For this issue I am going back to basics. There are many different aspects to financial planning, but there are probably half a dozen basic rules by which one should abide. They will not apply to everyone, but I wouldn’t mind betting that almost everybody could benefit from using at least one of them. Firstly, (and I realise that without the benefit of Dr. Who’s Tardis many of us will struggle with this one) Start Early. The earlier you start saving, the better. Time is your friend. It might not feel like it when you are getting on a bit, but it is! Little bits of savings, over a long time can grow into very useful sums. Continue reading Back to Basics
Category Archives: Money Matters
Money matters
The Long View
As I am sure my Editors will confirm, I cannot stand being late. My dear departed Father always reminded me that “timing is everything.” In order to fit in with the publishing deadlines of this illustrious periodical, in what is currently a busy time for me, I sit down to write my column at the last moment. As a result of this (and the reason for this preamble), is to say that I am writing on 11 September. The anniversaries of world events can often colour the judgement of those who impact upon financial markets, though there is no reason why they should. I say this, because it is often difficult to see why markets perform as they do. So many things dictate how markets react that analysing such factors is a full-time job, and a somewhat inexact science. Continue reading The Long View
Budget Give and Takeaway
One of the last things that I expected to be writing about in this issue was a Budget! I thought that I had seen the back of Government tinkering until the Autumn. Silly me. If I had been thinking rationally, instead of having a head full of Summer thoughts, I should have known that the Chancellor – having found himself in the first Conservative majority government since 1997 – would grab an early opportunity of doing a little of the good cop, bad cop routine (albeit, as a single-hander). The Government, in this respect, like the Lord, ‘both giveth and taketh away’. Continue reading Budget Give and Takeaway
Who would have thought it?
It only seems like a couple of weeks ago, that I was putting fingers to keyboard, and commenting on the possible outcome of the General Election. Now we know, and what a surprise that was. Who would be a pollster?!
Now that we have a new Government we can get back to the business of living our lives, safe in the knowledge that the newly shuffled administration will take good care of us. Or possibly not. What we do know is that investment markets are happy to see a working majority Government, and are inclined to prefer one of the current colour. The FTSE100 shot up on the news, and has settled itself around the recent all-time high. I would expect it to consolidate, and then build upon these levels in the fullness of time. This said, there will be many opportunities for markets to take umbridge at the bits and pieces of bad news that will, almost certainly, be a feature of the first couple of years of this administration. It is often the way of new incumbents to get the nasty stuff dealt with early so there is plenty of time for the electorate to forget before the next election rolls up! Continue reading Who would have thought it?
The Great Unknown
Well, there we are then, as if by magic, the Footsie reached an all-time high in the last week of February, proving that it is very much a matter of sentiment, rather than logic, that dictates such matters. Not that I am saying there is no value to be found in the market at the moment, but this record level was swiftly followed by several disappointing falls, yet it still hovers within a couple of hundred points of the peak. I can only see this sort of pattern continuing for the next couple of months. Once the General Election day has passed then, depending on the result, we might just see an element of stability. Continue reading The Great Unknown
The Whistler 