Market Commentary

News that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has opened investigations into Google and Apple prompts an interesting question; can big tech ever become too big?

Undoubtedly, technology stocks have been a favourite of execution only short-term/day traders for some time. This is because they tend to turn quickly with the market sentiment, and profits and prospects can change at the drop of a hat.

Despite the near 40% drop in the value of Bitcoin this year and the growing spectre of regulations, arbitrage hedge funds are announcing relatively strong performance numbers compared to the wider market. One such hedge fund is the Nickel Digital Asset Management arbitrage fund which is only down 0.6% this year. This compares to the considerable drop in the value of Bitcoin and a 24% fall in the NASDAQ index. So does arbitrage work?

There is no doubt that Financial Technology (FinTech) will play a more prominent role in financial markets in the future. Investment in this area has reached record levels, and many believe this is only the start of the revolution.

In relation to investment, technical analysis has been in use for well over a hundred years in various forms. While today there are many different variations of historical technical analysis strategies, one question is still prevalent. Is technical analysis a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Over the last month, the value of a Bitcoin has fallen from £31,364 ($41,149) to £24,267 ($29,748), a fall in excess of 20%. Looking further back, in November 2021, Bitcoin hit just over £48,000 ($64,000) and has since fallen by nearly 50% in sterling terms. So is this the beginning of the end or the start of a new chapter for cryptocurrencies?

The official name is the Cboe Volatility Index, although it is affectionately known as the VIX Index. Used by professional traders as a means of monitoring short-term volatility expectations on the S&P 500 index, it has proven very useful. Over the last 12 months, the VIX Index has been as low as 15, as high as 36.45 and currently stands at 32.56. So how is this useful to global traders?

No, is the simple answer. In this article, we will look at which industries are impacted more than others. We will also review the reasons behind what can be significant performance differences, shocks, on the upside and the downside, and expectations during an economic downturn.

You will often hear investors refer to “Big Bang”, which took place on 27 October 1986. But what was Big Bang? Was it really such a big issue? Has it had any lasting effect on the London Stock Exchange share trading?

Over the last few weeks, we have seen an ever-worsening cost of living crisis, lower economic growth expectations and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. However, it would appear from a recent report by financial research house HYCM that UK investors are remaining surprisingly composed.