Investors are gloomy about the prospect of a Brexit deal, but that means that the worst scenarios are already in the price, Jason Hollands of wealth manager Tilney tells The Times. UK investors have deserted their own stockmarket en masse since June 2016, with £11.47bn of net inflows into global equity funds, saysHugo Cox in the same paper. That has significantly increased their exposure to America and the dollar in particular.
Meanwhile, it's interesting to note that for all the Brexit fuss, the MSCI United Kingdom All Cap index has "been the least volatile of any stockmarket index in the world since 2016", says Harry Brennan in The Daily Telegraph. The strong presence of multinationals such as Unilever on the London market has shielded investors. These firms make over 70% of their sales overseas and their international perspective eclipses domestic turbulence.
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British stocks are also ona cyclically adjusted price/earnings ratio (Cape) of 16, cheaper than Europe and a bargain compared with America. As we noted in acover story earlier this month, Cape is a good indicator of long-term returns.
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Steve Webb: The triple lock is there to do a job. I’m not embarrassed or ashamed of itThe triple lock means 13 million pensioners will now get an above-inflation state pension boost in April. While the rising cost of the policy has stirred controversy, Steve Webb, who served as pensions minister when it was introduced, argues the triple lock is vital and should stay. Webb speaks to Kalpana Fitzpatrick on the new episode of MoneyWeek Talks – out now.
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How retirement pots risk running out 11 years early if inflation remains highPension savers could find their retirement income may not last as long as they anticipated over fears that inflation may not slow down
