Adrian Lowcock
24/12/2009
The minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting held on the 10th December were published yesterday.
Adrian Lowcock
18/12/2009
With the Copenhagen talks continuing this week, ethical and environmental issues are becoming topical once again. There can be little doubt reducing carbon emissions has become more important and this is now on the agenda of most major governments.
Adrian Lowcock
17/12/2009
We have suspended our 5 star rating of the Gartmore European Selected Opportunities
Adrian Lowcock
11/12/2009
2009 has been characterised by the launch of numerous absolute return funds and as the year the draws to a close we see another new fund joining this sector, the Jupiter Absolute Return fund.
Adrian Lowcock
10/12/2009
Darling decided to close a loophole created in his last Budget, to reduce tax relief on salary sacrifice schemes for those earning over £130,000.
Adrian Lowcock
09/12/2009
Below are some of the highlights of Alistair Darling’s Pre-Budget Report
Adrian Lowcock
04/12/2009
This week sales statistics for the unit trust sector were released by the Investment Management Association (IMA). Within the figures the corporate bond sector showed a net out flow of £11.8 million, having been the best selling sector for the last 10 months
Mark Lane
04/12/2009
Low interest rates and aggressive monetary stimulus might be beneficial to businesses and consumer spending, but savers appear to be the big losers. Instant Access accounts interest rates are at record lows, yet savers, as illustrated in the chart below, are looking to increase their deposits after years of steady declines
Adrian Lowcock
03/12/2009
There have been numerous rumours and comments in the press suggesting that the Chancellor may further restrict the tax benefits of pensions in his Pre-Budget Report on 9th December.
Adrian Lowcock
02/12/2009
Fidelity has announced that Tim McCarron has resigned from his position in order to take a sabbatical.
Adrian Lowcock
27/11/2009
Jupiter are launching two new funds on the 14th December; Jupiter Absolute Return and Jupiter International Financials. Both funds will be managed by Philip Gibbs.
Adrian Lowcock
27/11/2009
On November 25th 2009, the eve of the Muslim Eid al Adha holiday, Nakheel the Dubai Government linked property developer asked creditors for a freeze on debt payments.
Adrian Lowcock
26/11/2009
Today, Fidelity announced that their legendary fund manager, Anthony Bolton, will relocate to Hong Kong to manage a new fund dedicated to investing in China and China related opportunities.
Graham Frost
25/11/2009
The UK’s national debt is so massive now that room for manoeuvre on election friendly give- aways (this Government has to call an election by May) is virtually non-existent.
Adrian Lowcock
23/11/2009
Gartmore, the fund management group, is to seek a stock market listing before Christmas.
Adrian Lowcock
20/11/2009
This week, Ventus has announced the launch of a top-up offer that is available to their existing VCT shareholders. The top-up will only be available until Friday 18th December (but may close earlier if the maximum subscription is reached).
Adrian Lowcock
18/11/2009
Lately, there has been an increase in the amount of press the commercial property sector is getting, with professional commentators falling on either side of the debate.
Adrian Lowcock
13/11/2009
We have recently relaunched our Personal balance sheet tool. It has a new design making it clear and easier for clients to use (for an example see below). Functionality has been increased, enabling investors to see the profit or loss of their investments.
Graham Frost
13/11/2009
This week I was at the Houses of Parliament for a presentation by Eric Rosengren, President of the Federal Reserve Banks of Boston, USA.
Jane Kotchkina
09/11/2009
John Davey
06/11/2009
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the total amount raised through new Venture Capital Trusts (VCT) issues in the 2008-09 tax year was severely down, at just £135m versus the £209m raised in 2007-08. During the falling markets of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, investors sought liquidity and were reluctant to lock capital away in a VCT, where the minimum holding period to qualify for upfront income tax relief is five years.
Adrian Lowcock
05/11/2009
The post office and Communications Workers Union have announced there will be no more strikes in 2009.
Mark Lane
05/11/2009
This week National Savings and Investments (NS&I) announced a substantial increase in the interest rates that they are offering to depositors.
Nigel Parsons
02/11/2009
Discussions over the shape of the recovery have started to resemble an episode of Countdown, with Vs, Ws and Ls all put forward to explain the likely scenario. Certainly, over recent months we have seen something of a V shaped bounce, as massive fiscal and monetary stimulus has delivered rising economic indicators and better than expected corporate profits.
Adrian Lowcock
02/11/2009
Twice a year we ask our analysts to name and shame the worst performing funds in the UK. This Autumn’s report shows a huge rise in ‘dog’ funds – almost doubling from £7.2 billion as at 31st December 2008 to an immense £13.72 billion, up until 30th September, an increase of 89%.
