Global equity markets have taken a significant hit this week, as investors started to take news of COVID-19 spreading beyond China to the rest of the world more seriously. We thought it would be a good time to consider the…
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The Senior Management and Certification Regime (SMRC) came into force on 9 December 2020 for wealth management firms. From this date, financial advisers (CF30s are now known as Certified Persons) and will no longer be listed on the Financial Conduct…
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Concerns over the spread of the coronavirus are escalating as the death toll has jumped to 81 with 2,744 confirmed cases worldwide (as of 27th January). Travel restrictions on about 40 million people around Wuhan, in the Hubei province of…
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Investment returns have been predominantly very good since the turn of 2019 with significant growth in both equity and bond markets. Despite these returns, it has not felt like a bull market due to so many impending uncertainties. Stock markets…
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In late November, US stock markets hit new highs, buoyed by the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates, trade deal optimism, improved Q3 earnings and positive job growth numbers. The rise in stock values was a result of the Fed cutting…
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The S&P 500 index has gained 23% since the beginning of 2019 driven mostly by the on-going easing of monetary policy by the Fed. This easing has supported the rise in the price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) as earnings per share over…
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Tourists are avoiding Hong Kong and retailers are feeling the heavy consequences of the five months of protests that have dealt a devastating blow for business in Hong Kong. The violent unrest has pushed the economy to the edge of…
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Official GDP data from Japan shows that its economy slowed from 2.2% annual growth in Q1 2019 to 1.3% in Q2. This slowdown however did not deter Prime Minister Shinzo Abe from implementing his twice delayed VAT increases in October.…
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The Eurozone has underperformed amongst the major economies. Europe is slowing on the back of weak industrial and trade data. Germany, which is dependent upon trade, is at risk of falling into a technical recession due to its exposure to…
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