1 British boom? FTSE at 12-year high (Nick Fletcher & Phillip Inman in The Guardian)
Shares in London have reached levels last seen at the height of the
dotcom boom nearly 13 years ago. At a close of 6,755 points, the FTSE
100 blue chip index matched levels from September 2000, just before the
market’s fascination with loss-making technology companies such as
lastminute.com came to an abrupt end and the dotcom bubble burst.
The closely watched index of the 100 biggest companies traded in London is also within sight of its all time peak of the 6,930 reached on 30 December 1999. The FTSE 100 is nonetheless lagging behind many other global markets, including the S&P 500 in the US and the Dax in Germany, which are at record levels.
Investors are betting that central bankers, including the Bank of England and US Federal Reserve, will continue their attempts to boost the global economy by printing money and keeping interest rates at historic lows. The buoyant stock market may take some of the pressure off George Osborne as he tries to persuade voters that his emphasis on public spending cuts to re-establish confidence in the economy is working.
Investors were encouraged by the Japanese government’s optimism, amid signs that Tokyo has inspired the first sustained period of solid expansion in two decades. The historically low level of interest rates has also made shares more attractive than other investments. Gold and silver, previously considered safe haven investments, have lost their lustre.
Since the global banking crisis sent markets tumbling, with the FTSE 100 falling to 3,529 in March 2009, shares have slowly been regaining lost ground, gathering momentum in recent weeks. The turning point came last summer when the head of the European Central Bank said he would do “whatever it takes” to save the euro from collapse. But some City analysts believe the recent positive run could soon come to an end, especially if the central banks turn off the money taps.
2 The one percent are only half the problem (Timothy Noah in The New York Times) Most recent discussion about economic inequality in the US has focused on the top 1 percent of the nation’s income distribution, a group whose incomes average $1 million (with a bottom threshold of about $367,000). “We are the 99 percent,” declared the Occupy protesters. But the gap between the 1 percent and the 99 percent is only half the story.
Granted, it’s an important half. Since 1979, the one-percenters have doubled their share of the nation’s collective income from about 10 percent to about 20 percent. And between 2009, when the Great Recession ended, and 2011, the one-percenters saw their average income rise by 11 percent even as the 99-percenters saw theirs fall slightly. Some recovery!
This dismal litany invites the conclusion that if we would just put a tight enough choke chain on the 1 percent, then we’d solve the problem of income inequality. But alas, that isn’t true, because it wouldn’t address the other half of the story: the rise of the educated class. Since 1979 the income gap between people with college or graduate degrees and people whose education ended in high school has grown. This skills-based gap is the inequality most Americans see in their everyday lives.
3 Investors have lost love for South Africa (David Shapiro in Johannesburg Times) Warren Buffett was diplomatic when asked recently about the prospects of investing in sub-Saharan Africa. Anxious not to offend his loyal followers from the continent, he responded that he would not exclude it, though it was not his specialty. Those who have followed Buffett’s philosophies know, inherently, he would stay clear of any region that includes words such as “indigenisation” and “Gupta” in its business glossary.
But it was hedge fund manager David Stemerman who, in an attack on African Bank, delivered a direct blow against South Africa at the recent Ira Sohn Investment Conference in New York. He said the country’s credit market was turning from boom to bust and African Bank was particularly vulnerable to the downturn.
Though his criticism was aimed at the unsecured lender, he raised concerns about the application of the 2007 National Credit Act, the unsustainable level of householder debt, the inexperience of the bank’s loan officers and the questionable practice of easing pressure on borrowers by extending the duration of the advances. Stemerman concluded that African Bank was at risk and, in trading parlance, was a big short.
Government’s apparent intervention in Anglo Platinum’s restructuring plans followed by more unrest in mining have exacerbated investor fears about future returns in the economy; a shift that has sent our currency reeling. There’s no shortcut back into the big league for South Africa. First it’s back to basics. But even before that we must recognise who and where we are. Only then can we begin preparations for our return to the premiership.
4 Charging a cell phone in 20 seconds (San Francisco Chronicle) Here’s the invention that we’ve all been waiting for: A device that instantly charges our cell phones. A gadget like this might soon be on its way thanks to a bright 18-year-old from Saratoga, California.
Eesha Khare is the mind behind a super-powerful and tiny gizmo that packs more energy into a small space, delivers a charge more quickly, and holds that charge longer than the typical battery. Khare showed off her so-called super-capacitor last week at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix, Ariz. In her demonstration, she showed it powering a light-emitting diode, or LED light, but the itty-bitty device could fit inside cell phone batteries, delivering a full charge in 20-30 seconds. It takes several hours for the average cell phone to fully charge.
