23 July 2026
‘Mini-tender’ offers: how Aviva is involved and what investors should considerYou may never have heard of them before, but tender offers are in the news at the moment thanks to a brewing situation at UK-listed insurance business Aviva.
If you have some prior knowledge of tender offers it may well be because you hold investment trusts.
A tender offer is when shareholders are given a chance to redeem their shares, often but...
23 July 2026
How Chancellor John Healey can fix personal finance policy problemsJust over a month after quitting as defence secretary in a row over funding, John Healey takes charge of the very department he was at loggerheads with. He will now be forced to view that and many other fiscal problems through a different lens, namely ensuring the nation’s finances remain on a firm footing while trying to find cash to pay for the...
23 July 2026
Daily market update: Tesla, Alphabet, Centrica, EasyJetThe FTSE 100 was steady on Thursday, benefiting from its limited exposure to tech and from its healthy weighting in energy.
This followed an uncertain start to the earnings season for Wall Street’s technology titans and a further increase in oil prices which are creeping closer to $100 per barrel alarm bell territory.
There seems little sign that...
22 July 2026
Daily market update: Henry Boot, Greencore, Bloomsbury, WetherspoonsEuropean markets took a moment to catch their breath ahead of the all-important US tech earnings season.
A pullback in chip stocks following a storming run earlier this year has left investors hungry for an update on AI-related demand and to see if all the big investments into tech infrastructure are paying off. Alphabet reports tonight, with Intel...
22 July 2026
Are savings bonds and Premium Bonds different than bonds you invest in?‘Bond’ is a term that’s used all over the financial world, but confusingly, it can refer to products that are completely different from each other.
In the investment world, bonds are an investment product that work as an I.O.U. Governments or companies issue bonds to investors as a way of borrowing money. They make regular interest payments to the...
21 July 2026
How to gauge the market's take on Andy Burnham in Number 10Andy Burnham is now confirmed as the nation’s seveth prime minister in 10 years, with John Healey as our ninth chancellor of the exchequer in the same time span, and now the electorate and financial markets alike wait to see what policy initiatives may follow.
Sterling and the benchmark 10-Year gilt yield will be barometers that show what markets...
21 July 2026
Daily market update: Mitie, Wickes, Compass, Fuller’s World Cup boostJohn Healey’s surprise appointment as chancellor hasn’t troubled the markets as he is seen as a safe pair of hands.
His extensive parliamentary career including roles in the Treasury are seen as putting him in good stead.
Bond markets reacted favourably, with gilt yields easing back after a jump yesterday afternoon when prime minister Andy Burnham...
20 July 2026
How a gilt ladder could be your next income strategy Gilts are exempt from capital gains tax, creating a potential benefit for investors who buy gilts at a discounted price and hold until maturity Gilt ladders are helpful for planning a specific stream of returns to match specific outgoings Investors can build their own gilt ladder through choosing bonds with different maturity dates This strategy...
20 July 2026
Daily market update: all eyes on Andy Burnham and his new cabinet, RyanairInvestors are keenly awaiting details of who will form Andy Burnham’s cabinet once he becomes UK prime minister today.
Shabana Mahmood is the favourite to become chancellor and so far, bond markets seem to prefer her as the likely candidate rather than Ed Miliband. Gilt yields eased back last week on speculation that Mahmood would get the job...
20 July 2026
Bond vigilantes explained: how markets can push interest rates higherThe term bond vigilante was coined by economist Ed Yardeni in the 1980s in reference to investors who vote with their feet when they judge central banks or governments are being reckless or inflation is being mismanaged.
The idea is simple. When a government runs budget deficits investors think are unsustainable, bond investors sell. Selling drives...
17 July 2026
Martin Gamble on US markets: Netflix and IBM disappoint while banks starUS markets took a step back amid escalating military exchanges between the US and Iran near the Strait of Hormuz which sent Brent crude oil prices back above $85 per barrel.
The major indices fell, led by a pullback in technology and semiconductor stocks which prompted a rotation into more defensive areas of the market like consumer staples and...
17 July 2026
Daily market update: Asian markets slump, Netflix, BurberryThe FTSE 100 managed to shake off a big sell-off in Asian markets to trade modestly higher on Friday morning.
The index’s contingent of defensive utilities and tobacco stocks, as well as its big energy names, helped it advance when many of its global counterparts are stuck in the mud.
The news from the Middle East suggests that a restoration of the...
16 July 2026
Daily market update: Ocado, Foxtons, TSMC and UK takeoversThe FTSE 100 took its cue from weak trading in Asia and fell back amid a lower open for most other European markets.
