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Markets unmoved by lockdown easing delay
Thursday 17 Jun 2021The delay in easing lockdown restrictions in England from 21 June to 19 July has caused consternation among many business sectors, but if the stock market’s reaction to the news is anything to go by, it doesn’t matter much to the UK’s listed companies. Both the FTSE 100 and more domestically-...
Space the new frontier for investors as ETF and investment trust launch
Thursday 17 Jun 2021The addition to the London market of an investment trust and an exchange-traded fund which invest in companies involved in space activities reflect the theme’s move into the mainstream. Seraphim Space Investment Trust is hoping to raise £150 million to launch the world’s first listed fund investing...
GlaxoSmithKline to spin-off £30 billion consumer healthcare arm in 2022
Thursday 17 Jun 2021Global pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline ( GSK ) plans to demerge its consumer healthcare division by August 2022 and give investors a direct stake in the some of the world’s most iconic consumer brands. While details are still sketchy, the head of the division Brian McNamara told the...
Regulator tells companies to prioritise pensions over dividends
Thursday 17 Jun 2021Companies with large defined benefit pension deficits have been warned by The Pensions Regulator that dividends might have been to put on hold if they are under financial pressure amid efforts to recover from the pandemic. Less than 200 pension schemes have asked to reduce or postpone their deficit...
Record job additions not sparking inflation fears yet
Thursday 17 Jun 2021News (15 Jun) that a record 197,000 people had joined the workforce in May, as the re-opening of non-essential retail and other venues sparked a rush to hire, didn’t contribute to any immediate ratcheting up of inflation or rate hike fears. The increase marks the sixth consecutive month of job...
Chip shortages set to continue into 2022
Thursday 10 Jun 2021Semiconductor designers and manufacturers have warned that the global semiconductor shortage could run into 2022 or even 2023 despite billions being spent on new fabrication capacity. TSMC, or Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Intel and Nvidia have all said they expected the crisis to...
Why ‘meme stocks’ are surging once more
Thursday 10 Jun 2021The boom in the so-called ‘meme stocks’ AMC Entertainment, Gamestop and Blackberry first seen in January and February 2021 looks like it could be repeating itself. Shares in all three have rallied since the last week of May and are once again closing in on peaks reached at the end of January after...
What a reopening delay would mean for stocks
Thursday 10 Jun 2021The latest official figures show new coronavirus cases rising at their fastest rate since March 2021 due to the more transmissible ‘Delta’ variant which is putting pressure on the government to choose between leaving some measures in place after June 21 or postponing so-called Freedom Day by a...
Staffing crisis hits multiple sectors
Thursday 10 Jun 2021After suffering cruelly during the pandemic, with thousands of venues closing permanently and most of those that survived racking up horrendous debts, the hospitality industry now faces another crisis: a lack of staff. And the wider dynamics in the labour market, affecting all sectors, could add to...
Spiralling housing demand causes price spikes in building materials
Thursday 03 Jun 2021The associated impact of the surging housing market is a growing shortage of building products and raw materials, leading to cost inflation. There is a risk this could undermine the current boom in the home renovation market and hit the housebuilders which are currently riding the wave of positive...