What are your Top Stock Picks for 2024?
Taking Stock on Thursday 4th January 2024
Companies discussed on “Taking Stock” today:
00:45 Kefi Gold and Copper #KEFI
01:20 & 04:45 Next #NXT
02:15 Intelligent Ultrasound #IUG
02:10 & 02:35 WPP Group #WPP
02:55 Taylor Wimpey #TW.
09:05 JD Sports #JD.
12:15 Atlantic Lithium #ALL
16:20 LungLife AI #LLAI
16:40 Destiny Pharma #DEST
19:50 Angle Plc #AGL
21:52 Trufin #TRU
28:27 Silver Bullet Data Services #SBDS
23:45 easyJet #EZJ
27:55 & 36:43 Saietta #SED
29:45 Future Plc #FUTR
33:56 Agronomics #ANIC
36:55 IQAI Plc #IQAI
37:08 Byotrol Plc #BYOT
39:15 Supreme #SUP
39:45 & 41:04 Ultimate Products #ULTP
40:30 Guild Esports #GILD
41:35 Tekmar Group #TGP
TOP BUSINESS STORIES
Average mortgage rate lowest for nearly seven months
The average rate on a two-year fixed mortgage has fallen to its lowest level for nearly seven months as lenders compete for custom.
Financial information service Moneyfacts said the average rate had fallen from 5.92% to 5.87% in a day.
Major lenders, such as the Halifax and HSBC, have begun the year with rate cuts to keep hold of customers, as their own funding costs have dropped.
More reductions are expected, but many homeowners still face rising bills.
"The mortgage market may be heating up, but this won't fully ease the pain for the roughly 1.6 million existing borrowers with cheap fixed rate deals expiring this year," said Alice Haine, personal finance analyst from Bestinvest.
"They still face a heavy jump in interest payments when they switch onto a new product, with the only comfort that the situation could have been much worse."
UK service firms end 2023 on a high - PMI survey
Britain's services firms grew more strongly in December than initially thought and optimism hit a seven-month high, according to a survey that will be welcome news for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who is expected to hold an election later this year.
The final S&P Global/CIPS UK Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), published on Thursday, rose to 53.4 in December, its highest since June and up from 50.9 in November and a preliminary reading of 52.7.
FTSE 100 bosses earn UK average salary in three days, says High Pay Centre
Bosses of Britain's biggest companies will have made more money in 2024 by lunchtime on Thursday than the typical worker will all year, research claims.
By 13:00 GMT, the pay of FTSE 100 chiefs will have overtaken the £34,963 annual median wage for full-time workers, the High Pay Centre says.
Including pensions, top bosses' average reward amounts to £3.81m per year, the centre says.
That works out to £1,170 per hour - 109 times the average full-time worker.