The FTSE 100 is not the best-performing major stock index in the world this year ? that honour lies with Japan?s Nikkei 225, which is up by 12% in local currency terms ? but the UK?s premier benchmark is (finally) setting new all-time highs, at least when measured in sterling. The picture does not look quite so rosy in US dollars and while this can be used as a pretext to cavil it can also be a fu

Canadian General Investments (CGI) £21.70Market cap: £450 millionAn unusually wide 41% discount to NAV (net asset value) presents a compelling entry point into Toronto- and London-listed Canadian General Investments (CGI), a trust with a formidable long-run track record. The cavernous discount provides investors with broad exposure to the Canadian equity market and a winning total return strateg

London?s FTSE 100 rose on Thursday morning, despite doubts over the timing of US Federal Reserve interest rate cuts still lingering, while gold reached another record high.The FTSE 100 index opened up 18.52 points, 0.2%, at 7,955.96. The FTSE 250 was up 34.02 points, 0.2%, at 19,787.66, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.82 of a point, 0.1%, at 742.90.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 795.53, the Cboe UK

This column is being written just before the next meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee on 20 March and the working premise is that chair Jay Powell and his colleagues at the US Federal Reserve will leave the headline interest rate unchanged at 5.50%. If that does not turn out to the case then readers can immediately turn over the page, not least to spare the writer?s blushes.That caveat as

Stock markets have been making new all-time highs in the US, Europe and Japan and investors are asking whether they are witnessing a new global bull market for stocks which began in November 2023.Momentum is a powerful factor in stock markets. Prices tend to trend in the same direction which mean buying winners and selling losers can be a profitable strategy.It is not only about price but also ear

Stock prices in London opened largely higher on Tuesday morning, with TP ICAP topping the FTSE 250 as it mulls a minority float of its Parameta Solutions arm, while pet care firms struggled amid UK watchdog scrutiny.The FTSE 100 index rose 59.85 points, 0.8%, to 7,729.08. The FTSE 250 climbed 34.28 points, 0.2%, at 19,564.37, though the AIM All-Share fell 2.09 points, 0.3%, at 736.19.The Cboe UK 1

City of London most bought in FebruaryScottish Mortgage most sold last monthAI winner Nvidia tops stock buysInvestors across the AJ Bell platform have been piling into popular City of London (CTY), JP Morgan Global Growth & Income (JGGI) in February and selling Scottish Mortgage (SMT) and Smithson Investment Trust (SSON).Overall, 11.44% of all buy deals placed on the AJ Bell platform were for City

Portfolio independently valuedNo dividends in prospectFirm in litigation with founder and adviserShares in music royalties firm Hipgnosis Songs Fund (SONG) slid 15% to a new all-time low of 54p after an independent assessment of its portfolio chopped 26% off the valuation.In response, the firm said it would divert its free cash flow to paying down its debt and there would be no dividends ?for the

The annual Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B:NYSE) shareholder letter is eagerly awaited by investors looking for insights and clues into Warren Buffett?s next big move.This year?s missive throws a bucket of cold water on the idea of finding businesses to buy which might be ?transformational? for Berkshire, whose market capitalisation is closing in on $1 trillion.?There remain only a handful of companies

hVIVO directors sell shares ?to meet demand?Greencore director buys £50,000 sharesCathal Friel, co-founder and chairman of infectious and respiratory diseases company hVIVO (HVO:AIM), sold 25,937,909 shares at 28p for a total value of £7,262,615 on 14 February.Brendan Buckley, non-executive of the company, sold 4,017,269 also at 28p for a total value of £1,124,835 on the same day.Therefore the

Back in the summer of 2021, we suggested the Chinese government?s clampdown on technology companies and its deeper involvement in the private sector ? which it accused of having been ?hijacked by capital? ? risked causing an exodus of foreign investment. We also put forward a list of Asia-Pacific investment companies with low exposure to China, so investors could reduce their risk but still keep t

Sale to net Tesco £700 millionDeal seen as earning-enhancingSurplus cash to boost buybackHigh-street lender Barclays (BARC) has signed a 10-year strategic deal with supermarket giant Tesco (TSCO) to provide customers with supermarket-branded banking products and services.As part of the agreement, Barclays will pay Tesco £600 million for its banking operations in loans, savings and credit cards p

Stock falls nearly 18% to 519p and a third of its value in 2023Total hammer value and gross merchandise value pressuredPeel Hunt sees potential if macro headwinds taperWorries about slowing growth are putting the squeeze on investor hopes for Auction Technology (ATG) as TMV (total hammer value) weakens. The London-based online auction operator said the economic environment has become ?more challen

Considering companies which invest in insolvency litigation cases are meant to be anti-cyclical, winning when the economy goes into a downturn, by rights Manolete Partners (MANO:AIM) should have cleaned up during the pandemic as the number of struggling businesses soared.However, much to the firm's chagrin, the opposite scenario unfolded - tens of thousands of struggling firms were saved from goin

Saving for the future is not always front of mind for most people which is understandable given the cost-of-living crisis and the need to balance household budgets.This is a shame because the sooner an investor can get started the better their chances are of building a decent nest egg. In this article we show how you can go from a starting point of investing £200 per month, building up your contr

China growth worries meant the FTSE 100 started the week on the back foot, while the pound achieved further gains, as dollar weakness persisted.Inflation readings from the US and eurozone, in the form of personal consumption expenditures and consumer price index readings respectively, are among the major risk events for equity markets this week.If both come in hotter-than-expected on Thursday, inv

Middle East sales down 20%Adjusted profits rise 17%Refinancing a positive catalyst for penny stockNow a specialist global franchise business, having shuttered its remaining UK stores before the Covid pandemic struck, cost-cutting helped Mothercare (MTC:AIM) deliver a 17% increase in adjusted pre-tax profit for the half to 23 September 2023.Unfortunately, shares in the mother and baby products bran

There have been several notable moves in the markets since the start of the month as US stocks markets chalked-up their biggest weekly gains of the year in the week ending 3 November. The benchmark S&P 500 gained 6% and the technology heavy Nasdaq Composite index was up 6.5%.In Europe and the UK stock indices were not as strong but still ended up between 2% and 3%. Meanwhile bond markets registere

When debating what kind of portfolio is going to be best suited to an environment of 'higher-for-longer' interest rates, looking at past periods of high rates provides a partial guide.In the UK interest rates were high and stayed high pretty much from the start of the 1960s all the way through to 1990 and during that period not only were rates in double digits but so was inflation. The difference

It is a year to the 60th US presidential Election, on 5 November 2024, and although financial markets are more concerned right now about events in the Middle East, the oil price and inflation right now, they will soon start to take a keener interest in the race to the White House.Incumbent Joseph R. Biden will start his campaign for the Democratic Party's nomination in January with the Iowa caucus