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The Independent
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Next suffers shareholder rebellion over pay transparency
Next has been dealt a bloody nose by shareholders after more than a fifth backed proposals to provide more transparency over pay at the firm's annual general meeting (AGM). The retail giant saw 26.9% of shareholder votes supporting a resolution that called for more information about how many of its staff are being paid below the 'real living wage'. This is a voluntary benchmark that is independently calculated by the Living Wage Foundation based on the cost of living and exceeds the legal minimum wage. The proposal was put forward by ShareAction, which campaigns for responsible investment, and was backed by institutional investors such as Axa Investment Managers, Greater Manchester Pension Fund, Scottish Widows and Trust for London. While not legally binding, support for shareholder resolutions can put pressure on business leaders to respond to the matters raised and more than 20% of dissent can be considered a shareholder rebellion. It comes as part of ShareAction's wider campaign to put pressure on retailers over low pay at this year's AGMs as the impact of the cost-of-living crisis continues. The group has put forward proposals to the boards of Next, M&S and JD Sports as part of efforts to see workers paid a real living wage. The Living Wage Foundation's wage is currently set at £12.60 per hour nationally and £13.85 per hour in London for those aged 21 and over. This compares to the legal minimum wage, which is currently £12.21 for the whole country including London. Reacting to the vote at Next, Catherine Howarth, ShareAction's chief executive, said: 'Today's vote sends a tough message to the board of Next and the entire retail sector – clearly, investor concern is rising around the problem of retailers underpaying staff and the effects this is having on their business and workers. 'This is a serious level of support for resolutions of this kind and Next is now legally obliged to respond to this resolution and clarify how it will act on investors' concerns. 'We look forward to engaging the company based on a new level of transparency around low pay, a key step to better protecting all its staff with a real Living Wage. 'Major national and international pension funds and other responsible investors have demonstrated they want to see action to drive up standards around pay across the retail sector. 'We urge shareholders to continue to support the resolutions co-filed at JD Sports and M&S which will go to a vote later this summer.' Charlie Crossley, investment engagement manager at Friends Provident Foundation, said: 'Today's vote signals investors want retailers to address the transparency gap around wage practices. 'It is now clear Next should provide more meaningful disclosure on their policies for low paid workers, a crucial step toward ensuring workers can meet the cost of living. 'Sector-wide progress is required, which is why investors are also pursuing similar resolutions this year at other major retailers.' In response to the result, Next said the resolution was not supported by the board and defeated by a 'very significant margin'. However, the firm said it would expand what it publicly shares about its wage-setting principles and practices in its next annual report. 'Although the board does not agree with the form of the resolution, it recognises the value of providing more clarity on how wages are determined and managed at Next,' it said. 'The company has a long-standing commitment to transparency and aims to offer shareholders meaningful insight into its decision making. 'Accordingly, we welcome the suggestion and will expand our disclosure on wage-setting principles and practices in our next annual report.'
Daily Mail
22-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Trouble at the top as Kuwait sues over plans to build new City skyscraper that is taller than its building
Updated: The owner of one of the City of London's most iconic skyscrapers is suing over plans to build another, taller building close by, claiming it will obstruct the light. Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund owns the Willis Building, a 28-floor tower in the heart of the financial district designed by renowned British architects Foster + Partners that was completed in 2008. The fund has filed a lawsuit against French group Axa Investment Managers over plans for a larger, 36-storey tower nearby at 50 Fenchurch Street. The case, originally filed by a Kuwaiti investment vehicle in November, claims that the new development will 'materially reduce the light enjoyed by the Willis Building'. It added that this light blockage would amount to 'substantial interference with the ordinary enjoyment of the Willis Building and constitute a nuisance'. A defence to the claim has yet to be filed. Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. That helps us fund This Is Money, and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationship to affect our editorial independence.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Investors dodge U.S. dollar and Treasuries, scared by Trump's trade war
