Global Stock markets have dipped significantly in the past few weeks as fears over global economies and falling inflation hit shares and drove up bond prices. Reports of the slowdown in growth in the US, disappointment over the health of the economy in Europe, concerns about a slowdown in Asia, as well as the threat
Read MoreToday, the Bank of England (BoE) released its latest quarterly Inflation Report, which updates its projections for inflation and the wider UK economy. Overall, the report did not make significant changes to either the Bank’s inflation forecasts or its expectations for UK economic growth. It did, however, reflect on market expectations that the UK interest
Read More2014 is likely to be a year of transition for both the developed and the emerging world. In the developed economies, there are somewhat tentative signs that economic recovery is gathering pace with monetary policy in the United States becoming less available. This is the so-called tapering process. In the emerging world, by contrast, economic
Read MoreWith so many pressures on us and information being available on managing your finances from seemingly everyone, including the proverbial ‘man down the pub’, we took some time to identify some of the key areas that could be improved when we are planning our finances. Have a look through and see how many apply to
Read MoreYou may be aware from media or other communications of a radical change in the way that investment fund managers’ report their charges for investing your money. We felt it was important to explain what was happening in simple English, so here goes……. What’s happened? Traditionally, when you invested into an investment fund, you will
Read MoreWhat are economic cycles and how do they affect me? One of the frequent themes that impacts upon the tactics and longer term strategy when investing, is identifying where we are in the economic cycle. Despite the turmoil and in some instances, capitulation over recent years, the economic cycles are a known and lucid part
Read MoreAs a new tax year rolls around, you should note that there are quite a few changes to the allowances you can claim to help improve the tax efficiency of your financial affairs. Of course, to our clients we are on hand to advise about these and ensure that in combination they work to the
Read MoreI tuned in last night to Channel 4’s ‘Do you trust your Bank?’ In case you didn’t see it, the programme focussed on the recent activities of some of our high street banks that have recently come to light. We were acquainted with the story of a recently retired couple who had downsized their main residence
Read MoreToday’s news that the UK has crept back into recession should be no surprise to anyone who has kept reasonably well informed about developing events connected to the global economic crisis. A technical recession is triggered after two quarters of negative GDP (Gross Domestic Product) within our economy. Stock Markets haven’t fallen today. Why not?
Read MoreWell what can I say when I read a certain news item recently. ‘A collector paid £360 on eBay for a single type of Snowdrop bulb’ The Snowdrop collecting fashion has taken off. Pardon?!! This sounds very familiar, was it only last autumn that I wrote the article on ‘Tulipmania’. Can it be that tulips
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