AJ Bell Money & Markets

Markets rebound, warnings over plummeting pound, and how to pick a financial adviser

This week Laith Khalaf brings us some big markets news including the markets rebounding (much to the relief of investors), warnings about the pound’s decline, and an update on how energy firms handled that windfall tax announcement last week.

Laura Suter is back, and delves into data on whether low-cost food has faced bigger price hikes during the cost of living crisis. She also chats to a financial adviser, Peter Chadborn of Plan Money, to help you understand when you might want to use one and the sort of questions you should be asking.

And in this week’s investment interview, Tom Sieber chats to Duncan Ball, co-chief executive of BBGI Global Infrastructure. Infrastructure is highly prized for its inflation-protected income at the moment, and they chat about how that affects the fund’s portfolio.

Energy price cap, Snap’s warning, retailers dodging inflation worries and Amazon’s hit to the property market

This week, Laura Suter brings us the latest energy price cap news, with an explanation of what’s going to happen in the coming months. She also has a guide to how to squeeze the most out of your credit cards, and some good news for Premium Bond holders.

Danni Hewson is here with all the markets news, including Snap’s profit warning, the impact of lifting tariffs in China as it emerges from lockdown, and the latest on those suggestions of a windfall tax. We’re dabbling in football this week, too, with news on the Chelsea takeover, and Danni will be looking at the latest retail figures.

We also have pensions guru Tom Selby back with Pensions Corner, looking at the rules around auto-enrolment and how much you should actually be paying in. And Tom Sieber has an interview with property investment company Industrials REIT, following Amazon’s comments that it’s no longer chasing physical space.

It’s all about inflation as the UK rate hits a 40-year high

On this week’s Money and Markets podcast, Danni Hewson is joined by Tom Sieber from Shares Magazine to look at what’s behind April’s huge price increases and how markets have been reacting. With high costs taking centre stage in earnings reports, Tom picks through updates – including from Mr Kipling maker Premier Foods, and US retail giant Walmart.   

Markets are going through a very difficult patch, and Dan Coatsworth picks the brains of someone who’s been through bad times as well as the good – James de Uphaugh from Liontrust Asset Management. He gives his insights into what investors should be thinking about right now.

Though inflation is dominating sentiment, there’s plenty of other news moving markets this week. Danni and Tom look at the reaction to China’s announcement that Shanghai might soon end its lockdown, as well as a meeting between China’s Vice Premier and tech execs which seems to herald the end of the tech crackdown.

With an eye on future returns, we also ask David Jane from Premier Miton about the trends he thinks will be important longer term. Plus, we’ve got the latest Twitter twist, plans to change how often the price cap is fixed, a massive upheaval in the crypto-verse, and Jenny Owen shares a mad money story about a charity donation of £100 that turned into £140,000.

Global stocks have worst day in nearly two years, outlook for residential property market, and understanding broker ratings

Dan Coatsworth explains why stocks and shares continue to have a bad time and what might happen next. He also chats about takeover activity in the tobacco and property space, and why e-commerce companies have something to worry about.

The UK continues to be fascinated by property prices, and we may now be at a turning point after several years of soaring activity. Laura Suter talks to Guy Harrington from property loan group GlenHawk about what he’s seeing in the market.

And if you’ve ever wondered how analysts come up with buy, hold or sell ratings and how they create share price targets, don’t miss this episode, as Dan explains how it all works. Laura also has some important information on scams which featured in the Queens Speech. 

Rate hikes for all, Amazon impact, bank account bonuses and energy company drama

On this week’s podcast, the big theme is rate hikes – in the UK, the US, and Australia. Danni Hewson also runs through all the markets news, including the impact Amazon’s results had on the US markets, and those calls for a windfall tax on the oil companies.

Sticking with the energy company theme, Laura Suter delves into rumours of suppliers hiking direct debits by more than is fair – and tells you what to do if you’ve been a victim. And she’s starting her mini-series on how to get the most from your bank, kicking off with the best bank accounts for perks.

If that wasn’t enough, Tom Sieber interviews Jupiter Green trust – an environmental solutions-focused fund – about greenwashing and the impact of the Ukraine conflict on global net zero ambitions.