The U.S. dollar is an early casualty of President Donald Trump's us-against-the-world trade war. The dollar has lost almost 10 percent of its value since Inauguration Day, with more than half of that decline coming this month after the president's decision to lift taxes on imported goods to their highest level since 1909. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. The weaker dollar - now near a three-year low against the euro - is bad news for Americans traveling abroad and could also aggravate inflation by making foreign goods more expensive. U.S. exporters, however, should gain. The drop is especially striking because countries that impose tariffs usually see their currency rise. But the wobbly rollout of Trump's tariff plans - with the president and his aides contradicting themselves about key details - left investors doubting the administration's competence. 'The administration's approach to policy and its lack of transparency in terms of motivations have all led to a distinct sense of unease in financial markets,' said David Page, head of macro research for Axa Investment Managers in London, which manages $1 trillion in investments. 'It doesn't look like what we have been used to in terms of well-thought-out policy.' Those concerns last week sent investors fleeing from the dollar and U.S. government securities, historically a haven during financial crises. In the hours before Trump's latest tariffs took effect April 9, long-term government securities behaved abnormally. Investors typically rush to buy ultrasafe Treasurys during a crisis, pushing their prices up and yields (which move opposite bond prices) down. Instead, at one point Friday, the rate on the 30-year bond approached 5 percent, up from 4.4 percent one week earlier. At the same time, the dollar also dropped, confounding traditional patterns and triggering talk of a historic break by observers including Lawrence Summers, a former treasury secretary. This week, after markets quieted, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed those concerns. In an interview Monday with Bloomberg Television, he said there was 'no evidence' that foreign investors were abandoning U.S. assets, saying they had been active participants in recent auctions of government debt. Long-term yields eased in the past two trading sessions but remained elevated. Those higher U.S. rates could linger as they have in the United Kingdom after a bond market revolt in 2022 over the Conservative government's plan to borrow heavily to pay for tax cuts. Higher yields would raise borrowing costs across the economy. Consumers would pay more for car loans and mortgages while businesses would find it tougher to secure loans to expand and hire. The federal government, meanwhile, would be likely to see its annual interest bill soar past $1 trillion. 'From 2022 onwards, it's been harder for U.K. citizens, businesses or households to get cheaper borrowing rates. That's definitely a risk [in the U.S.] given the uncertainty that we've seen over the last couple of weeks,' Page said. The dollar retreat reflected in the bond market's gyrations is unlikely to threaten the greenback's status as the dominant global currency. Central banks hold almost $7 trillion worth of dollars in reserve, almost three times as much as the No. 2 reserve currency, euros. The dollar also remains the most widely used currency in global payments. In March, financial institutions used dollars for almost 49 percent of cross-border transactions, close to a 12-year high, according to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. 'The dollar is incredibly entrenched in the global financial system in ways that no other currency is. Importing, exporting, borrowing, hedging, using the dollar for collateral, all of these things that major actors in the international economic system use the dollar for, would be so difficult to modify,' said Paul Blustein, author of 'King Dollar: The Past and Future of the World's Dominant Currency.' Foreign investors spent recent years moving into U.S. stocks and bonds, seeking to capitalize on the fastest economic growth in the developed world. But with U.S. assets trading at high prices, many investors have been overdue to rebalance their portfolios. The United States at the beginning of 2025 accounted for approximately one-quarter of the global economy but about 65 percent of global stock market capitalization, according to Barclays. Clumsy U.S. policymaking this month provided the catalyst for that investment reshuffle. 'U.S. assets were outperforming. The U.S. economy was outperforming. So by definition, people were holding lots of dollars. What we're seeing today is a normalization of the overwhelming skew toward holding U.S. assets,' said Eric Robertsen, head of global research and chief strategist for Standard Chartered Bank in Dubai. As the president's enthusiasm for tariffs made the United States look riskier, investments in other markets became more attractive. In Europe, the German government last month abandoned a constitutional borrowing limit and made plans to spend heavily to spur the economy and fund a military buildup, raising growth prospects. China encouraged higher consumer spending to better balance its export-heavy economic model. And Japanese 10-year government debt offered its highest return in 15 years. Recent gains by the Swiss franc, the euro, Japanese yen and gold, which is up more than 7 percent in the past five trading days, support the idea that investors are looking for new ways to ride out the turmoil unleashed by the president. Yet for major institutional investors, giving up on the dollar is not feasible. The $28 trillion Treasury market is the world's largest and most liquid, meaning that investors can quickly sell their holdings if they need to raise cash. In contrast, there are only $1.4 trillion in German government bonds outstanding. Alternative currencies likewise fall short. The Chinese yuan is assuming a greater role in global commerce. But the Chinese government does not allow capital to move freely across its borders, meaning investors could find their funds trapped. The euro also is handicapped. Nations that use the euro share a central bank in Frankfurt, which governs the zone's monetary policy. But they lack a common fiscal authority akin to the U.S. Treasury and a common bond market. 'That lack of a fiscal union probably has been the Achilles' heel for the euro. You would need to see more fiscal and political integration in Europe for the euro to become a real credible alternative,' said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist for HSBC in Hong Kong. It's too soon to say whether foreigners led last week's charge out of the dollar, said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist for Bannockburn Capital Markets in New York. Treasury Department data covering transactions through last week will not be available until midsummer. Even if the era of global dollar supremacy survives the trade war, the currency's short-term outlook might be poor. Trump's imposition of widespread tariffs has made a recession more likely, economists say, which could hurt stock prices and prompt the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. That would make investing in dollar-based assets less appealing. 