Thursday, 16 January 2025
The Mighty Headlines
Economics: UK house prices rise by 3.3 per cent
Business: UK business confidence falls to lowest level since Liz Truss
Markets: Goldman Sachs’ shares rise by over 6 per cent following earnings results
Foreign Affairs: Poland to fast-track Ukraine’s EU membership
Security and intelligence: Biden restricts more computer chip exports to China
Domestic politics: UK Government to prevent payout to Sinn Féin’s Gerry Adams
The Mighty Stats
FTSE = 8,301.13 (up 1.21 per cent)
S&P500 = 5,949.91 (up 1.83 per cent)
Nasdaq = 19,511.23 (up 2.45 per cent)
CAC40 = 7,474.59 (up 0.69 per cent)
£1 = $1.22 / €1.19
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The Mighty Detail
Economics: According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics, UK house prices grew by 3.3 per cent in November. This is an increase from the 3 per cent growth recorded the previous month. The average property price in the UK now stands at £290,000.
Business: Business confidence in the UK has fallen to its lowest level since the mini-Budget presented by Liz Truss's Government in 2022. According to data from accountancy body ICAEW, business confidence fell to 0.2 in Q4 2024 - its lowest level since Q4 2022. In Q3 2024, business confidence was at 14.4.
Markets: Goldman Sachs’ shares rose by more than 6 per cent during trading yesterday. This follows news that the investment bank more than doubled its profits in Q4 2024 to $4.1 billion. The increase was due to its asset management business increasing in size and an unexpected receipt of $472 million from its stock traders.
Foreign Affairs: The Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, has said that Poland will fast-track Ukraine's application to join the EU. Poland currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU until June 2025 and has significant influence on the topics for discussions between EU member states during that time.
Security and intelligence: In one of its final acts, the Biden administration is publishing further regulations to prevent the world's top chip manufacturers from sending products to China. TSMC, Samsung and Intel, will be affected by the law which will increase licensing requirements and due diligence on potential sales.
Domestic politics: The Government has said that it will look at “every conceivable way” to stop a payout to Gerry Adams, the former leader of Sinn Féin and alleged IRA member. This comes after it decided to repeal the Legacy Act, passed by the previous Conservative Government, which stops people who were unlawfully detained by British authorities during the Troubles from receiving compensation.
The Mighty Calendar
What’s happening today?
Culture, Media and Sports Questions in UK Parliament
Former UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock appears at UK Covid Inquiry
UK GDP data (November)
China GDP data (Q4 2024)
UK industrial production and manufacturing production data (November)
US jobless claims (weekly)
US, China retail sales data (December)
China unemployment rate (December)
Company results from: Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Taylor Wimpey
Lookahead to tomorrow
German Chancellor Scholz receives Swedish Prime Minister Kristersson
Russian President Putin meets Iranian President Pezeshkian in Moscow
UK retail sales data (December)
Eurozone CPI inflation data (December)
US industrial and manufacturing production data (December)
US housing construction data (December)
The Mighty Finale
🌤️Weather today
Light cloud but dry. High of 9C and low of 3C in London. Sunny intervals in Belfast and bright sunshine in Edinburgh.
✏️Life coaching quote of the day
“Everyone of us is the sum total of his own thoughts.” – Earl Nightingale, motivational speaker
Mighty takeaway: You are what you are and where you are today because of the thoughts in your mind.
That’s about it for this Thursday. We’ll see you tomorrow morning.
Adios!
The Mighty Memo team