What caught my eye this week.
There are always a bunch of stories in The Financial Times worth including in Weekend Reading. Unlike most of the online media landscape – see the mini-special in the links below – the subscriber-funded FT goes from strength to strength.
Of course like anyone who believes their favourite outlet is unbiased, I guess the FT confirms all mine.
Free but regulated markets: good. A social contract and welfare state: fine too.
This stuff should be obvious by now, but apparently it’s not.
Brexit bad, obviously. But even better the FT isn’t signed up to the omertà code that apparently prevents others admitting the whole thing is a costly crock, whether out of fear of annoying Blimp-ish readers, politicians, proprietors – or all three.
A wolf with teeth
Here’s veteran economics commentator Martin Wolf on fine form this week on the bitter lessons of Brexit [search result]:
In sum, this supposed liberation has greatly curtailed the freedom of many millions of people on both sides.
Whose freedom has it increased? That of British politicians. They can act more freely than they could when bound by EU rules.
What have they done with this freedom? They have lied about (or, worse, failed to understand) what they agreed over the Northern Ireland Protocol. They have threatened to break international law. They even proposed eliminating thousands of pieces of legislation inherited from EU membership, regardless of the consequences.
These people have, in sum, destroyed the country’s reputation for good sense, moderation and decency. All this is a natural result of the classic populist blend of paranoia, ignorance, xenophobia, intolerance of opposition and hostility to constraining institutions.
Take that, Torygraph.
Whose history is it, anyway
But the main reason I love the FT – and I’m a paid-up subscriber – is its business and markets coverage. Not perfect, but at the least not reliably clueless like the competition.
In large part that’s down to its specialist journalists. A species that’s in danger of becoming extinct.
The world is moving to a model where we hear directly from sector experts for information and opinion, without any savvy writer as an intermediary. (Clue is in the word, eh?) Think X/Twitter, YouTube, blogs. This has pros and cons, but so did having a professional writer work the same beat for decades.
On that score I enjoyed John Plender’s lessons from a lifetime in investment yesterday [search result].
When I started learning about investing I read about Ross Goobey – the guru who transformed the Imperial Tobacco pension scheme – all the time. I wonder how many have heard of him now? Plender writers:
So great were the returns that Imperial enjoyed pension contribution holidays for years.
Other institutional investors followed suit by dropping gilts in favour of ordinary shares. Ross Goobey was credited with founding what came to be known as ‘the cult of the equity’.
Perhaps it doesn’t matter. The article’s point is partly that markets change. The globalisation of history and perspective has been part of all that.
Still it’s a bit of a shame that investing lore in the UK has become so American-ised.
Holy Taxman, Batman!
Finally, the FT has fun as only insiders can do, through its FT Alphaville blog-like section.
This week’s romps included a deep dive into HMRC vs action figures: the face off [search result] – a battle about what constitutes a human.
The language wouldn’t be out of place in an absurdist drama:
Are the people in Game of Thrones people?
It’s a question most of us probably don’t ever think about, but that might just come up if you’re a judge.
It quickly gets bonkers – “The character is a powerful mutant who is able to control magnetism through which he manipulates metal objects. This is a superpower which human beings do not have. The figure represents a non-human creature” – but I don’t want to overdo the quoting.
Enjoy!
Will we pay for it?
As per the mini-special in the links below, the media landscape is imploding.
Ads long ago ruined websites via the incentive of clickbait desperately stirred up to try and tempt crumbs of traffic away from social platforms. Google, Meta, and TikTok take most of the money anyway. People under 30 mostly watch video.
Again, does it matter? I guess we’ll soon find out.
I suspect it does, and even that there’s becoming almost a moral case for paying for at least one or two media outlets you’d like to see survive. I’m biased – we have our own dog in the game – but I’ve also put my money where my mouth is with the FT and others and I’m rarely disappointed.
Have a great weekend.
