Playtech’s Italian acquisition gets regulatory approval
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Italian gaming regulators have approved FTSE 250 gaming technology outfit Playtech’s (PTEC) €846 million acquisition of Snaitech.
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AstraZeneca ticks up as FDA finally approves new drug
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Shares in drug maker AstraZeneca (AZN) rose had risen by 2.52% to 5,373p at 1100 BST after the US Food and Drug Administration approved Lokelma, which is designed to treat high blood potassium levels.
Evil Diaries
Evil Knievil: Checkit in
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At the last general election, I did not bother to vote since the notion of the Conservatives being upstaged in Kensington struck me as ridiculous. But, unbeknowst to me, the boundaries had been changed. So, Labour won by twenty votes – I was not alone in my idleness. The result is one Emma Jane Coad.…
Opportunity knocks
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Opportunity knocked at the open today since 888 (LON:888) got knocked 10% on the grounds that the FOBTs in their betting shops would be restricted to a £2 stake. The only drawback to this trading decision is that 888 has no betting shops and, therefore, no FOBTs. I paid 308p. Do not forget that the major…
Equities
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Titon Holdings could be the stock to own if North Korea re-enters the fold
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Far-sighted investors are assessing how they can position themselves to capitalise on any opening-up of the North Korean economy. I’ve stumbled across this Main Market listed company that appears to be the closest thing to a UK-listed play on this opportunity… Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Kim Jong Un in a historic summit in…
Facebook unfriended
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In a few short months, Facebook has gone from being the tech giant everybody likes to global bogeyman. Are all the little angry faces really justified? Big data is watching you The internet – the worldwide web – was supposed to create a libertarian paradise where netizens could freely exchange ideas outside the prying eyes of…
Trading
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Where next for stock markets?
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Given what we have seen in stock markets in recent weeks, it was easy to pick the topic for this month’s charting article. Volatility has jumped, world markets fell heavily – is it the beginning of the end of the long trend upwards for shares? A recent history lesson Let’s go back to where this…
Is the euro set to dominate the pound?
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Given the fact that you can barely watch the news today without the “B” word rearing its head, I thought it could be timely to take a look at the fortunes of the pound versus its nearest currency neighbour, the euro. The market convention is actually to quote this the other way around to what…
Economics & Markets
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Should we be worried about the end of low interest rates? Maybe not…
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One big question mark hangs over the markets right now: What effect will the normalisation of monetary policy – by which we mean the gradual withdrawal of quantitative easing (QE) and an increase in interest rates – have on the global financial system and the economy? Many commentators, not least our very own Jim Mellon,…
Is Macron’s France beyond reform?
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Emmanuel Macron and the Goblet of Fire French President Emmanuel Macron is a dynamic young wizard. But the fundamental reform of France may be beyond even his magical powers. One year in He established a centrist political movement out of nothing (La République En Marche or REM) and was elected Head of State on its ticket…
Commodities
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Rising risks could make these 2 gold miners more appealing
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The performance of global stock markets thus far in 2018 can best be described as ‘volatile’. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and various other major indices have seen their price levels experience a rollercoaster ride in recent months. There are a number of reasons for this. Tensions in Syria have increased in recent days, while…
Strong year for global mining investment trust
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It has been a strong year for BlackRock World Mining (LON:BRWM) with a NAV return of 24% in 2017. The performance has been driven by the pick-up in global economic growth, and sentiment towards the fund is finally starting to improve after a significant write-down in 2013 dented investor confidence. If the economic recovery continues…
Funds & Investment Trusts
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The equity fund with the best risk-adjusted return
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The best way to assess the performance of an active fund is to look at its risk-adjusted return, which measures how much value the manager has added per unit of risk. Over the ten years to the end of December 2017 the top investment trust using this metric was BlackRock Smaller Companies (LON:BRSC), which was…
The absolute return fund that is shorting Tesla
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My colleague, Simon Cawkwell, writing in his Evil Diaries, recently described Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) as “surely…..the greatest short in the history of the world’s stock markets”, which is a pretty dramatic statement for someone so adept at spotting shorting opportunities. Investors – as distinct from spread betters – would not normally be able to benefit from these…
Brexit
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Brexit: We are all Ultras now…
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The Brexit negotiations have entered a critical phase. Decisions made by both sides in the next three months will have long-term consequences. In a state of conflict, all sides become extreme. A modern English Civil War The classic schoolboy pseudo-history 1066 And All That asserted that, during the English Civil War, the Cavaliers were “Wrong…
The Customs Union or a Customs Union? Or just confusion?
12 mins. to read
The British political class is riven with dissent over what type of Brexit is most desirable. This is because, after two years of Brexit argy bargy, few Brits really understand the issues – and least of all in the Labour Party. A discourteous proposition Last week Monsieur Barnier, the EU Chief Negotiator, threw a document…