Twitter, tech and outlook warnings

On this week’s Money & Markets, Dan Coatsworth and Danni Hewson pull apart Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover plans. We look into his plans to pay for the platform, what he wants to do with it, and shareholder concern that Musk may be forced to sell some of his stake to finance his new venture. And looking over the first updates from ‘MAMAA’ stocks, we find it’s a mixed bag, with a sting in the outlook.

With markets volatile over concern about more China lockdowns, Dan discusses investing in Asia. He casts his eye over Vietnam Holding – the fourth-best performing investment trust of all geographies, sectors and styles in 2021. And he gets the lowdown from Craig Martin, chairman of Dynam Capital, which makes all the portfolio decisions from the Trust.

Also this week: Tom Selby hosts pensions corner – about the state pension, and when and how you qualify for pension credit. Plus, with another survey showing people are cutting back on their personal spend, should we actually be bullish about the retail sector long term?

AJ Bell’s plans to make investing a Dodl, Netflix’s big problems, pros and cons of share buybacks, and exploring the world of private equity

Laura Suter talks to Emma Keywood about why AJ Bell has launched a new investment app called Dodl and how it might help people getting started with stocks and funds.

Dan Coatsworth debates the problems facing Netflix and what it needs to do next. He also chats to Steven Tredget from Oakley Capital about the world of private equity and why more people are interested in this part of the investment universe.

Laura gives some money-saving tips for travel fans, while AJ Bell’s Russ Mould joins the show to talk about the pros and cons of share buybacks.

Inflation hits another high, retail reaction to rising prices, and spotting small company gems

On this week’s podcast we’ve got the latest inflation data, with Laura and Danni explaining what it means for us all. We also look at how companies are handling rising prices, from Tesco’s aisles to Asos’s online orders.

Danni has the latest on another U-turn in the Elon Musk Twitter saga, and we check in on how the Easter travel chaos is panning out.

We’ve also got two fund manager interviews for you. First, Danni chats to infrastructure investments specialist Giles Frost, at International Public Partnerships Infrastructure investment trust, about how his sector could be ideal in a high inflation world. And Dan talks to small companies pro Paul Marriage, from Tellworth, about how to spot the next big thing.

Finally, Jenny Owen discusses people getting chips under their skin so they can pay for goods in shops using just their hands. 

Musk moves on Twitter, timing the market, and could bitcoin ever rival gold as a safe haven?

On this week’s Money & Markets podcast, Dan Coatsworth and Danni Hewson discuss Elon Musk’s newly acquired stake in Twitter and whether his appointment to the board will result in more changes than just an edit button. Dan digs into Moonpig’s uplift to its revenue outlook and Danni wonders who might be in the market for occasion wear retailer Ted Baker. 

The team also discuss the week’s volatility, with markets spooked by more Russia sanctions being on the table, and comments from Fed chair Lael Brainard that stronger action might be needed to curb US inflation. Laura Suter chats to Simon Stickney from Collidr about whether you can ever actually time the market, and we hear from Adrian Ash from BullionVault about whether gold is still the go-to safe haven, or if investors are looking at Bitcoin as an alternative. And on the subject of gold, Jenny Owen tells us how the Royal Mint’s looking to turn your old phone into the shiny stuff.

Markets bounce on peace talks, bumper savings rate launches, and the real cost of those tax cuts

This week, Laith Khalaf brings us the latest markets news, including markets bouncing on potential Ukraine peace talks and Barclays taking a £450m hit to profits. Laith and Laura Suter also crunch the numbers on how much Rishi Sunak’s tax changes are actually going to cost you over the next few years.

We also discuss Neil Woodford’s former protégé Mark Barnett making a return to fund management, after a year out. And Laura looks at a new savings account that actually pays an interest rate above 1% – but there’s a catch.

Also on this episode, Dan Coatsworth has an interview about how the energy price cap and Russia/Ukraine crisis has impacted the energy industry.

And finally, Laura and Tom Selby have a Lifetime ISA special, answering all of your questions about the end of the tax year.