Merryn Somerset Webb
Merryn Somerset Webb started her career in Tokyo at public broadcaster NHK before becoming a Japanese equity broker at what was then Warburgs. She went on to work at SBC and UBS without moving from her desk in Kamiyacho (it was the age of mergers).
After five years in Japan she returned to work in the UK at Paribas. This soon became BNP Paribas. Again, no desk move was required. On leaving the City, Merryn helped The Week magazine with its City pages before becoming the launch editor of MoneyWeek in 2000 and taking on columns first in the Sunday Times and then in 2009 in the Financial Times
Twenty years on, MoneyWeek is the best-selling financial magazine in the UK. Merryn was its Editor in Chief until 2022. She is now a senior columnist at Bloomberg and host of the Merryn Talks Money podcast - but still writes for Moneyweek monthly.
Merryn is also is a non executive director of two investment trusts – BlackRock Throgmorton, and the Murray Income Investment Trust.
Latest articles by Merryn Somerset Webb
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Why the Deliveroo IPO is good for shareholder democracy
Opinion Deliveroo’s stockmarket listing isn’t perfect, but at least ordinary investors can get a slice of the action. There’s been far too little of that lately, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
We almost ditched this investment trust from our model portfolio. We’re glad we didn’t
Opinion We were worried that Lord Rothschild’s departure from RIT Capital Partners would mean it turning into a bog standard multi-asset fund. Thankfully, says Merryn Somerset Webb, that’s not the case at all.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
The MoneyWeek model portfolio: the top-six investment trusts to put in your Isa
Tips MoneyWeek’s favourite investment trusts are top-notch long-term choices for your portfolio
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Tips -
Should we get ready for a post-pandemic baby boom?
Editor's letter Birth rates across the developed world collapsed as people locked themselves away. Hopefully that won't last, says Merryn Somerset Webb. There's nothing like the end of a crisis to make people feel like making babies.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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If you’re looking for an “ESG” investment, why not try oil stocks?
Opinion Investors looking to have their money do good shouldn’t sell out of miners and fossil-fuel companies, says Merryn Somerset Webb. That will just leave them in the hands of people who don’t care about doing good at all.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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Markets do look bubbly – but not all of them
Editor's letter There are bits of the market that have been looking very toppy for a long time now. But that doesn’t mean all stockmarkets everywhere are in trouble.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Editor's letter -
Rishi Sunak’s recovery budget may look good but it is based on stealthy tax rises
Analysis The chancellor outlined his vision of the post-Covid-19 economy this week. Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek look at what it means for your money.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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A change in stockmarket rules will benefit us all
Editor's letter The “SPAC” boom all the rage in the US is passing the UK’s stricter stockmarket by. A change in the rules would be good for everyone, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Editor's letter -
Why the classic 60/40 investment portfolio may no longer work
Analysis The dramatic events in the bond market have thrown into question the classic investment strategy of the last 40 years. An investment portfolio made up of 60% equities and 40% bonds may no longer work. Merryn Somerset Webb explains why.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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Neil Woodford’s back – but has he really learned anything?
Opinion Disgraced fund manager Neil Woodford is planning a comeback. But he doesn’t seem to have learned much from his many mistakes. So why would anyone invest with him now?
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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A contrarian take on ESG investing: buy coal
Editor's letter The best way to take advantage of today’s ESG and clean energy enthusiasm is not to invest in the clean energy stocks everyone loves, says Merryn Somerset Webb, but in the old, dirty ones.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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Passive investors beware: you may be dangerously overexposed to big tech stocks
Opinion Most investors in index funds are likely to be dangerously over-invested in US stocks, and particularly in a few huge tech stocks. It’s time to think about your asset allocation, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
Are you prepared to have your savings put into compulsory “recovery bonds”?
Editor's letter The pandemic has put a huge hole in public finances – while bolstering many of the country's savings. Could one be used to bail out the other? Merryn Somerset Webb ponders the possibilities.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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How to buy into the next big commodities bull market
Opinion Commodity prices move in cycles. And we’re at the start of the next big uptrend as a shortage in supply hits a surge in demand. Merryn Somerset Webb picks the best ways to buy in.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
How the GameStop squeeze put the fun back into markets
Editor's letter One of the fun things about Reddit’s pursuit of GameStop short sellers it is the way it allows everyone to see what they want to see, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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How the Reddit mob could be good for shareholder capitalism
Opinion The small investors of Reddit have very little hope of truly sticking it to Wall Street. But their new-found power could ultimately teach chief executives where the money they blithely think of as theirs really comes from.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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Bubbles are all different – and all the same
Editor's letter No matter what you’ve got a bubble in, their structure is always the same, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Right now, we’re in the “mania” phase.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Editor's letter -
Joe Biden’s spending spree will lift American spirits and markets – but it comes with a sting in the tail
Opinion New US president Joe Biden is planning to throw trillions of dollars in stimulus at his country’s economy. Markets will love that. But it comes with a catch, says Merryn Somerset Webb: rampant inflation.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
Why bonds may not be the safe haven they once were
Editor's letter “De-risking” by shifting your portfolio into bonds used to make sense. But not so much any more, says Merryn Somerset Webb. So what should you do instead?
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Editor's letter -
Why we won’t see a house-price crash in 2021
Opinion Lockdown sent house prices berserk as cooped up home-workers fled for bigger properties in the country. And while they won’t rise quite as much this year, they’re not going to crash, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Here’s why.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
US stocks are obviously in a bubble. But is it a rational bubble?
Editor's letter Everyone wants to know if the US stockmarket is in a bubble. But that is the wrong question, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Of course it’s a bubble. The real question is: is it a rational one?
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
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Should you buy into the bitcoin boom, or stick with gold?
Opinion People and financial institutions are piling into bitcoin, many hoping it will hedge against relentless money creation and currency debasement. Merryn Somerset Webb asks whether it’s worth buying this new digital gold, or to stick with the old, tried and tested one.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Opinion -
If this is a bubble, what’s going to prick it?
Editor's letter The US stockmarket crash might not come this year. But all indicators say it will happen at some point.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Editor's letter -
Why investors can’t afford to ignore Japanese stocks
Tips Japan boasts the broadest market outside the US, replete with cash-rich, resilient companies that have battled their way through 30 years of deflation, says Merryn Somerset Webb. And it hasn’t been this cheap in years.
By Merryn Somerset Webb Published
Tips