Like any good rollercoaster, global equity markets had, by the end of the year, returned pretty much to where they started, while at the same time leaving investors somewhat shaken and a little nauseous for all the ups and downs along the way.
Manufacturers will shoulder the burden when new European rules, which enable consumers to compare retail savings and investment products, come into force on 31 December 2016.
Investors will remember 2015 as a year spent trying to guess what major central banks around the world would do or say next.
A look at the coming year for those whose glass is half empty
Finally! After two and a half years of mixed messages and muddled data, of volatility and vacillation we can talk about something other than the Fed’s first rate hike in nine years.
About the right amount of ‘dovishness’ seems to be the initial verdict from market commentators pronouncing on what had been billed as the biggest event in financial markets since the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
The last time the Federal Reserve raised interest rates, Daniel Craig had just taken on the mantle of James Bond and Sylvester Stallone had just successfully resurrected the Rocky franchise from the ignominy of 1990’s Rocky V.
Greg Bennett, fund manager at Argonaut Capital, gives his view on the dynamics behind the current oil price.
The departure of Mark Harries from Aberdeen has brought the spotlight back on the world of multi-managers. But it is one aspect in particular that’s the big talking point.
Structured notes continue to remain a popular alternative investment among offshore investors, although it remains increasingly difficult to decide between which ones to choose given the complexity of how they can be constructed, says Harpreet Sajjan, managing director of S7 Capital Management.
ECB President Mario Draghi disappointed markets on Thursday. While the Bank delivered a 10 basis point cut to the deposit rate to an historic -0.3%, and extended the deadline of its asset purchase programme by six months, it kept the main refinancing and marginal lending rates steady at 5 and 30 basis points respectively.
Chancellor George Osborne showed a steely determination to tackle some of the cosier aspects of the lives of the wealthy in this year’s Autumn Statement. Tax evasion, capital gains tax and second homes came under scrutiny in an otherwise relatively benign budget.