Khare also pointed out that the super-capacitor “can last for 10,000 charge cycles compared to batteries which are good for only 1,000 cycles.” Khare’s invention is flexible and could be used in roll-up devices and might even have applications for car batteries. The judges at the science fare were wowed by Khare’s brilliant invention and she received the Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award and $50,000. “With this money I will be able to pay for my college and also work on making scientific advancements,” Khare said.
The closely watched index of the 100 biggest companies traded in London is also within sight of its all time peak of the 6,930 reached on 30 December 1999. The FTSE 100 is nonetheless lagging behind many other global markets, including the S&P 500 in the US and the Dax in Germany, which are at record levels.
Investors are betting that central bankers, including the Bank of England and US Federal Reserve, will continue their attempts to boost the global economy by printing money and keeping interest rates at historic lows. The buoyant stock market may take some of the pressure off George Osborne as he tries to persuade voters that his emphasis on public spending cuts to re-establish confidence in the economy is working.
Investors were encouraged by the Japanese government’s optimism, amid signs that Tokyo has inspired the first sustained period of solid expansion in two decades. The historically low level of interest rates has also made shares more attractive than other investments. Gold and silver, previously considered safe haven investments, have lost their lustre.
Since the global banking crisis sent markets tumbling, with the FTSE 100 falling to 3,529 in March 2009, shares have slowly been regaining lost ground, gathering momentum in recent weeks. The turning point came last summer when the head of the European Central Bank said he would do “whatever it takes” to save the euro from collapse. But some City analysts believe the recent positive run could soon come to an end, especially if the central banks turn off the money taps.
2 The one percent are only half the problem (Timothy Noah in The New York Times) Most recent discussion about economic inequality in the US has focused on the top 1 percent of the nation’s income distribution, a group whose incomes average $1 million (with a bottom threshold of about $367,000). “We are the 99 percent,” declared the Occupy protesters. But the gap between the 1 percent and the 99 percent is only half the story.
Granted, it’s an important half. Since 1979, the one-percenters have doubled their share of the nation’s collective income from about 10 percent to about 20 percent. And between 2009, when the Great Recession ended, and 2011, the one-percenters saw their average income rise by 11 percent even as the 99-percenters saw theirs fall slightly. Some recovery!
This dismal litany invites the conclusion that if we would just put a tight enough choke chain on the 1 percent, then we’d solve the problem of income inequality. But alas, that isn’t true, because it wouldn’t address the other half of the story: the rise of the educated class. Since 1979 the income gap between people with college or graduate degrees and people whose education ended in high school has grown. This skills-based gap is the inequality most Americans see in their everyday lives.
3 Investors have lost love for South Africa (David Shapiro in Johannesburg Times) Warren Buffett was diplomatic when asked recently about the prospects of investing in sub-Saharan Africa. Anxious not to offend his loyal followers from the continent, he responded that he would not exclude it, though it was not his specialty. Those who have followed Buffett’s philosophies know, inherently, he would stay clear of any region that includes words such as “indigenisation” and “Gupta” in its business glossary.
But it was hedge fund manager David Stemerman who, in an attack on African Bank, delivered a direct blow against South Africa at the recent Ira Sohn Investment Conference in New York. He said the country’s credit market was turning from boom to bust and African Bank was particularly vulnerable to the downturn.
Though his criticism was aimed at the unsecured lender, he raised concerns about the application of the 2007 National Credit Act, the unsustainable level of householder debt, the inexperience of the bank’s loan officers and the questionable practice of easing pressure on borrowers by extending the duration of the advances. Stemerman concluded that African Bank was at risk and, in trading parlance, was a big short.
Government’s apparent intervention in Anglo Platinum’s restructuring plans followed by more unrest in mining have exacerbated investor fears about future returns in the economy; a shift that has sent our currency reeling. There’s no shortcut back into the big league for South Africa. First it’s back to basics. But even before that we must recognise who and where we are. Only then can we begin preparations for our return to the premiership.
4 Charging a cell phone in 20 seconds (San Francisco Chronicle) Here’s the invention that we’ve all been waiting for: A device that instantly charges our cell phones. A gadget like this might soon be on its way thanks to a bright 18-year-old from Saratoga, California.
Eesha Khare is the mind behind a super-powerful and tiny gizmo that packs more energy into a small space, delivers a charge more quickly, and holds that charge longer than the typical battery. Khare showed off her so-called super-capacitor last week at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix, Ariz. In her demonstration, she showed it powering a light-emitting diode, or LED light, but the itty-bitty device could fit inside cell phone batteries, delivering a full charge in 20-30 seconds. It takes several hours for the average cell phone to fully charge.
Khare also pointed out that the super-capacitor “can last for 10,000 charge cycles compared to batteries which are good for only 1,000 cycles.” Khare’s invention is flexible and could be used in roll-up devices and might even have applications for car batteries. The judges at the science fare were wowed by Khare’s brilliant invention and she received the Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award and $50,000. “With this money I will be able to pay for my college and also work on making scientific advancements,” Khare said.
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