My generation laments the passing of Sabrina, born Norma Sykes, named after the daughter of the King of Britain and drowned in the river Severn. She was, she claimed, the Manchester junior breaststroke champion but I think she was kidding: she was surely the world senior breaststroke champion. If in doubt, just look at her…
There was an interesting piece in the Telegraph recently that looked at whether momentum investing in funds can generate higher returns. The article considered a strategy that was devised and tracked by the investment platform FundExpert. This involved investing in the best performing fund over the previous six months and then repeating the process and…
Master Investor Ltd., the UK investment media and events company, has been accepted as a full member of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), committing itself to the principles of responsible marketing. The DMA is the UK’s leading trade association for one-to-one marketers, offering its members access to exclusive research, legal advice and industry intelligence. The…
The outlook for the supermarket sector continues to be challenging. Inflation has moved ahead of wage growth and this could cause a squeeze on real disposable incomes. The effect of this on shopping habits could be negative, with shoppers likely to become increasingly price-conscious. Supermarkets may be left with a choice as to whether lower…
Rather to my surprise (I needed surprising) gold has perked up this morning. I bought more. If the Catalonians today elect to backpedal on independence the final collapse of the Euro (and thus the perfect backdrop for a vertiginous rise of gold) is deferred. Thus some would say that it is premature to buy gold.…
We all know how important it is to have a diversified portfolio, but even if you invest in relatively uncorrelated funds it does not mean that they are without risk. In the last few weeks there has been a series of completely unconnected events that have had a negative impact on a number of income…
The Brexit talks will run into the sand soon. That may be a problem for Britain. But, for Europe, Brexit is only one of many problems. Dangerous October Beware: all the major stock market crashes of the last century have occurred in October. The 1929 crash occurred on Tuesday, the 29th. The 1987 crash was…
One of the appeals – and drawbacks – to technical analysis for some are the many, many ways of analysing historical data on a chart. Before home computers and sophisticated investing software, many charts were either in paper format or on dedicated terminals, primarily used by City institutions. Now of course, you are only ever…
Pensions administration review: as most readers know the old age pension paid out by the state has a fundamental problem which is that there is a decreasing fund out of which to pay it. Accordingly, HM Government takes the view that since there is no point in leaving citizens to save for their old age…
Developing a successful brand, or indeed a range of successful brands, is a key corporate goal for many businesses. Not only can a good quality brand deliver high margins and consistent cashflow, it can also help a company to create a valuable “economic moat”. This refers to the ability of a business to maintain a…
