Tension in the Far East hits stock markets
Aside from the fact there are more than enough worries within Europe to account for the large fall in the worldwide stock markets this morning there are growing concerns about friction between North and South Korea. It is rumoured that the North Korean authorities have placed their military on alert, ready to react if South Korea engages in any form of military activity against its neighbour.
This has had on impact upon the Japanese, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Chinese, Indian, Thailand and Malaysian stock markets which fall fallen sharply overnight. While frictions between North and South Korea have been commonplace over the last few years, there is real concern about a potential explosion of military activity this time. The uncertainty this would present to the region, and potentially drag other countries into the dispute, is the reason why Far East stock markets have fallen so sharply.
Very few analysts can remember a 2 to 3 year period in the world of investment when volatility has been so commonplace and so many nightmare scenarios have emerged. It seems as though we are moving from one disaster to another at the moment, coming just after the worst economic downturn in living history and one which many economies have yet to overcome.
Share this..
Related stories
Is the UK recovery losing momentum?
The Bank of England next month has a very difficult decision to make regarding the UK economy amid signs that inflation could be coming back to life while the UK property market would appear to be stalling. Today's news that retail sales growth in the UK have now slowed to just 0.5% in the month of July is also a further hammer blow to the Bank of England and the UK government as they bid to injec...
Read MoreBank Of England Move To Calm Markets
As the UK stock markets fills with rumours that the Bank of England is set to move interest rates higher, Mervyn King has stepped in to try and take some heat out of the situation. Sitting in front of a Commons Select committee, investigating the credit crunch and the ongoing economic woes of the UK, King was asked a number of questions from the future direction of the housing market, the inflati...
Read MoreMixed signals from the UK high street
The CBI has today issued a depressing report on the state of the UK high street with only 31% of those surveyed showing a rise in May against 40% showing a decline in sales. A net balance of -17% compares with a figure of +3% in April although it is far higher than the -40% in January this year. The CBI survey takes a snapshot of the UK high street at any one time and while it can be misleading in...
Read MoreIs the budget enough for you to start spending again?
While the government has done its bit to try and kick-start the UK economy it appears that the success or failure of the latest plan is down to the UK consumer. However, even at this early stage there are grave concerns that a 2.5% reduction in VAT will have little or no impact on the high street and consumers will continue to hold back on purchases until prices hit rock bottom. There is even a su...
Read MoreUK interest rates could rise in new year
17/07/2015 UK interest rates could rise at “the turn of this year”, according to Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England. Interest rates have been at a historical low of 0.5% for the last six years, but this could be set to change as the economic recovery gathers pace. The governor indicated that when rates do rise, they could reach “about half as high as historical averages”...
Read More