Adrian Lowcock
28/10/2009
Guy De Blonay, manager of the New Star Global Financial fund, has decided to leave Henderson New Star and return to Jupiter
Adrian Lowcock
22/10/2009
If the experiences of Keydata investors is anything to go by, investors with funds held in NDF Administration and Defined Returns are likely to wait a long time before they find out whether they will get all their money back.
John Spiers
21/10/2009
It has now been one year since I returned to Bestinvest as CEO and I’ve been looking back at what we have achieved over that period.
Mark Lane
16/10/2009
With cash deposits offering unattractive returns risk averse investors could be forgiven for wanting interest rates to rise.
Adrian Lowcock
15/10/2009
We have been positive about the UK property sector for several months, having been attracted by the higher dividend yields and seeing prices starting to stabilise.
Adrian Lowcock
08/10/2009
The raising of the ISA limit to £10,200 was one bright spot amidst the bad news within the 2009 Budget and the prospect of further tax rises.
Adrian Lowcock
15/09/2009
Following a successful pre-launch campaign Cazenove Absolute UK Dynamic fund has closed today.
Adrian Lowcock
11/09/2009
Pension advertising is usually littered with images of a happily retired couple enjoying an active lifestyle. In today’s climate, the reality for many is not so rosy.
Adrian Lowcock
25/08/2009
Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP (PWC) was appointed administrators of Keydata Investment Services (KIS) on Monday 8th June and is working closely with the HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) on resolving the outstanding issues
Adrian Lowcock
21/08/2009
The Cazenove Absolute UK Dynamic fund is being launched for retail investors from the beginning of September.
Eskor John
19/08/2009
Royal Mail have announced that postal strikes will be held in London on Friday 7th August and Wednesday 12th August. As a result, regrettably, correspondence via mail between you and us will be disrupted during this period.
Adrian Lowcock
19/08/2009
Postal services to and from our offices in Chesterfield Gardens continue to be effected by planned industrial action by members of the Communication Workers Union.
Adrian Lowcock
18/08/2009
Cash ISA interest rates have trailed behind what is available in the fixed rate bond market, as seen in a recent survey carried out by Defaqto.
Adrian Lowcock
18/08/2009
The Gartmore European Absolute Return fund is one of our most highly rated funds.
Adrian Lowcock
13/08/2009
Today, France and Germany published data showing that their economies both grew by 0.3% in the last quarter to June 2009, bringing an end to a year long recession in Europe’s two largest economies.
Adrian Lowcock
04/08/2009
During the latter half of 2008 and the first half of this year, we have seen fear stalk the stock markets.
Adrian Lowcock
31/07/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments
Adrian Lowcock
31/07/2009
With markets rallying and the global economy seemingly on the road to recovery we look at where the best investment opportunities are for investors in SIPPs and ISAs.
Adrian Lowcock
31/07/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments
Adrian Lowcock
28/07/2009
Roger Dossett is to leave Henderson New Star to pursue other interests.
Adrian Lowcock
24/07/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments
Rob Harley
24/07/2009
So far Chinese equities have been the bull market story of 2009.
Adrian Lowcock
23/07/2009
This week, the Bank of England (BoE) published its minutes for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting that was held on the 8th- 9th July 2009.
Adrian Lowcock
22/07/2009
Following the collapse of Lehman Brothers the flow of lending came to an abrupt halt, interest rates were slashed and the banks offering the best deposit rates disappeared.
Adrian Lowcock
21/07/2009
Compound interest, Albert Einstein is attributed with saying, is the most powerful force in the universe.
Adrian Lowcock
17/07/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments.
Eskor John
15/07/2009
The idea that emerging markets could grow independently from the west was popular in 2007. However, shocks to the financial system in September 2008 sent emerging equity markets tumbling and demand contracted savagely.
Graham Frost
13/07/2009
Last week, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided not to increase the programme of quantitative easing (QE) from the current £125 billion to £150 billion, the maximum permitted.
Adrian Lowcock
10/07/2009
Nationwide re-introduces 125% mortgage
Matt Brunwin
07/07/2009
The Government has made a concession on the anti-forestalling measures, increasing the maximum annual contribution allowed from £20,000 to £30,000.
Adrian Lowcock
06/07/2009
The monthly update written by our independent Research Team is now available online in downloadable PDF.
Adrian Lowcock
06/07/2009
As mentioned in my article on Friday 3rd July, Government debt will rise to £175 billion by the end of the year.
Adrian Lowcock
03/07/2009
UK Government debt is likely to reach £175 billion by the end of this year or approximately 12% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a proportion of which not seen outside of wartime.
