November 2019 saw U.S. stocks benefit from continued speculation surrounding the possibility of a U.S. – China trade deal. Positive comments such as, ‘trade talks progress’ and ‘we’re close to a deal’, blindly pushed U.S. stocks to all time new highs! The DOW, S&P 500 and the Nasdaq all becameRead More →
The Federal Reserve announced on 30th October 2019 an interest rate reduction of 0.25% This will lower the Federal funds target rate to between 1.5% -1.75%. It was also reported earlier Wednesday that third quarter GDP growth rose at a better than expected 1.9% annual rate. The Fed signalled aRead More →
ECB holds rates at 0% and keeps its forward guidance unchanged The European Central Bank (ECB) kept rates unchanged on Thursday, in what marked President Mario Draghi’s last monetary policy meeting before Christine Lagarde takes over. Lower growth The euro zone is seeing lower growth – in part held back by globalRead More →
What is Repo rate and what happened in the U.S. money markets recently Definition: Repo is short for repurchase or repossession. It is the discount rate at which central banks repurchase government securities from the commercial banks. It depends on the level of money supply it decides to maintain inRead More →
It has been reported recently that the U.S. Federal Reserve is pumping billions of dollars into money markets and that we apparently have nothing to worry about? Bank liquidity Do you remember twelve years ago when the first financial crisis cracks started to emerge? One of them being a shortageRead More →
Bitcoin bashed Bitcoin suffered last week falling more than 20% over a seven day stretch, touching a daily low of around $7735 on Friday – lowest level since June. Bitcoin closed Friday 27th at around $8060. Other digital currencies; ether and XRP, were also down on the week. Why the Bitcoin drop? I’mRead More →
The Federal Reserve interest rate decision is due today at: 19:00 BST. The Federal Reserve has a clear mandate from the U.S. Congress to promote maximum employment and to maintain price stability. If inflation is too high, or it thinks it is heading that way, the Fed will raise interestRead More →
Mortgage best buys – fixed term deals – part two You’ll find suggestions here, not recommendations. If you are a first time buyer please seek financial advice before making any decision. In fact, whatever your situation – take financial advice first. The mortgage information supplied is best suited to re-mortgagingRead More →
McAfee My favourite internet security software is McAfee – others are available. TIP – I have always found the best deals are available if you buy the physical product either in store or from an online shop – not by download. (See below). Example deal Argos £5.99 – McAfee TotalRead More →
Mortgage best buys – fixed term deals – part one You’ll only find suggestions here, not recommendations. If you are a first time buyer please seek financial advice before making any decision. The same advice goes to anyone taking out a mortgage. The mortgage information supplied is best suited toRead More →