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Mar ’25: Anticipating tariffs

2025-04-112025-04-16 FIRE v London5 Comments

What’s in the news?

Talking about the news in March, given what’s been happing on the tariff front over the last few weeks, seems a bit pointless.

We entered March with a lot of drama about Ukraine, and some notable ‘ceasefire’ activity on the diplomatic front.

We finished March waiting for ‘liberation day’, April 2nd, when Trump unleashed a basically bonkers cocktail of tariffs on every country in the world – except Russia, of course.

What’s going on with me?

In the meantime, life goes on.

I attended a funeral of a long time friend and neighbour in north London.

I visited a rather bizarre concert in the Royal Festival Hall.

And I visited hospital for my first MRI scan, participating in a clinical research programme at University College London Hospital. I was impressed, I have to say, and grateful that I live within relatively easy reach of this excellent hospital.

I also visited Dorset – Studland to be precise – and went yomping up to Old Harry Rocks, the start of the Jurassic Coast. It’s a beautiful part of the world, and less than 3 hours from London Waterloo.

Markets in March

Markets generally drooped in March, particularly the US’s S&P500. Enthusiasm/animal spirits from Trump’s election win are being replaced by trepidation / concern about Trump not being good for the US economy after all. The dollar, and the AUD, fell against the pound.

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Jan ’25: Trump 2.0 begins

2025-02-152025-02-16 FIRE v London1 Comment

Was it just me, or was the media relentless in January?

We had a remarkable fracas about the so-called “Pakistani grooming gangs” scandal here in the UK, with Elon Musk weighing in. At the time it seemed remarkable but one month later, as I write this, I am pleased to say I can’t remember the details.

Of course January saw President Trump inaugurated. Which was something of a Spinal Tap moment because, if we thought his media volume level was loud beforehand, it has ramped up to 11/10 subsequently.

On the eve of the inauguration, we saw the Gaza ceasefire. One month later, the ceasefire has held – which is something I suppose. The Israelis are adamant this isn’t a peace – presumably as the Koreans were too back in 1953 – and the mood remains febrile.

Very sadly LA saw the most expensively damaging forest fires on US record. I am a huge fan of LA, and was horrified to hear the fire reached only a few metres away from the Getty Museum – one of my favourite buildings. Thankfully it appears to have been one of the best designed buildings too.

Here in the UK, aside from the Musk politics nonsense, the main theme has been economic growth – or rather the lack of it. The chancellor Reeves has come out fighting, with a raft of pretty proactive announcements such as supporting a third runway at LHR, green lighting the “positive economic outlook – “Ox-Cam arc”, and so on. I take her less and less seriously, but await Labour’s proposed planning reforms with interest.

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Nov ’24: 3x

2024-12-072024-12-08 FIRE v London5 Comments

London life

I’ve been keeping busy as winter in London sets in. The Christmas lights are all out and looking resplendent, and both the West End and the City are feeling pretty buzzy. For all the general ‘UK stuck in the weeds’ economic commentary, we feel a long way from any talk of recession.