Adrian Lowcock
03/07/2009
Since March and the last issue of Bestinvestor, we have seen more volatility followed by a strong rally.
Adrian Lowcock
03/07/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments.
Stephen Marriott
30/06/2009
Last week the Federal Reserve announced that it was leaving interest rates unchanged at a range between zero and 0.25%
Adrian Lowcock
26/06/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments
Adrian Lowcock
25/06/2009
Last year, many pundits and market commentators were all too ready to announce that active managers have had their day in the sun and the future was all about tracker funds.
Adrian Lowcock
24/06/2009
As the fallout of the banking crisis subsides Bankers Magazine, in their June issue, has published a report on the relative strengths of the world’s banks and identified those which lost the most money.
Adrian Lowcock
19/06/2009
A round up of the latest major economic news and developments.
Adrian Lowcock
18/06/2009
Gartmore announced today that Roger Guy and Guillaume Rambourg will be stepping down from the day to day management of their £1.5 billion flagship fund, Gartmore European Select Opportunities (and the sister fund Gartmore Sicav Continental European) and handing the reigns over to John Bennett.
Adrian Lowcock
17/06/2009
The rebound seen since March has been spectacular and indeed many investors have watched it from the sidelines.
John Davey
16/06/2009
The managers of Core Venture Capital Trusts (VCT) have announced they are to merge the CORE I, II and III VCTs. The VCTs are 70% invested in qualifying assets and there is now no need to run three separate funds.
Nigel Parsons
12/06/2009
As we move into the traditional summer lull, the fickle nature of investor psychology has once again come to the fore.
Adrian Lowcock
12/06/2009
Henderson has announced they are planning to re-open the International Property fund which was closed last year by New Star.
Adrian Lowcock
10/06/2009
The credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s, has downgraded the Irish government’s debt from AA+ to AA.
Adrian Lowcock
09/06/2009
On Monday 8th June Keydata were placed into administration based on an application to the Royal Court of Justice by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) on the grounds of Insolvency
Hugo Shaw
05/06/2009
The difference between the Bank of England base rate and the average interest on unsecured personal loans or credit cards has been gaining ground rapidly over the last 18 months.
Adrian Lowcock
28/05/2009
Yesterday the Spanish banking giant, Santander, announced that they were merging their three banking groups Abbey, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester and rebranding them under the parent name of Santander.
Adrian Lowcock
27/05/2009
City of London Police recently reported an increase in boiler room scams. Creative fraudsters prey on millions of people by selling them worthless shares.
Hugo Shaw
25/05/2009
Last week, Standard and Poor's, the rating agency, warned that the UK is at risk of losing its coveted AAA credit rating unless it can get better control of its finances and cut debt.
Adrian Lowcock
20/05/2009
In the UK, there are over 300 investment trusts with combined assets under management of over £70 billion investing in a wide range of assets from UK equities as well as hedge funds and commercial property.
Adrian Lowcock
19/05/2009
As was widely expected, Marks and Spencer cut their dividend today and they are unlikely to be the last company to do so this year.
Adrian Lowcock
16/05/2009
This time last year many of the high street banks were offering very good rates for your cash ISA – as much as 7% if you chose a fixed rate for a year.
Adrian Lowcock
14/05/2009
William Littlewood came to prominence in 1991 working for the investment management group Jupiter Asset Management as the manager of their income fund.
Eskor John
07/05/2009
Judging from the FTSE’s latest movements, it would appear that UK investors’ purported overreaction to the H1N1 virus (Human swine flu) has abated.
Adrian Lowcock
01/05/2009
In order to counter the inevitable tax rises, make sure you are not paying too much to tax to begin with.
Robert Harley
29/04/2009
A few weeks ago we highlighted some of our preferred bond funds across three of the asset class’s sub sectors.
John Spiers
24/04/2009
Listening to Alistair Darling’s latest Budget brought back memories of Dennis Healey’s performances in the 1970s – a most disagreeable experience.
Katharine Lindley
24/04/2009
Despite the fact that the Chancellor is forecasting a stronger economic recovery than other forecasters, the public borrowing projections are much worse than expected.
Adrian Lowcock
20/04/2009
Early indications have pointed at a Budget with a green agenda, including plans to invest in the electric car infrastructure.
Adrian Lowcock
09/04/2009
For many investors, corporate bonds are less familiar territory than equities. There have been hundreds of mentions in the national press, of them as investment opportunities of late, but rarely, if at all, do we hear about movements in the bond market.
Adrian Lowcock
08/04/2009
Each year there are slight changes to your individual tax rates.
