March’s Spring Statement saw the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, announce some gloomy economic forecasts. This coincidentally happened on the same day inflation was reported to be rising at its highest rate in 30 years. But was the forecast as dismal as it seemed? In its economic forecasts, the OBR notes that “Given the evolving…
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Sometimes as an investor we come face to face with stark reality. Today, that is the case with the bonds held in portfolios. By and large, most long-term investors own bonds because they do not have the emotional or financial capacity to suffer material falls in the value of their portfolio. By and large, high quality bonds have done…
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Today, it certainly feels like the world is in a very uncertain place. Authoritarian states are flexing their muscles, with Russia violating Ukraine’s sovereignty and China’s ongoing subjugation of Hong Kong with the new National Security Law alongside its apparent support for Russia, being cases in point. The West continues to struggle with what is hopefully the back-end of the…
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The rise in personal savings during the pandemic led to a boom in ISA investments last April, with £1.5bn flowing into the products. However, despite previous increases in line with inflation, annual subscriptions for ISAs, Junior ISAs and Child Trust Fund will remain the same for the sixth year running. If the limit had been updated in line with inflation…
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People regularly ask me things like ‘where’s the best place to put my money’, ‘what’s the safest option available’ or, my personal favourite ‘what would you do, if you were me?’. My initial response to these questions is typically; ‘Depends’ or ‘Why would it matter?’. How does one answer such a question before understanding an individual’s personal and financial story?…
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The festive season is fast approaching and so we wanted to share our office opening times over the holiday period. We will be closing the offices at 5pm on Thursday 23rd December. The office will re-open at 9am on Tuesday 4th January 2022. In the event of an emergency, whilst we are closed, please contact Kevin Scott at kevin.scott@herbertscott.uk or call…
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The world of investing can be a traitorous place. It’s rife with its own language and jargon developed over decades by sales and marketing people to make it too confusing for the average person to understand. Even as professional advisers, it can be difficult to keep up with new words and phrases in an ever-changing environment. Active vs…
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We associate the term ‘bond’ with mutual connection, whether the subject is chemistry (between atoms, ions, or molecules), personal relationships (between human beings), or finance (between borrowers and lenders). The latter is often thought to be difficult to understand and shrouded in complex mathematics. Actually, bonds can be quite a straightforward concept. In their simplest sense, bonds are IOUs set…
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So I was keen to know if the Bank of England was going to increase interest rates, to try and halt the rise of inflation……. drumroll please…. They have agreed to keep them the same….. for now! The minutes have yet to be announced but I doubt this decision was unanimous. The members of the Bank of England’s Monetary…
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With a focus on alcohol duty cuts and a lower rate of Air Passenger Duty from April 2023, which are included in the budget, you might think the Conservative government are planning more parties and more holidays under the guise of reducing the damage to these sectors following the COVID 19 pandemic. Perhaps you’d be right, although some of their…
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