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1 month ago | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
The past week has seen a continuation of the market volatility we wrote about a week ago. On the face of it, this could be attributed to the on-again, off-again tariffs being implemented by the US government with little or no notice. But beneath it all, lies an old-fashioned ‘growth scare’. The market is concerned that these tariffs will feed through into weaker economic growth, particularly in the United States.
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1 month ago | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
A measured response is needed to respond to emerging economic trends that are not yet clear. When President Donald Trump began his second term, he was clear that he would move fast and hard on his agenda. He has not disappointed his supporters. Recent weeks have been dominated by the implementation of new tariffs, often announced, temporarily paused, and then re-announced at break-neck speed.
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Jan 13, 2025 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
Everybody loves a happy ending but when it comes to a thing as big and as complex as the world economy things are never quite that simple. After the high inflation of 2022 and 2023 and the high interest rates that followed in 2024, the misty-eyed amongst us may have been waiting for a 2025 in which interest rates fell rapidly; crushing our mortgage interest payments with just as much force as they pushed up our share prices. In reality, though, this cold January is a little more complicated.
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Dec 6, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
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Dec 1, 2024 | 
listverse.com | Charlie Parker
Human beings love the thrill of solving difficult problems. Doing so builds confidence and self-esteem, and when problems are solved in a group, it teaches one how to work well with others. One of the most terrifying problems that human beings face is that of their own mortality. Every single one of us will have to face death one day: the death of friends, loved ones, and, inevitably, our own demise.
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Nov 15, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
1. Trump’s Trifecta TriumphThe polls may have said the US election was heading for a dead heat, but in the final reckoning, Donald Trump ran the table. The Republicans claimed the House, the Senate and the White House. This leaves him with the ability to drive through an economic agenda focused on deregulation, tariffs and support for the ‘old economy’ sectors of the stock market. Markets rallied on the news, probably largely in celebration of avoiding the uncertainty of a contested election.
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Nov 1, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
Capital Gains TaxAfter speculation that capital gains tax could be raised as high as 39%, the rise here is modest. There is no rise to the rates for property. The rates payable on ‘chargeable gains’, which includes shares, rises from 10% to 18% for basic rate taxpayers and from 20% to 24% for higher-rate taxpayers. These changes come into effect immediately. Tied to this, Business Asset Disposal Relief will be gradually phased out.
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Nov 1, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
The first Budget of the new Labour government has proven the most feared and most trailed for many years. Rarely has a fiscal event permeated so far into the public consciousness. The reason, of course, is that significantly higher spending is needed to avoid biting public sector cuts. Both major political parties chose to ignore this reality during the last general election campaign, and it was always a fiction that Starmer was as complicit in as Sunak, whatever is said now.
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Nov 1, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
One of the key groups that risked paying a high price for the government’s requirement to target niche taxes is of course those people who pay capital gains tax. Capital gains tax is paid on investments in shares and other assets outside of the protective wrappers of pensions, ISAs and investment bonds. Even though it is largely just a tax on success, some still fear it deeply and are willing to compromise their investment returns to avoid it.
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Oct 11, 2024 | 
aspim.co.uk | Charlie Parker
1 . Pain from LondonIt is possible our new chancellor Rachel Reeves had hoped to stimulate some Churchillian spirit with her bleak description of the problems faced by the UK economy and public finances. In reality she seems to have just perpetuated gloom. Since the election consumer confidence has fallen, business investment has slowed and many have felt they are waiting with something of a sense of foreboding for the budget on 31 October.
