assuming the London Stock Exchange [...]
