US stocks suffer worst week in a decade as ‘Santa rout’ sends Nasdaq into bear market December 22, 2018 Wall Street suffered its worst week in a decade as a “Santa rout” plunged the Nasdaq into bear market territory last night. The Nasdaq fell three per cent on another volatile day’s trading and has now fallen almost 22 per cent from its 29 August high. The S&P 500 dropped 2.1 per cent and is [...]
FTSE 100 recovers from two-year lows as ‘Santa rout’ hits US markets December 21, 2018 The FTSE closed slightly up at 6,721 points after recovering from a slide caused by a “Santa rout” on Wall Street and Donald Trump threatening a US government shutdown. The blue chip index plunged to a fresh two-year low of 6,653 as President Donald Trump threatened a “very long” government shutdown over funding for his border wall. [...]
Why cryptocurrencies are here to stay December 21, 2018 If common perception is to be believed, we’re currently watching the death of cryptocurrencies. Without doubt, there is cause for some concern. This year has been terrible for speculators, with a deeply entrenched bear market taking hold, and the price of bitcoin falling by around 80 per cent. The year also hasn’t resulted in the envisaged uptake [...]
Bear markets: Lessons from history December 21, 2018 | Sponsored Simon Edelsten, manager of the Artemis Global Select Fund and the Mid Wynd International Investment Trust, asks what history can tell us about bear markets… There are many who claim an ability to anticipate the next correction, whether through fundamentals, charts, or the fact that their taxi driver has started offering stock tips. Others take [...]
Brexit the top concern for UK investors December 21, 2018 | City Talk Investor concerns about Brexit have soared in 2018 according to Schroders’ annual Adviser Survey, completed by more than 400 financial advisers from across the UK. A remarkable 90% of advisers said that the impact of Brexit was a concern for their clients for the next 12 months, up from 81% in 2017 and 71% in [...]
The UK’s ‘Brexit-proof’ tech startups land Christmas number one for European funding December 20, 2018 British tech firms brought in more funding from venture capital firms than any other country in Europe in 2018, as well as achieving the highest amount of exits. Startups in the UK attracted £6.3bn in venture backing this year, according to new figures released today by Tech Nation and Dealroom. In the same period, the [...]
Outsourcer Kier Group’s lenders face underwriting headache after rights issue flounders December 20, 2018 Kier Group’s shares were down 6.49 per cent today after it admitted investors only bought 38 per cent of the new shares it had issued as part of a fundraising effort. The beleaguered outsourcer's banks will now be forced to fork out millions to buy shares in Kier, after some of its biggest investors opted [...]
Oil prices hit new 14-month low after global selloff December 20, 2018 Oil prices fell to another 14-month low earlier today as markets worried a slowdown in the US economy could hit demand. The Brent crude standard dropped over four per cent to breach the $55 per barrel mark, landing as low as $54.82. Speculators were spooked after international markets fell on the US Federal Reserve’s decision [...]
FTSE 100 falls to lowest level since August 2016 as US Fed sparks global selloff December 20, 2018 The FTSE 100 has fallen to its lowest level since August 2016 this morning as a market selloff sparked by the Fed’s decision to raise interest rates spread to the UK. US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell hiked rates to a range of 2.25-2.5 per cent – the highest level in a decade, despite vocal [...]
Kier leads the FTSE’s morning fallers after investors shun call for cash December 20, 2018 Shares in outsourcing group Kier fell by almost 15 per cent as markets opened this morning, after the firm revealed that investors only bought 38 per cent of the new shares it had issued as part of a fundraising effort. Kier announced last month that it would turn to the market in a heavily-discounted share [...]