Today China developments are dominating headlines, with COVID frustrations boiling over as lockdowns triggered civil unrest in multiple cities including in Beijing and Shanghai – where police appeared to struggle to disperse crowds. The protests reflect the most direct challenge to party authority since Tiananmen Square in 1989 with protesters openly chanting for the CCP and President Xi to…
COP27 ended on Sunday with an agreement for richer countries to fund poorer nations, although details need to be agreed. There was also a failure by countries to agree to phase out fossil fuels, meaning commitments on emissions did not go further than the weakened Glasgow COP26 pledge to phase down polluting coal power and…
Although the inflation data last week was softer than expected, US CPI is still reverberating and has not materially changed higher-for-longer messaging from Federal Reserve officials. Fed Governor Waller today reiterated there is still a long way to go before concluding interest rate hikes, noting rates will stay high until inflation is closer to the…
Here’s our weekly market update – follow Synergi to get regular market data and opinions. US markets closed the week on a high note with the S&P 500 up +1.4% and the NASDAQ up +1.3%. Materials was the best performing sector, followed by financials and communication services. The worst were healthcare, utilities and consumer discretionary,…
UK IHT for non-domiciled individuals with UK situs assets outlines how using a policy of life assurance or capital redemption could assist a UK non-domicile mitigate a potential UK IHT liability on any UK situs assets such as stocks and shares. Data collected by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has revealed that inheritance tax (IHT)…
Millions of people are in a state of financial paralysis – but doing nothing could be the worst option of all. Should I invest? How long should I lock away my cash? are some of the questions asked by those who have put their finances on hold because of the recent economic and political upheaval….
Climate change, resource scarcity and human rights – just some of the huge sustainability issues that we consider when we invest your pension money. More than half of our customers told us they want to know more about this, so as part of Pension Engagement Season, we’re sharing key points and top reads. Your pension…
Although markets are expected to remain volatile, experts identify three reasons for investors to be optimistic. Reason one: shipping costs, oil prices and house prices – all of which contributed to this year’s steep increase in inflation – have now begun to fall. This should help to reduce inflation in the months ahead. Energy support packages are likely to…
Inflation continued to dominate the markets, US Fed governor Waller said last week that more needs to be done on interest rates and that the Fed should not pause until it sees firm evidence that inflation is easing. Comments were echoed by Chicago Fed governor Evans, who called for policy to be more restrictive and sees…
Markets ended last week moving downwards and have started this week in a similar tone. The S&P 500 was down -1.5% on Friday and now stands at its lowest level since November 2020. In European markets yesterday morning the STOXX 600 is down -0.7% and the FTSE 350 down -0.5%, both off initial lows….