Robots, 5 pensions tips and Ladies Lootcamp
By Holly Mackay, Founder & CEO
19 May, 2023
The consumer mood music out there is almost oddly positive. This week GfK reported that UK consumer confidence rose in May for the fourth time in a row. And Global Research Giant and Oracle to the stars, Boring Money, also reported higher investor confidence. Investor sentiment is at its highest since April last year – people are more positive both about their personal financial situation and about the prospects for the stock market.
Back in the dark days of last Autumn, after Liz Truss’ disastrous mini-Budget, 32% MORE investors thought the UK stock market was going to fall, than thought it was going to go up. Today, 12% MORE investors think that the FTSE 100 is going to go up than go down. If we look at what’s actually happened, the FTSE 100 has risen by 14% since the darkest days of October.
Against this short-term consumer confidence high, I was struck by the quiet Jaws music stage-left this week, with news of BT’s plans to lay off 42% of its workforce (55,000 people) by the end of the decade, and Vodafone’s plans to axe 11,000 jobs over the next three years. AI is looming large. If I remove my worried parent hat about a dystopian future full of evil know-it-all smug robots, and put my investor hat on, there are of course some brilliant opportunities out there.
On this theme, Invesco’s featured article this week on the Nasdaq-100 focuses on innovation. They point out that 58 of the 100 companies in this historically tech-heavy index are filing patents in areas such as AI, clean energy and blockchain. And these companies account for 82% of the index in terms of size. Food for thought.
Oh God the robots are coming, just let me retire already!
Any reader who is planning to retire in the next 5 years-ish, heading to a remote cottage with no AI, heavy curtains and a larder full of gin, should look at our 5 things to do as you get ready to retire. I do think this is a time when even the most confident could benefit from financial advice and our guide also includes some thoughts on what you might expect to pay and what your options are – I know this is a concern for many readers.
(Last week we shared our list of 5 things to consider if you have just retired, in case you missed it.)
A small aside for Lindsell Train fund holders
As I write this, a note from Hargreaves Lansdown popped up on my screen. Their research team there have raised a red flag about Lindsell Train and I’m sharing this as they have been such a popular choice with so many DIY investors over the last decade. “... We don’t feel that the investment risk framework currently in place is sufficiently robust, nor that Lindsell Train have the correct capabilities to provide strong independent oversight and challenge of the investment team.”
Any of our readers who have their funds might want to do some more reading. To be very clear, the concerns flagged are around governance and process, not investment capabilities.
And finally… drumroll… Ladies Lootcamp!
A final note on our event for women in London on 21st June. Our first live event, my aim is that everyone who attends will leave feeling confident to make better financial choices for the rest of her life. With speakers including Mumsnet founder Justine Roberts, fund manager Maria Municchi from M&G, pension expert Becky O’Connor from PensionBee and a number of financial advisers, it’s going to be a brilliant evening. Aided and abetted with wine, nibbles and goody bags. Join us! Come on, it will be FUN! Honest!
Have a lovely weekend everyone. And could someone ask the bloody Sun God to wake up? I can’t remember what sun on my face feels like, in this miserable grey wind-ravaged cloudy island in the middle of the Atlantic! 🥶🤣☀️
Holly
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