Brent crude oil prices remain near one-month highs as tensions continue to mount in the Middle East.
Fragile sentiment is leading to a continued pullback in memory chip stocks after their gravity-defying run as investors fret about...
15 July 2026
Discover UK stocks with strong earnings momentumEarnings momentum can be a powerful factor driving the performance of company shares.
Stocks experiencing upward revisions to earnings estimates tend to outperform the market while those experiencing downgrades tend to underperform.
A recent example is animal genetics company Genus, which said on 14 July that trading in the second half was better...
15 July 2026
Daily market update: B&M, Paypal, Barratt Redrow, ASMLWeak Chinese economic data has spooked investors in the mining sector, causing a sell-off amid fears that the Asian superpower might scale back commodity purchases.
China’s GDP grew by 4.3% in the second quarter year-on-year, below the 4.5% to 5% target. The data reading took the market by surprise and might stir speculation that the Chinese...
14 July 2026
Daily market update: BP, Debenhams and Watches of SwitzerlandThe FTSE 100 was steady after a renewed surge in oil prices as Donald Trump reinstated a blockade on Iranian ports.
Investors feel like they’ve hit rewind on a movie they didn’t enjoy first time round. The ability to get shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is once again compromised thanks to the renewed tensions between Tehran and Washington.
For...
13 July 2026
Daily market update: EasyJet and PageGroupGlobal stocks may be falling off the back of renewed tensions between the US and Iran, but the FTSE 100 is an exception thanks to its chunky energy sector exposure.
Index heavyweights BP and Shell are beneficiaries of a concerted move higher in oil prices. This upwards shift in crude reflects concern about the fate of the fragile truce between...
10 July 2026
Martin Gamble on US markets: Pepsico, US banks, NetflixUS markets were back on the front foot this week with the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite index leading the charge, gaining 1.5%, and the Dow Jones Industrials scaling to a new high.
Brent Crude oil prices briefly rose above $80 per barrel after President Trump announced an end to the ceasefire with Iran.
Minutes from the last Federal Reserve...
10 July 2026
Daily market update: EasyJet, Vodafone, SK Hynix, HaysMarkets were in a calmer frame of mind at the end of the trading week, with gains across much of Asia and Europe, and oil prices easing back.
Vodafone soared after a major shareholder change, taking BT along for the ride. Miners were also in demand as investors regained their risk appetite. Among mid-caps, EasyJet flew higher as a new party entered...
10 July 2026
Terry Smith makes radical changes to stem poor performanceA disappointing first half saw the Fundsmith Equity fund report a 3% fall compared with a 11% gain for the MSCI World index, which means the £12 billion global equity fund now lags its benchmark over three, five and 10-years.
It is worth pointing out the fund remains ahead of the benchmark since launching nearly 15 years ago, having delivered...
9 July 2026
Daily market update: AstraZeneca's latest updateAstraZeneca’s latest update was more bitter than sweet as it said the drugs don’t work.
A setback for a promising treatment knocked its share price for six and acted as a major drag on the FTSE 100.
It meant the UK market was the only major European index to be in the red as others including the Dax and CAC 40 staged a comeback after yesterday’s...
8 July 2026
You might be investing in SpaceX without realising itInvestors who opted not to buy shares in SpaceX’s record-breaking IPO last week may want to double check whether or not they’re due to have a stake in Elon Musk’s newly-listed venture in the near future.
Chances are that if you hold a global or US tracker fund in your portfolio then you will have some SpaceX exposure before too long.
How you could...
8 July 2026
Daily market update: Vistry and Jet2The best performing country index year-to-date is now in a bear market. It’s a bizarre situation where investors backing this index could have made huge money in the first six months of the year, yet suffered a big drop in recent weeks.
Someone who bought a fund tracking South Korea’s Kospi index at the start of 2026 would have made a 116% return...
7 July 2026
Here’s what’s happening with UK bank sector dividend yieldsDomestically focused UK bank shares in Lloyds, NatWest and Barclays have made significant gains versus the UK’s premier benchmark, with average gains of around 50% over the past year, meanwhile the FTSE 100 is up 20%.
Some of the recent performance strength is related to fears that interest rates might need to stay higher for longer to tackle...
7 July 2026
Daily market update: Shell, Samsung, Capita and Young'sEnergy and consumer non-cyclical stocks lifted the FTSE 100 as investors looked for opportunities away from the tech space.
Although Samsung’s results were stellar, investors are getting nervous about the scale of money ploughing into AI and whether it’s a bubble waiting to burst.
This is where the UK stock market has an advantage. In an...
