Welcome back.
In this week’s MoneyWeek magazine, we’re concentrating on inflation. Merryn talks to the Bank of England’s outgoing chief economist, Andy Haldane, who explains why price rises might prove rather more stubborn than many people think. We’ve also got a feature on how to buy into emerging markets – notoriously difficult – by using UK stocks as a proxy. If you’re not already a subscriber, sign up now.
This week’s “Too Embarrassed To Ask” looks at “zombie companies” - a term you may well have heard in this low-interest-rate environment. You can watch that here.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
We’ve another big hitter on the MoneyWeek Podcast this week. Merryn talks to Jim Mellon, one of our favourite investment gurus. Jim explains what he’s buying – a lot of UK stocks – and why, with plenty of tips for you to investigate. They also talk about Big Tech (and why he’s not buying that), Big Oil (and why he is buying that), plus why Jim believes that the future of meat and dairy production lies not on the farm, but in the lab. Find out everything he has to say here.
Here are the links for this week’s editions of Money Morning and other web articles you may have missed:
- Monday Money Morning: The central bank race for digital currencies is hotting up
- Tuesday Money Morning: What will pop the UK's house price bubble?
- Merryn’s blog: Private equity isn’t evil, it’s just doing what traditional investors should be doing
Web article: What the FCA’s “ban” on Binance means for cryptocurrencies - Wednesday Money Morning: Inflation? A Covid relapse? Markets are trying to work out what’s coming next
Web article: Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest to launch bitcoin ETF - Thursday Money Morning: The US dollar is in a bull market. That’s bad news for most assets
- Friday Money Morning: Record M&A activity is usually a toppy sign – what does it mean today?
- Cryptocurrency roundup: Binance “ban” and a bitcoin ETF
Now for the charts of the week.
The charts that matter
Gold continued to trade in a range.
(Gold: three months)
The US dollar index (DXY – a measure of the strength of the dollar against a basket of the currencies of its major trading partners) perked back up in the latest leg of its bull run. That’s not good for any other assets, says Dominic.
(DXY: three months)
Dollar strength was reflected in the Chinese yuan (or renminbi) – when the red line is rising, the dollar is strengthening while the yuan is weakening.
(Chinese yuan to the US dollar: since 25 Jun 2019)
The yield on the ten-year US government bond continued to drift slowly down.
(Ten-year US Treasury yield: three months)
The yield on the Japanese ten-year bond turned sharply down.
(Ten-year Japanese government bond yield: three months)
And the yield on the ten-year German Bund slipped, too.
(Ten-year Bund yield: three months)
Copper continued to slip, reflecting broader commodity-price weakness (oil excepted).
(Copper: nine months)
The closely-related Aussie dollar followed copper down.
(Aussie dollar vs US dollar exchange rate: three months)
Bitcoin continued to slip lower. Regulators are cracking down, says Saloni, which could dent the price further.
(Bitcoin: three months)
US weekly initial jobless claims fell by 51,000 to 364,000, the lowest since 14 March 2020. The four-week moving average fell by 6,000 to 392,750.
(US initial jobless claims, four-week moving average: since Jan 2020)
The oil price wavered a little, but its bull run is intact.
(Brent crude oil: three months)
Amazon slipped further.
(Amazon: three months)
But Tesla held on to its previous week’s gains.
(Tesla: three months)
Have a great weekend.
-
Tesla seeks approval to supply electricity to UK homes – could it disrupt the energy market?Tesla has applied for a license to supply UK households with electricity, but taking on the biggest providers could prove challenging
-
Most Brits unaware onshore bonds can help beat inheritance tax – here’s howA little-known perk of certain types of bonds can let your loved ones off the hook when it comes to inheritance tax – but two-thirds of people have never heard of them
-
Live: Bank of England holds UK interest rates at 4.5%The Bank of England voted to hold UK interest rates at their current level of 4.5% in March, as widely anticipated, after inflation rose to 3% in January
-
Bank of England cuts interest rates to 4.5%: full updates and analysisThe Bank of England voted to reduce the base rate by 25 basis points at the first MPC meeting of the year on 6 February. Full coverage as it happened from the team at MoneyWeek.
-
December interest rates: Bank of England keeps rates on holdThe Bank of England kept interest rates on hold at 4.75% in the final Monetary Policy Committee meeting of 2024. Full analysis from the MoneyWeek team.
-
Bank of England cuts interest rates to 4.75% – MPC meetingReporting from the Monetary Policy Committee November meeting. Full coverage, as it happened, from the team at MoneyWeek.
-
Inflation drops below Bank of England target for first time in over three yearsUK inflation slowed to 1.7% in September, boosting the chance of a more aggressive approach to interest rate cuts from the Bank of England
-
Bank of England holds interest rates at 5%The decision was widely expected, after the Bank of England warned interest rates would have to “remain restrictive for sufficiently long”
-
Keeping up with the Bank of England – how rates and inflation impact your financesIgnorance is not bliss when it comes to your personal finances. Here’s why you should follow what the Bank of England is up to.
-
Bank of England cuts interest rates for first time since 2020The Bank of England voted to end pain for households and businesses today, cutting interest rates for the first time in over four years
