Every school kid now knows that if the British government wants to fulfil the will of the British people expressed last June they have “to trigger” or, “to invoke” Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon (2007). Prime Minister May has stated that she intends to do this before the end of March 2017. Sadly,…
Regular readers will know my stance on Brexit. And I voted as I did – after much reflection – well aware of the risk of turbulence ahead. Just as I anticipated that the Pound would descend, not in a linear fashion, but in steps. Until, that is, the end-game becomes clear. In a rational world…
Despite the Brexit vote, house builders remain an attractive investment proposition. With its high, well-covered yield and low valuation, Berkeley is a star buy for the long term in my opinion. Brexit may cause underperformance in the short run as well as a volatile share price, but Berkeley’s overall risk/reward ratio has significant appeal. According…
Don’t tell ze Britisch but ve really need zem… In a recent reflection on what central bankers get up to when they meet together for some rest and recreation, I attempted to explain what TARGET2 is. This is the settlements system that, since 1999, has facilitated payments between the various Eurozone countries’ internal settlement platforms.…
The remainiacs control the media Do not underestimate the breadth and depth of the recusant remainiacs. Their mouthpieces are the BBC, the Economist and the increasingly ludicrous Financial Times. But they have extensive influence propagated by Church of England vicars, luvvies, much of the teaching profession as well as trendy entrepreneurs and a throng of…
This is a piece written by Jim for our friends at the Milken Institute, who were generous enough to allow us to reproduce it here. Two weeks ago, I pulled my first all-nighter since I was 18. The news that the side I supported—those urging the United Kingdom to leave the European Union—had won the…
There have been some massive winners and losers since the result of the EU referendum was announced on June 24th. The main casualties have been UK-listed companies exposed to the domestic economy and their European counterparts, with the biggest beneficiaries being international businesses with dollar denominated earnings. It is highly likely that the political and…
The shock decision by the British people to vote to leave the European Union created havoc on the financial markets when the result of the referendum was announced on June 24. The two main casualties were the sterling dollar exchange rate and the FTSE 250 index that is dominated by domestically focused UK-listed companies. Those…
“What we should grasp, however, from the lessons of European history is that, first, there is nothing necessarily benevolent about programmes of European integration; second, the desire to achieve grand utopian plans often poses a grave threat to freedom; and third, European unity has been tried before, and the outcome was far from happy.” –…
About 20 years ago, I was descending a Monro (mountain) in Scotland – Beinn Bheigeir on Islay, to be precise – leading two beautiful young people back to the sea. (My niece and nephew: the girl is now an academic in Switzerland and the boy is in private equity.) And, as it can do there,…