Adrian Lowcock
06/04/2009
ISAs are the most accessible tax efficient investment vehicle. Why wait another 12 months before doing your ISA?
Adrian Lowcock
04/04/2009
Our telephone lines have now closed, however you can still do you ISA and benefit from our market leading discounts.
Graham Frost
03/04/2009
As the G20 met, I was reminded of the old joke about the escapee from an asylum entering a launderette, borrowing laundry money from each of occupants, before running off.
Adrian Lowcock
01/04/2009
The investment industry has long focused on what it affectionately calls the ‘ISASeason’, the period in March and April when investors make a last-minute rush to secure their ISA allowance before the end of the tax year.
Stephen Marriott
31/03/2009
With base rates at 0.5%, those who rely on income from assets are finding it unrewarding to hold cash or government bonds.
Adrian Lowcock
27/03/2009
A week is a long time in politics and a very long time in finance.
Stephen Marriott
23/03/2009
Marcel Porcheron
19/03/2009
Sanjeev Shah has had a good first year at the helm of Fidelity Special Situations beating the FTSE All Share index by 5% during 2008.
Adrian Lowcock
17/03/2009
It is not surprising that when an economy lies in tatters the last thing on peoples’ minds is whether or not to use their ISA allowance.
Adrian Lowcock
16/03/2009
Fixed rate accounts can be a good way to gain an element of protection and growth for your money, especially when markets are volatile and investors are looking for security.
Graham Frost
12/03/2009
The Bank of England announced recently that it would resort to unusual measures to resolve the banking crisis. As interest rates approach zero, this is all that’s left in its armoury to get banks lending again and the economy moving.
Graham Frost
09/03/2009
The trend in inflation will be a decisive factor in determining how investors construct portfolios over the next few years. In fact, the degree to which you are a deflation or inflation advocate will influence what assets you will be willing to hold.
Adrian Lowcock
26/02/2009
Investment decisions are frequently made in situations of high uncertainty that preclude dependence on fixed rules and compel the decision-maker to rely on intuition, indeed intuition plays a crucial role in many decisions. Adrian Lowcock considers some of the unconscious biases that can cause investors to make irrational investment decisions.
Adrian Lowcock
24/02/2009
For over 10 years Bestinvest has used a star system to reflect the findings of its detailed analysis of funds and their managers. Historically, the system tended to generate only a very small number of 5 Star funds, often in quite specialised areas.
Tom White
23/02/2009
Every bull market sees the rise of a group of previously unknown funds that soar to the top of the performance charts, sucking in investors’ money in the process. Here we look at some of the high flying funds of 2003-2007 that faltered in 2008.
Adrian Lowcock
11/02/2009
Another day barely passes before there is a further announcement regarding a fund management group, so it is with New Star. Whilst in the background the merger story continues, New Star have announced they are to close their Heart of Africa fund, two months after they suspended trading in it.
Marcel Porcheron
30/01/2009
A number of fund managers found the record levels of volatility in 2008 intolerable, as tried and tested investment techniques stopped working and reputations were dashed upon the rocks of uncertainty. However, 2008 may also be remembered as the year that a new breed of manager emerged.
Adrian Lowcock
22/01/2009
Whilst the credit markets remain mired and banks are busy resolving their own problems before being concerned by the lives of others, we see more turbulence in the fund management world. As we’ve said before, we expect to see greater consolidation in this sector with the big players flexing their financial muscles and increasing their presence. In the last week we have seen further developments.
Graham Frost
13/01/2009
Events in recent months have highlighted the potential impact of currency movements on investor returns. Bestinvest’s CIO looks at how changes in interest rates and other factors can affect exchange rates.
Tom White
09/01/2009
In a world of plunging stockmarkets and unprecedented volatility even some big name fund managers found it tough last year. However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom - here we focus on the managers who got it right in 2008.
Adrian Lowcock
07/01/2009
New Star are to exploit changes to FSA rules which allow firms to suspend dealings in funds for indefinite periods. This is a significant change to the old rules where previously they were only allowed to suspend dealing for 28 days and then would have to approach the FSA to request an extension.
Adrian Lowcock
05/01/2009
Following the unsettling events of 2008 we are starting to see consolidation in the Fund Management sector with Aberdeen agreeing to purchase Credit Suisse’s funds in exchange for a 24.9% stake in the business, valued at £250 million. The total funds under management with Credit Suisse is £40 billion. Before this announcement Aberdeen were recently tipped as a potential buyer of New Star.
Graham Frost
02/01/2009
Last year was a year of records, most of them bad. Graham Frost looks back at a year many in the financial markets would like to forget.