Author: Lucas

Consumer rights expert Martyn James and consumer finance specialist at Royal London, Sarah Pennells, round up what you need to know about keeping your savings safeIt is important to see if your savings are protected(Image: Getty)It’s 2026 and the world is a volatile place. Prices of gold and silver – traditionally where wealthy people invest their money in trying times – are hitting record levels.The stock market is shooting up and down with every big news story in the world and some of our most beloved brands have gone bust.At times like this, it makes sense to not only make…

Investment trusts have on average traded at a discount for at least 53 consecutive years, according to analysis by the Association of Investment Companies.The AIC’s research, based on Morningstar data ranging from December 1972 to December 2025, shows that the current period of double-digit discounts has so far lasted three years and seven months.Meanwhile, the smallest average discount was 2 per cent in December 1993.Rules around cost disclosures (which will be replaced with new rules by June 2027); dislike of the UK market in a low-growth economy; a fear of missing out on US growth and the performance of Magnificent…

VALTERRA Platinum said in a trading statement today full year headline earnings for 2025 could double owing to a 26% increase in metal prices and R5bn in cost cuts. Earnings for the 12 months ended December 31 would come in between R15.6bn and R17.3bn, an increase of between 85% and 105%. Sales volumes were lower owing to the drawdown of metal inventory built in 2024 as well as “significant flooding” at the Amandelbult Tumela mine in the first half of 2025. Amandelbult lost about 22% of its production in the first half of Valterra’s financial year – about 100,000 ounces…

Key PointsPresident Trump wants a $1.5 trillion defense budget.He also wants defense companies to invest more in weapons production, at the expense of profit margins.President Trump announced Wednesday he wants to spend $1.5 trillion on defense:”For the Good of our Country … our Military Budget for the year 2027 should not be $1 Trillion Dollars, rather $1.5 Trillion Dollars … This will allow us to build the ‘Dream Military’ that we have long been entitled to, and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE.”Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are…

The price has been trading below the $30 level over the last four decades. It is seen that when the price touches the $30, it is unable to go above it and reverses lower. However, the price of silver closed above the $30 level for the first time in history in 2025. This means that the cup and handle pattern has been broken and silver has opened the door for much higher levels. The chart shows that the price rally from the 1993 low towards the $30 is a 747% move. If this move is measured from the breakout of…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Meanwhile:The participants in this surprisingly old-school quote-dunk interaction are the BBC’s economics editor Faisal Islam, and Bloomberg’s UK political editor Alex Wickham. And, as should be incredibly obvious (not least because the context is UK markets), extremely little is at stake here. And or course, you hate to see it. One of the UK’s most high-profile broadcast journalists arguing with a regional trade publication reporter over the significance of a 10bps move in cable? Who would take pleasure from such a ruckus???The…

This stock crushed the market in 2025 and could do so again through the next five years and beyond.Even near all-time highs, the S&P 500 still offers plenty of stocks that can deliver outstanding returns to patient investors. Those looking for the best of the bunch to invest in right now should consider companies capitalizing on the rapid expansion of industries such as cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI). One such stock is none other than Google parent company Alphabet (GOOG 0.68%) (GOOGL 0.73%). Here is why, for those with $500 to spare, Alphabet is one of the best growth…

Daily Gold (XAU/USD) A slight pullback on profit-taking will not be a trend-changing event. It may even create the next buying opportunity. The charts show the first downside target as a minor pivot at $4712.52. However, the most important support is the uptrend line at $4655.79. The trendline has been guiding the gold market higher since the December 31 main bottom at $4274.02. On the upside, a breakout through $4888.55 will signal a resumption of the uptrend with no visible resistance. PCE Inflation Report Due at 14:00 GMT: Fed’s Favorite Gauge in Focus The Federal Reserve’s favorite measure of inflation,…

You may need to stop transactions, Nationwide saysSophie Buchan Money and Lifestyle Writer00:54, 24 Jan 2026Nationwide is the world’s largest building society(Image: Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)Nationwide, which serves 16 million customers throughout the UK, has written a warning on its website to anyone transferring funds, cautioning that transactions may need to be halted. The building society’s website explicitly advises people to never “let money come into your online relationship. This includes sending and accepting money”.Highlighting the severity of romance fraud, Nationwide emphasises that while many may underestimate the threat, these scams represent a “huge problem for online dating”.…

Rising defense budgets in the United States and its allied nations, driven by escalating geopolitical tensions worldwide, are strengthening demand for advanced military research, development and procurement. This environment is supporting the growth outlook of leading defense contractors such as RTX Corp.RTX and General DynamicsGD, both of which benefit from large, multi-billion-dollar contracts for combat-tested missiles, radars, ships and other critical defense systems. Their participation in the commercial aerospace market also adds diversification and helps provide more stable revenue streams.RTX offers a broad and well-balanced product portfolio, spanning commercial and military aircraft engines, aerostructures and advanced missiles, sensors, radars and…