THE CITY GRUMP In 2008, the central bankers grew the Magic Money Tree, technically known as Quantitative Easing (QE). It is their opioid “gift” to all of us and most of the Western World has been hooked on it ever since. For a while it looked as if we could kick the habit but then along came the pain of the pandemic, brought to us … Continue reading Cutting Down The Magic Money Tree
THE CITY GRUMP I am not a fan of Donald Trump. It has been evident for years now that he is immature, narcissistic and obsessed by power, which is of course why his foreign policy has been such a great success. It takes one to know one and the autocracies of China, Iran, North Korea, etc certainly met their match in him. Accordingly when the … Continue reading The Rattled West
THE CITY GRUMP General reaction to the last minute Brexit deal has been along the lines of “Bless my soul. They all said Boris would fail but, lo and behold, he has pulled it off”. No more ECJ rulings, no more customs union and free trade here we come. Unfurl the Union Jack, we have taken back control. Not so fast. By now, courtesy of … Continue reading Smoke & Mirrors Mask the Brexit Deal
THE CITY GRUMP Some years ago* I sat down to a Christmas lunch at London’s most excellent Bleeding Heart Restaurant with work colleagues and, as is traditional, we kicked off proceedings with a mass cracker pulling. Out popped the usual paper hats and splendidly silly mottos, which as ever is a great way to get all of us into the festive mood. I particularly liked … Continue reading The Christmas Story – Brussels Style
CITY GRUMP I suppose all Dishi Rishi has to do for the time being, given that he has been squirting huge amounts of cash around in an effort to put out the Covid fires, is to stand and deliver platitudes and boy did he do that at the Conservative Party Conference. Take the following sentiments that could come from the lips of any politician from Albania … Continue reading Rishi – A Summary
CITY GRUMP I see Richard Branson is not done with the investing public yet as “VG Acquisition Corp intends to sell 40 million units at an individual price of $10. The company said it plans to “search for targets that operate in consumer-facing industries in the U.S. and Western Europe.” It added it will focus on “businesses that provide consumer experiences in the sectors in which Virgin … Continue reading Time for Branson to Step Out of the Spotlight?
THE CITY GRUMP There is a huge hullaballoo over how to award exam grades to our school children since the government decreed they aren’t allowed to actually sit exams in 2020. Understandably nobody likes uncertainty but let’s take a moment to examine the worth of the education system that so many are getting worked up about. Firstly there is an argument to be made that … Continue reading Facts Not Wokery
THE CITY GRUMP The fiasco that is Covid19 has shone a spotlight on how government departments react to a crisis. The instinct of the Treasury has been to lend lock-downed companies of all shapes and sizes cash. This is not surprising as the concept of debt is familiar to one and all and, since the Country is run on debt, why not issue a whole … Continue reading Equity Not Just For Actors
