Friday, 20 September 2024
The Mighty Headlines
Economics: Bank of England keeps interest rates at 5 per cent
Business: Next warns of store closures amid equal pay claims
Markets: Trump media shares fall as sale restrictions lifted
Foreign Affairs: Saudis say Middle East is closest to war since 1970s
Security and intelligence: Two people jailed under Hong Kong’s new security law
Domestic politics: Nigel Farage advised against in-person meetings for security reasons
The Mighty Stats
FTSE = 8,328.72 (up 0.91 per cent at Thursday close)
S&P500 = 5,713.64 (up 1.7 per cent at Thursday close)
Nasdaq = 18,013.98 (up 2.51 per cent at Thursday close)
Nikkei = 37,723.91 (up 1.53 per cent at Friday close)
CAC40 = 7,615.41 (up 2.29 per cent at Thursday close)
£1 = $1.33 / €1.19 / ¥190.42
US: Trump / Harris = 47.4 / 49.3 per cent
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The Mighty Detail
*Figures just released from the Office for National Statistics this morning show UK public sector borrowing rose to £13.7 billion in August and the debt ratio is at 100 per cent of GDP*
Economics: The Bank of England is holding interest rates at 5 per cent. In a statement, the Bank said that it would not significantly reduce rates until inflation stays sustainably at 2 per cent. The value of the pound against the dollar briefly rose to $1.33 on the news – a two-year high.
Business: Next has said it could be forced to close stores if it loses its appeal on equal pay claims. An employment tribunal ruled last month that store workers should be paid the same as warehouse workers, who are paid more. Next may have to pay £30 million compensation if it loses.
Markets: The value of Trump Media shares fell yesterday, just as Donald Trump was allowed to sell them. Donald Trump was forbidden from selling the shares following a lock-up agreement made in March, after the company went public. Trump Media, which owns Truth Social, is 57 per cent owned by Donald Trump. His shares are worth around $1.7 billion.
Foreign Affairs: Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the UK has warned the Middle East is closer to a regional war than at any time since the 1970s. This comes as the leader of Hezebollah, the Iran-backed Islamist group, called the situation regarding exploding pagers “a declaration of war” and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said that Israel would face a “crushing response”.
Security and intelligence: Two people have been jailed for sedition under Hong Kong’s new security law. Chung Man-kit, 29, was jailed for 10 months for writing comments on the back of bus seats promoting Hong Kong independence. Chu Kai-pong, 27, was jailed for 14 months for wearing a T-shirt that said “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times”.
Domestic politics: Nigel Farage has said that he has been advised not to hold in-person meetings with constituents for security reasons. The Reform UK leader, who was elected as MP for Clacton in July, cited advice from the office of the Speaker of the House of Commons.
The Mighty Calendar
What’s happening today?
Bank of Japan finalises interest rate decision
Czech Republic senate elections begin (ends Saturday)
UN Security Council discusses pager explosions in Lebanon
UK retail sales data (August)
Canada retail sales data (August)
UK government borrowing data (August)
Germany PPI inflation data (August)
Eurozone consumer confidence data (September)
Lookahead to the weekend
Saturday
o Great River Race 2024, London
o The Great British Food Festival, Arley Hall, Cheshire
o IBF World Heavyweight title (Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois), Wembley
Sunday
o Final round of PGA Golf Championship, Wentworth
o Final of English Open Snooker, Brentwood
o Belfast City half-marathon
The Mighty Finale
🌤️Weather today
A chance of rain in London. High of 23oC and low of 14oC. Sunny and dry in Belfast. Cloudy but mostly dry in Edinburgh.
✏️Life coaching quote of the day
“If you are interested, you'll do what's convenient. If you're committed, you'll do whatever it takes.” – John Assaraf, writer
Mighty takeaway: What do you want to do that you are not committed to doing? Only committing to taking action every day on your goals will get you to where you want to be.
That’s it for today. We hope you have a great weekend and we’ll see you again on Monday. If you like what you read or don’t like it at all, let us know. And do pass this newsletter on to someone who might find it useful.
Adios!
The Mighty Memo team