From Monevator
Freetrade UK Treasury bills: what’s on offer, is it any good? – Monevator
From the archive-ator: Adrift in the darkness en route to FIRE – Monevator
News
Note: Some links are Google search results – in PC/desktop view click through to read the article. Try privacy/incognito mode to avoid cookies. Consider subscribing to sites you visit a lot.
Rents outside London hits record £1,280 a month – This Is Money
Scottish government admits freeze caused rents to skyrocket – Scottish Express
Net inflows plummet at St James’s Place [Search result] – FT
Netflix subscribers surge to 261m after password sharing crackdown – Sky
Where have all the tech unicorns gone…? – BBC
…London A.I. firm with 29-year old founder achieves $1bn valuation – E.S.
China fears are driving a new ‘A.I. industrial complex’ – Axios
Wise and Skype founders raise $436m to build tech giants in Europe – CNBC
Adding even a little Bitcoin dramatically alters a portfolio – Morningstar
Products and services
Biggest cuts to one-year bond and ISA rates in 15 years – This Is Money
Government considers ‘radical’ approach with 1% deposit mortgage – FTA
Get between £100 and £1,500 cashback when you open an ISA with Interactive Investor before 31 Jan. New customers only. Minimum £2,000 deposit. Terms apply. Capital at risk – Interactive Investor
Sainsbury’s Bank to withdraw from the market – Which
Nationwide fuels mortgage war with lowest rates in eight months – Guardian
Open an account with low-cost platform InvestEngine via our link and get up to £50 when you invest at least £100 (T&Cs apply. Capital at risk) – InvestEngine
Paying monthly makes car insurance even pricier – Which
A guide to supermarket loyalty schemes – Be Clever With Your Cash
Energy-efficient homes for sale, in pictures – Guardian
Comment and opinion
How you average matters – Fortunes & Frictions
The three types of investing mistake – Behavioural Investment
Identity economics – Money With Katie
Can you afford to live to 100? – Which
New all-time highs for the US stock market – A Wealth of Common Sense
Some friendly advice for would-be retirees – Humble Dollar
It’s time to bury the 4% rule for good… – Think Advisor
…and, if you agree, some alternative strategies – Morningstar
An M2 (money supply) primer [Geeky, interesting] – Carson Group
China is a basket-case mini-special
Dropping China – Humble Dollar
China’s GDP from 1992: $500Bn to $18 trillion. Its market? 0% – Cullen Roche
Naughty corner: Active antics
FTSE 250 valuation and forecast – UK Dividend Stocks
The investment trusts paying 5%+ dividend yields – This Is Money
Equities not priced for recession, says Personal Assets Trust – Trustnet
The IPO window is re-opening in the US… – Axios
…with Reddit seeking an IPO in March – Reuters
…but alas for the atrophying UK stock market [Search result] – FT
Bloomberg’s first generative AI tool hits the terminal – Institutional Investor
Coinbase is at the nexus of Bitcoin risk and reward – Bloomberg via Yahoo Finance
Kindle book bargains
The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff – £0.99 on Kindle
What They Don’t Teach You About Money by Claer Barrett – £1.99 on Kindle
Factfulness: 10 Reasons We’re Wrong About The World by Hans Rosling – £0.99 on Kindle
Make Your Bed: Feel Grounded and Think Positive by William McRaven – £0.99 on Kindle
Environmental factors
Plastic bag bans work, study finds – Semafor
Renewable power set to surpass coal by 2025 – Scientific American
Underground hydrogen find in France sparks clean energy hopes – Guardian
The sea horse black market is bustling in Brazil – Hakai
How Tesla’s Model Y became Europe’s first electric bestseller – This Is Money
Written media is dying mini-special
Platforms killed Pitchfork – Platformer
Soon a day will come that none of this exists – Discourse
The prestige recession – Yancey Strickler
The glory of Sports Illustrated – Joe Blogs
At least 8,000 journalism job cuts in UK and North America in 2023 – Press Gazette
Off our beat
UK citizen army: Preparing the ‘pre-war generation’ for conflict – BBC
The forgotten genius who changed British food – Guardian
Why the Davos smart set sound so dumb – Politico
The tremendous yet troubled state of video games in 2024 – Mathew Ball
Decoding ‘story’ – Seth’s blog
He sold staples – Humble Dollar
Why is LinkedIn so cringe? – Satpost
Bank of America sending warning letters to home workers… – Guardian
…but remote work won, and ‘don’t let anyone gaslight you otherwise’ – Hot Takes [h/t Abnormal Returns]
And finally…
“Gunning for average is your best shot at finishing above average.”
