by Alexander Fordham | Feb 22, 2019
The eurozone is having a dreadful year so far and figures released yesterday will do nothing to calm the nerves of those concerned about the economy. The PMI surveys from Markit showed that the eurozone’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly contracted in February,...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 22, 2019
The latest public sector net borrowing figures showed that the budget surplus widened to a record £15.76 billion last month. The surplus is largely down to a sharp increase of income and capital gains tax receipts, which were up by 14%. The reading was much better...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 22, 2019
There was some good news for Chancellor Philip Hammond yesterday, as figures released showed that UK public finances hit a record surplus in January. The latest public sector net borrowing figures showed that the budget surplus widened to £15.76 billion last month...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 21, 2019
It was a mixed day for the US, as we saw initial jobless claims fall by a whopping 23,000 to 216,000 up to 16 February. The markets had been expecting a figure of 229,000. The Markit services PMI reading came in better than expected by rising to 56.2 in February from...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 21, 2019
The main release from the US yesterday was the latest FOMC meeting minutes. Having said that, there were no real surprises from the minutes, as they generally supported sentiments expressed in January. Fed officials are still closely monitoring key market factors,...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 21, 2019
The only release of note from the eurozone yesterday was the flash consumer confidence reading for February. Last time around, the figure came in at a disappointing -7.9 and the markets had been expecting a very slight increase to -7.8. However, the figure actually...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 21, 2019
(Former) Conservative MPs Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston and Heidi Allen resigned from the Tory party yesterday to join forces with the seven (former) Labour MPs in the newly formed Independent Group. All ten are refusing to hold by-elections to see if the people who...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 21, 2019
Just two days after seven MPs resigned from the Labour party, three Tory MPs followed suit to join the newly formed Independent Group. Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston and Heidi Allen all gave slightly different reasons for leaving the Conservative party. Allen criticised...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 20, 2019
With no major economic data releases on yesterday’s schedule, the stock markets understandably dominated headlines from across the pond. The S&P 500 lost 7.5 points at the opening bell, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped by 44 points. The tech-heavy...
by Alexander Fordham | Feb 20, 2019
Yet another carmaker announced British job cuts yesterday, with Honda set to close its Swindon plant in 2021. There is some disagreement on whether Brexit is to blame but, if it isn’t, long is the list of companies withdrawing investment from the UK in the past couple...
