True Potential Morning Markets

Chris Leyland, Director of Investment Strategy, looks at the US consumer confidence data, why it has came in significantly below analyst expectations, and how it has affected equity and bond markets.

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments, looks at President Trump’s heavy focus on foreign policy concerns despite it polling 14th in importance amongst voters. US Services PMI has fallen into contraction for the first time in 2 years and the inflationary tariff policies are fuelling the fire. Should Trump refocus on domestic policy to quiet the noise and steady the US economy?

George Bell, Portfolio Manager, looks ahead to a week packed with data illustrating the health of consumers internationally, inflation, business sentiment and the recent election in Germany.

George Bell, Portfolio Manager and Joe Forward, Investment analyst, look into the performance of global equities, the UK jobs market which has surprised to the upside and what is driving the increase of UK inflation. Further comments from President Trump on tariffs continue to drive uncertainty and the Federal reserve cite it as an inflation risk.

Sebastian Mackay, Investment Director, looks at why Europe is excelling in equity markets and challenging the narrative of US stock market outperformance which was widely expected after Donald Trump’s election and subsequent announcement of corporate tax cuts and tariffs.

Chris Leyland, Director of Investment Strategy, looks at the UK inflation figure which came in at 3%, above analyst expectations. Chris breaks down the main driving components behind the rise and the asset market reaction.

Paul Durrans, Investment Director, looks into the UK labour market data which has surprised to the upside for wages, rising 5.9% and payrolls adding 22,000. The Bank of England's concern however is that elevated wage growth runs the risk of keeping inflation above the target with expectations of a 2.8% figure tomorrow with potential to rise to 3.7% by Q3  

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments, brings the focus onto UK markets with inflation and jobs data releasing this week. The UK and Europe is seeing record highs in stock markets but expectations for UK unemployment to reach levels not seen since 2017 could present a challenge for the Bank of England. Compounding this is market expectations for UK headline inflation to rise to 2.8% this week which ex...

Chris Leyland, Director of Investment Strategy and Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments, look at the strength in global equities being led by Europe, as well as the drivings factors behind the rise of US inflation. Fourth quarter GDP figures for the UK also surprised to the upside but growth still remain a challenge for the Labour government.

Chris Leyland, Director of Investment Strategy, looks into the surprise US inflation data, what is driving it and what it means about the direction of US interest rates. There was also a surprise for UK economic growth and the potential for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine 

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments, covers the all time equity highs seen in the UK, Germany and Italy this week with the US within touching distance of new highs. Reduced market volatility with expected economic data prints is setting the stage for further growth expectations as market confidence grows.

George Bell, Portfolio Manager, reviews the strength of Global stock markets. Reflecting on the winners and losers from Trump's 25% tariff on Steel and Aluminium imports. George also reviews consumer expectations of inflation over the next 12 months ahead of Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell's, semi-annual Testimony of Monetary Policy in Congress. 

Paul Durrans, Investment Director, reflects on robust US jobs data from last week which was quickly overshadowed by further tariff announcements from President Trump. Markets will continue to react to any further tariff announcements and the risks this poses to renewed inflation pressures. Paul discussed the latest survey data which has consumers expecting inflation to trend above 4% over the next...

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments and Joe Forward, Investment Analyst, break down the Bank of England’s decision to lower interest rates while halving growth projections for the UK in 2025. Inflation in the UK is now not expected to hit the 2% target until 2027 yet the UK stock market has reached another round of all-time highs. 

Sebastian Mackay, Investment Director, looks at the highly expected interest rate cut from the Bank of England today. The question still remains though on whether the central bank needs to be more aggressive with cuts? Economist's initial perspectives of an expansionary budget in October have shifted to a contractionary view and many believe more fiscal tightening is on the horizon.

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments, looks at the recovery of global equities following the surprise tariff announcement from President Trump last week. The focus can now return to underlying economic health with US jobs data and also a look ahead to the Bank of England interest rate decision this week.

Paul Durrans, Investment Director, analyses the market response to President Donald Trump’s tariff policies as well as the retaliation from China who have imposed their own fee’s and levy’s on American oil and energy imports.

Over the weekend, Trump announced additional tax tariffs for goods being imported into the US. Bloomberg estimated that the average tariff will be moving from 3% to 10.7%, reducing US growth by 1.2%, and increasing inflation by 0.7%. The full impact of tariffs is likely to be known in the future, however, markets are already pricing the impact, seeing bonds, gold and currency down at this moment....

Despite the release of the latest AI model from Chinese firm DeepSeek, which caused upheaval across the broader tech sector, European and UK equity markets reached new all-time highs this week. Our expert Investment Managers discuss why and unpack the key events that have dominated financial markets this week.

Sebastian Mackay, Investment Director, looks at the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold US interest rates at 4.5%. With potentially inflationary policy under the Trump administration and a resilient economy, investors have scaled back expectations on additional rate cuts, with some economists believing a rise in interest rates could be on the horizon.

Yesterday Nvidia plunged 17%, only to roar back to +9% by the close of markets, sparking a tech rally that lifted stocks like Oracle (+3.6%), Bitcoin mining and more. Plus, with the Fed’s interest rate decision looming and earnings from Meta, Microsoft, Tesla & Apple on deck, what’s next for investors? Our Director of Investment Strategy, Chris Leyland has more details.

Markets were shaken yesterday as China's DeepSeek AI made headlines, sparking fears of a tech upheaval reminiscent of the 90’s internet boom. Nvidia fell by 17%, Alphabet fell by 4%, and even energy stocks fell, but is this a repeat of history or just noise? Watch today’s Morning Markets to find out what this means for the future of AI, tech, and most importantly, your money.  #Nvidia #AI #inv...

George Bell, Portfolio Manager, reviews the Stargate Programme which aims to invest $500 billion into AI infrastructure over the next four years and the threats faced from China’s DeepSeek which aims to compete with OpenAI and Meta.

Kevin Kidney, Head of Investments and Matt Henderson, Portfolio Manager, give insights into equity and bond market returns, UK jobs data and the underlying economy, as well as a look into sticky inflation which is presenting challenges across major central banks.

Matt Henderson, Portfolio Manager, breaks down why earnings season, where companies review their quarterly figures and cast projections for future performance and developments, is vital to equity markets.