– John C. Bogle, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
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I was pleasantly surprised to be notified that Revolut now includes a personal FT digital subscription if you have the metal or above plan (currently £140/year). I’d never use it as a bank, primarily as it isn’t one in the UK at least (so, no FSCS) and I also wouldn’t use it for large sum transfers from the stories I’m told.
But for small/frequent currency exchanges, included global travel insurance (90 day trips too, which is rare), and the FT sub I think it’s a pretty compelling option for some people.
I gave up on the FT years ago, Stephens, Wolf, Kuper, Rachman, Shrimsley. Middle aged public school boys all with the same views and all completely unable to move on from Brexit. Rarely do they ever do any real journalism and most just put up their musings and ruminations du jour. You hear better in the pub. A decent Editor would sort that out but as proved here, it has a paying audience that keeps them topped up on fine red wine.
John Kay was a real treat but he hasn’t scribbled for them for a long time. Lucy Kellaway always used to raise a smile too. I don’t miss it at all. As proved here, the blogosphere does better and we always have Morgan Housel.
@Vic — When Brexit supporters wave a magic wand and undo all the social and economic damage from Brexit (we’ve all given up on actual benefits) perhaps we will move on.
But while the country gets steadily poorer than it would be each year as a direct consequence, I for one will keep flagging the elephant in the room.
Factfulness for a quid is an absolute steal. Read it if you haven’t already! And on Linkedin, its a website that has allowed me to empathise with Superman on his feelings toward kryponite – so grateful in a roundabout way for that I suppose?
Bill Hicks (cult standup comic) once said “If you work in marketing or advertising, do me a favour… Kill yourself” – I feel a similar way about the absolute cretin who founded Linkedin. The irony is that when googling just now to remind myself of the wording, the uppermost link to a transcript of his set was contained within a Linkedin post. The tragedy is not lost on me.
Yeah, I also appreciate the FT, everything from Alphaville to the serious investigative work by journalists like Dan McCrum (Wirecard etc).
The FT is one of the few things I have a paid subscription for – the data, the archive and the writers, make it well worth it.
As well as the HMRC action figure piece, they previously covered the HMRC v Sensations Popadums case https://www.ft.com/content/a6a54008-6059-4052-99ae-282f148f24e0
@TI – on the subject of the country going to the dogs post brexit, what country is it we should be moving to? I ask on behalf of the kids as I’m not sure I’ve got the energy..
I found The Guardian article on Nicholas Saunders (‘the forgotten genius who changed British food’) interesting. I was a student in London in the early ’70s and well remember his book Alternative London – although I was far from the stereotype of his target readership! Nevertheless, I always found the nuggets of practical information in the book both fascinating and useful. I had no idea he went on to found Neals Yard Dairy.
@Rhino thanks for that. Thought I was the only one that found LinkedIn absolutely toe curling. It really is a corporate cringeworthy cesspit ….if that’s not too much of an alliteration!
Oh and Rhino, as one of the few posters that can read a European newspaper without Google translate, I can tell you that it’s definitely not France!
It’s not Spain either, unless you fancy having no ISA’s, no CGT allowance, a personal allowance of about £5k, and a notoriously ‘proactive’ taxman.
Of course, if it wasn’t for Brexit, you could live for nearly half the year there or France and have the best of both worlds.
(Grrr).
By the way, there was another very interesting FT article I saw this morning, re: ‘lifestyling’ pension defaults screwing over people by reallocating them into bonds just before they crashed.
