Shares and the stockmarket

How positive earnings and dividend momentum underpin FTSE 100’s gains

At the time of writing the FTSE 100 sits just above the 7,300 mark, a fraction below the new record-highs north of 7,400 reached earlier...

Thu, 23/03/2017 - 14:09

What to look for as the fund management industry continues to consolidate

The initial flurry of excitement regarding Standard Life’s plan to acquire Aberdeen Asset Management for £3.8 billion in stock is fading, as...

Fri, 17/03/2017 - 13:11

Spring budget 2017: a round up

Given that Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond had already declared his intention to move the Budget from Spring to Autumn no-one was expecting him...

Thu, 09/03/2017 - 16:31

Retailers face up to the twin threats of a weak pound and ‘peak stuff’

The first fall in non-food retail sales for six years in the three months to February, according to data from the BRC-KPMG monthly survey (7...

Thu, 09/03/2017 - 11:55

Big house builders need to reassure on growth

In these income-starved times of record-low interest rates and depressed bond yields it is hard to believe that a FTSE 100 stock would barely move...

Thu, 02/03/2017 - 13:33

Investors in FTSE 100 banks face a choice between growth and yield

Deadlines mean this document must be written just before Friday’s full-year results from RBS and Standard Chartered but the figures published from the...

Thu, 23/02/2017 - 16:30

Why the big lenders banks remain a bankable indicator for the wider health of markets

One of this column’s key themes for 2017 is the health of UK banks and why this is important to any investors with exposure to...

Tue, 14/02/2017 - 15:05

How to tell whether the yield curve is about to throw the markets a fastball

For all of their ongoing enthusiasm for the reflationary ‘Trump’ trade, stock markets have stopped going up and bond markets have stopped going down on...

Thu, 09/02/2017 - 10:40

Time to see whether the “three steps and a stumble” rule will apply or not in 2017

While markets were spot on when they put just a 4% chance on a rate rise from the US Federal Reserve at its first policy...

Fri, 03/02/2017 - 13:21

How to assess whether China will offer anything to crow about in the Year of the Rooster

First of all this column would like to wish all of its regular readers kung hei fat choi, offering good wishes as China’s Year of...

Thu, 26/01/2017 - 16:57

Pages