Wednesday, 18 September 2024
The Mighty Headlines
Economics: US Federal Reserve expected to announce interest rate cut today
Business: Pret A Manager growing quickly outside UK
Markets: S&P 500 reaches record high
Foreign Affairs: US agrees to supply Taiwan with more military equipment
Security and intelligence: Top Russian official holds security talks with Iran
Domestic politics: Government announces £75 million for Border Security Command
The Mighty Stats
FTSE = 8,309.86 (up 0.38 per cent at Tuesday close)
S&P500 = 5,634.58 (up 0.026 per cent at Tuesday close)
Nasdaq = 17,628.06 (up 0.2 per cent at Tuesday close)
Nikkei = 36,380.17 (up 0.49 per cent at Wednesday close)
CAC40 = 7,487.42 (up 0.51 per cent at Tuesday close)
£1 = $1.32 / €1.19 / ¥186.58
US: Trump / Harris = 47.3 / 49.3 per cent
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The Mighty Detail
*At the time of going to press, UK inflation figures just published from the Office for National Statistics show CPI in the UK at 2.2 per cent in August – unchanged since July.*
Economics: The United States Federal Reserve is expected to announce a cut in interest rates at 2.00pm US Eastern Time today (7.00pm UK time). Interest rates are expected to be cut to either 5.25 or 5.0 per cent, having last been cut in March 2020. Chair of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, will speak at 2.30pm US Eastern Time.
Business: Pret A Manger said yesterday its half-year sales grew by 10 per cent year-on-year to £569 million. The sandwich shop chain also said that £1 in every £4 is now spent internationally. Pret opened 81 new shops last year, of which more than half were outside the UK. It currently has more than 690 shops worldwide and employs around 12,500 people.
Markets: The S&P 500 stock market index reached an all-time record high yesterday as investors await the US Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates. The S&P 500 reached 5,670.81 just before 11.00am US Eastern Time before falling back down later in the day.
Foreign Affairs: Sergei Shoigu, the head of Russia’s Security Council, visited Iran yesterday. He met Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. Last week, Shoigu also met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Russia has previously said it is close to signing a deal with Iran on a strategic partnership.
Security and intelligence: The United States government is to provide $228 million of military spare parts to Taiwan. The Taiwanese government says this is the 16th time the United States government has announced the provision of arms to Taiwan since President Biden took office.
Domestic politics: The Government has announced up to £75 million for the new Border Security Command. The funding is expected to be invested in new camera technology and personnel to tackle organised immigration crime.
The Mighty Calendar
What’s happening today?
Hong Kong public holiday
Foreign Secretary visits Norway to discuss security
United States Federal Reserve interest rate decision
Jammur and Kashmir legislative elections begin
UK inflation data (August)
Eurozone inflation data (August)
United States housing starts data (August)
New Zealand GDP data (Q2 2024)
South Korea trade data (August)
Lookahead to tomorrow
G7 Culture Ministers meet in Italy for two-day meeting (ends Friday)
Bank of England interest rate decision
Bank of Japan interest rate decision
Japan CPI inflation data (August)
Italy, France, Germany, UK new car registrations data (August)
United States unemployment data (weekly)
The Mighty Finale
🌤️Weather today
Dry and sunny for the third day in a row in London. High of 24oC and low of 14oC. Same weather in Belfast and Edinburgh. What a lovely week!
✏️Life coaching quote of the day
“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can’t find them, make them.” – Earl Nightingale, writer and speaker
Mighty takeaway: Create the life you want. It won’t come to you by accident. You have to make it happen.
That’s it for today. 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