I’m really not clear why pension companies didn’t do more to steer people away from the previous dogma re: easing into bonds as you near retirement in the particular circumstances of 2013-ish onwards. Yes, no-one had a crystal ball, but at best, they were going to deliver 0%-ish and at worst, well, what actually happened. Couldn’t they at least have diversified into a cash-like fund as well, or something else?
Again with Brexit. Brexit was decided because of ignorance and resentment (remember, it was just a 2% swing). Many people were not able to reasonably weigh up the advantages and disadvantages as many people lacked the detailed understanding of the consequences. These were never sensibly presented or discussed by our main news services who strived, instead, for division, fear, anger and confusion. I see little promise with anything involving public voting in this country while we keep blaming voters, rather than those who tell the voters what to believe.
Big corporations are happy too take the place of real journalism. That way they control everything they want you too read. Long gone are the days of REAL reporters. Big corporations are going to ruin everything we ever worked for. No thanks. I won’t be buying.
@Always Late. Sorry but must disagree. The voters are to blame. Yes, politicians and the media might strive for division, fear, anger etc to stoke the agenda of their backers.
Nonetheless, we all have brains. We should be able to compartmentalize facts vs. beliefs. We should understand that emotional reactions need to be suppressed, not followed. We can all do research on a subject. Subject the daft ideas from politicians and media to scrutiny. We are responsible for our own actions.
The problem is people. The average person in the UK is … average. They are no better or worse than anyone else on the planet. Yet, they seem to think their outcomes (standards of living, wages etc) should be in the top few percentile. It was like that for a number of generations but they feel it’s slipping away (which it is). So they are grumpy and want to blame someone, rather than accepting that their outcomes will probably trend back to being average. It’s the same everywhere in the developed world. The US has a phenomenal standard of living, yet a large minority want Trump.
Another vote for Hans Roslin’s Factfulness book – I finished it this week (it is also 99p on kobo!). Well written with the ideas supported by clearly, and elegantly, presented statistics. Inspirational.
@zx I quite agree . A few of my friends were surprised I was ultimately a remainer having voiced concerns on the level of immigration (please note purely in terms of the fact we are an island and have finite resources- I’m totally pro immigration given we have our share of feckless idlers who don’t want to work)
Having been brought up in a fairly centre right family my research when trying to decide actually changed my opinion on many things I had been brought up to believe ( benefits – good and most go to in work people so not the scroungers I and been brought up to think- and also woefully inadequate. Immigration , ultimately good on balance . No system is perfect )
So for that reason alone I’m grateful .
Blimey, the sheer amount of time hardcore remoaners STILL spend internally raging about Brexit is staggering. I know someone at work who finally had to be signed off with stress because he was so furious about it – and that was last year. It’s idiotic to waste your life raging about things you can’t change. There is no other word for it. Anyone who still can’t let an opportunity slide to gripe about something unchangeable that is gnawing away at them all the time is an idiot. And anyone who pays to read other people do the same thing is an even bigger idiot. Honestly, it’s laughable, it really is. Anyway, hey-ho.
@grass raises a fair point. When this blog sticks to personal investing, it’s essential reading. When it’s middle aged men whinging about Brexit it’s inane. The erudite scribblers who do such a good job putting it together may say that they can write about what they damn well please, and I get that. However, Brexit whinging is everywhere and the FT do it better. Clear Barrett can’t hold a candle to the two writers here however in terms of personal finance coverage. Play to your strengths would be my editorial advice.
@Vic @Green_as_grass — Thanks for the generous review of our investing writing. Genuinely appreciated. 🙂
As for Brexit, I agree the FT and others can and do cover the unfolding damage better than I. However I created this blog to share my views, as best I can, and Brexit is not going away. So now and then I’ll write about it. I mostly stick to the economic aspects, in my defence, re: the relevance to the blog.
But all that is by the by here. I haven’t written about Brexit myself, I’ve just quoted from Wolf’s excellent takedown.
It strikes me it’s more my verdict on Brexit rather than my abilities or otherwise to write about it that causes the ire.
@zxspectrum2048k, people have brains, sure, but not all have brains as big as yours or enough time to think straight. For example, how many people have your wealth? Is that what the average person achieves? You know it’s not. I am not saying what should be. I am saying what is. You expect people to be able to compartmentalise facts vs beliefs like you? Are you aware how many people are religious?
If the media bothered to inform rather than stir, then things might have been different. They act largely in self interest, not for someone behind the curtain. They have the power. They were irresponsible. How do we change that? Where was the ‘fact checking’ back then? If you believe Brexit was such a bad idea then any constructive discussion now should surely be about solving the problems associated with why so many people voted the wrong way.
Anarchist, so didn’t vote either way. Don’t watch or read political news. No skin in the Brexit game.
Would agree, if Brexit is making you ill with stress (the result, not impact on financial wellbeing), it’s time to change something. One friend of mine stockpiled a year of food as they worried everything would collapse when we finally exited. That obviously was never going to happen, MPs’ heads would be on pikes before the end of the week if there was any real chance of the populace starving (as the pandemic demonstrated politicians can engage in a lot of hypocrisy, but think starving people would be a line that couldn’t be crossed).
Even as a detached observer, I feel there’s room to discuss the impact of the Brexit result, good or ill – as well as analyse the historical context, and consider what we should do next.
@green as grass – that’s because it *is* a disaster. I will never forget or forgive the sheer lies that people were told.
While not ‘raging’, it is still allowed (in fact, needed) to point out the ongoing catastrophic impacts brexit has had. I applaud the likes for FT (and indeed TI here) for continuing to point out the rational examples of this. See the Yorkshire Bylines downside dossier, for example – now at 1570 known downsides and regressions, with 36 upsides.
https://yorkshirebylines.co.uk/regular-features/the-davis-downside-dossier/
It *is* changeable – it will eventually have to be due to the sheer economic reasoning (but you know, look over there – brown people on boats!), as we drift further and further away from global influence and are outside trade agreements that matter on a day to day level for UK based businesses wishing to deal with our closest partners in a hassle free way.
I got an FT subscription trial recently, excellent value for £1 for a month and agree it is mostly indepth, quality writing worth paying for, although I haven’t taken out the full subscription beyond this yet.
@green_as_grass, hardcore brexiters spent 40 years moaning about the EU until they got their way. I suspect it won’t take as long for hardcore ‘remoaners’ to get their way, given the relentless drip feed of bad news regarding Brexit. I think it’s less than 10% who think it’s actually going well.
On an unrelated note, I really enjoyed that £0.99 book The Good Enough Job, makes a lot of very good points about the absurdities and unfairness of the working world, and some ideas and solutions for those of us stuck in it. I heartily recommend.
@ Grass, @Vic,……agree.
The investing info and comments here in that respect are second to none, and I’m sure that many have benefitted from them if only to have their investing outlook confirmed, myself included.
Like the miner’s strike in 1984 that left many in the north, still divided, so will the Brexit vote, which will continue. But I don’t think that it’s worth the effort or potential upset that it can cause.
Being in Europe was excellent for the UK’s towns and cities, similar to, but not as good as mainland Europe. But if you lacked the benefit of further education, after a while you were overlooked and excluded. What were once the places to retire to or visit, such as the coast, their services and amenities were left to stagnate and fall behind while the towns and cities thrived.
Something that I believe many here will lack is the experience of life before the Common Market, and I’m certain that that had a big influence on those who can make that comparison and now live in those areas that were subsequently left behind. Perhaps that’s why some of those same disillusioned voters contributed to BOJO’s 80-seat majority.
The early Common Market years were fraught with problems that took years to resolve or manipulate, and likewise, Brexit will too, but only time will tell. Meanwhile, if Ukraine were allowed to fall, and Ji decided that Taiwan should be attached to the PRC, all else would not matter. I doubt that the institutional sclerotic Europe would wake up in time.
As an aside, I’m always amused by the Fire sect who appear to have a special relationship with the big guy above.
@Barney — Brexit will make those neglected and impoverished towns poorer. The report commissioned by the (commendably) anti-Brexit London Mayor to try to quantify the damage Brexit is doing actually found that London is doing (relatively) least badly.
Nobody denies there is regional disparity and whatnot in the UK. Brexit was no solution to anything and has economically made it worse.
The only thing it did do positively for those places is deliver a kick in the pants to the elite. Congratulations, that got an Eton boy who didn’t give a toss about anything nor anyone but himself into #10, and he made things even worse.
p.s. Oops, cheers for the nice words about the investing content though, forgot to add. 🙂
@TI
That regional disparity was Brexit’s biggest and unforeseen ally. And it continues. You have rural pensioners paying more council tax than some in South Ken, it can’t be right, but it is ever thus.
Agree about the Eaton boy, but not necessarily in those words, as Eric M might have said
@The Investor
“As for Brexit, … I created this blog to share my views, as best I can, and Brexit is not going away. So now and then I’ll write about it”.
Fair enough. I would gently point out that another contributor was recently threatened with excommunication for banging on and on and on about something he/she felt passionately about (might have been Bitcoin), as it was thought to be dominating and spoiling the debate.
I voted Remain. I’ve done very well out of EU membership, and out of Freedom of Movement, because I am well educated, ran businesses, and by most people’s standards am fairly wealthy. That probably goes for most people who interested enough to fork out to be a member of the best investors’ forum there is. So we’re a bit of an echo chamber. I try hard to remind myself that while EU membership worked really well for me, it may not have seemed so great to low- or no-skilled people competing for work and wages with the cream of an effectively unlimited pool of foreign workers, and that those people’s Leave vote may have seemed perfectly rational to them.
@Valiant — Cheers for thoughts and some of what you say resonates, though naturally I see some other things differently.
Which brings up one of the points actually. As blog owner / writer, readers who comment generally expect a reply out of me. And I also feel ‘responsible’ for what is shared here, both by me and by others, especially where it is expressed as fact versus opinion. So here, for instance, it’s very hard for me not to go down the road of pointing out that whatever some Leave voters ‘felt’ (and I agree many do seem to have felt as you describe) there was very little evidence of any relative impact on almost all their incomes (one study showed a small impact on the bottom 10%). Given it’s made us all and the economy smaller, I doubt even that bottom 10%, if it has benefitted from the end of free movement directly (I doubt it) will have made good. The lower tax receipts and deteriorating public services alone will see to that.
Your point about the other poster is fair enough. I don’t quite agree but I see what you’re saying.
As I communicated in my reply to them on that thread it certainly wasn’t an excommunication though! On the contrary, I’m dismayed they decided to stop commenting on the website. I regret my arguably clumsy handling of that situation.
I’ve written well over 6,000 comments on Monevator and read/handle 100s more some weeks (1000s more including spam) .
It’s very difficult to always get every one of these right, but inevitably any particular reader takes a comment directed at them more personally.
If that reader is reading, please come back! 🙂
@far_wide. Sorry, I’m a bit late to this party, but you were asking “Couldn’t [the lifestyling pension schemes] at least have diversified into a cash-like fund as well?” I’ve been in two, and by default they both shifted you into Blackrock Sterling Liquidity or a money-market fund in the 3-5 years leading up to your declared retirement date, so that you were at 25% at your retirement date. But that was to do with hedging on the assumption that you would want to take out the 25% tax-free lump sum as cash on the day you retired (cruise, Lambo, pay off the mortgage, I assume), rather than more general risk management. I assume that’s typical of the lifestyled schemes. Personally, I stopped that happening, partly because I didn’t know when I would want to retire, and partly because in the era of very low interest rates it looked like the “cash-like” options would actually lose me money after charges. I’ve sort of hedged against the tax-free lump sum by keeping actual cash in Cash ISAs, where I can at least shop around for the best rates. With hindsight, having 25% in a money-market fund around mid-2022 would now be looking like the smart move, although it probably doesn’t outweigh the opportunity cost of _not_ being in equities over the longer term.