'I think the dollar's down trend is just beginning. But there's no need to panic,' Chandler said. Meanwhile, investors who have been spooked by the president's unpredictable trade policy maneuvers worry about what's next. The president has returned to his first-term practice of publicly jawboning Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell to cut interest rates, despite tariffs' likely inflationary effects. And some aides have spoken of deliberately weakening the dollar to make U.S. manufactured goods more competitive on world markets. 'I don't think we're quite out of the woods yet when it comes to bond market volatility,' Neumann said. 'And that, in the short term, doesn't help the U.S. dollar either.' GRAPHIC Related Content Ja Morant dares the NBA to punish him, knowing it won't pull the trigger Scientists are 'X-raying' the Amazon, unlocking a lost human history The Smithsonian could be the beginning of Trump's plan to edit history. Or the end. Sign in to access your portfolio
Boston Globe
15-04-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Investors dodge US dollar and Treasuries, scared by Trump's trade war
The drop is especially striking because countries that impose tariffs usually see their currency rise. But the wobbly rollout of Trump's tariff plans - with the president and his aides contradicting themselves about key details - left investors doubting the administration's competence. 'The administration's approach to policy and its lack of transparency in terms of motivations have all led to a distinct sense of unease in financial markets,' said David Page, head of macro research for Axa Investment Managers in London, which manages $1 trillion in investments. 'It doesn't look like what we have been used to in terms of well-thought-out policy.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Those concerns last week sent investors fleeing from the dollar and US government securities, historically a haven during financial crises. Advertisement In the hours before Trump's latest tariffs took effect April 9, long-term government securities behaved abnormally. Investors typically rush to buy ultrasafe treasuries during a crisis, pushing their prices up and yields (which move opposite bond prices) down. Instead, at one point on Friday, the rate on the 30-year bond approached 5 percent, up from 4.4 percent one week earlier. Advertisement At the same time, the dollar also dropped, confounding traditional patterns and triggering talk of a historic break by observers including Lawrence Summers, a former treasury secretary. On Monday, after markets quieted, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed those concerns. In an interview with Bloomberg Television, he said there was 'no evidence' that foreign investors were abandoning US assets, saying they had been active participants in recent auctions of government debt. Long-term yields on Monday eased, but remained elevated. Those higher US rates could linger as they have in the United Kingdom after a bond market revolt in 2022 over the Conservative government's plan to borrow heavily to pay for tax cuts. Higher yields would raise borrowing costs across the economy. Consumers would pay more for car loans and mortgages while businesses would find it tougher to secure loans to expand and hire. The federal government, meanwhile, would likely see its annual interest bill soar past $1 trillion. 'From 2022 onwards, it's been harder for U.K. citizens, businesses or households to get cheaper borrowing rates. That's definitely a risk [in the US] given the uncertainty that we've seen over the last couple of weeks,' Page said. Related : The dollar retreat reflected in the bond market's gyrations is unlikely to threaten the greenback's status as the dominant global currency. Central banks hold almost $7 trillion worth of dollars in reserve, almost three times as much as the No. 2 reserve currency, euros. The dollar also remains the most widely used currency in global payments. In March, financial institutions used dollars for almost 49 percent of cross-border transactions, close to a 12-year high, according to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. Advertisement 'The dollar is incredibly entrenched in the global financial system in ways that no other currency is. Importing, exporting, borrowing, hedging, using the dollar for collateral, all of these things that major actors in the international economic system use the dollar for, would be so difficult to modify,' said Paul Blustein, author of 'King Dollar: The Past and Future of the World's Dominant Currency.' Foreign investors spent recent years moving into US stocks and bonds, seeking to capitalize on the fastest economic growth in the developed world. But with US assets trading at high prices, many investors have been overdue to rebalance their portfolios. The United States at the beginning of 2025 accounted for approximately one-quarter of the global economy but about 65 percent of global stock market capitalization, according to Barclays. Clumsy US policymaking this month provided the catalyst for that investment reshuffle. 'US assets were outperforming. The US economy was outperforming. So by definition, people were holding lots of dollars. What we're seeing today is a normalization of the overwhelming skew toward holding US assets,' said Eric Robertsen, head of global research and chief strategist for Standard Chartered Bank in Dubai. As the president's enthusiasm for tariffs made the United States look riskier, investments in other markets became more attractive. In Europe, the German government last month abandoned a constitutional borrowing limit and made plans to spend heavily to spur the economy and fund a military buildup, raising growth prospects. China encouraged higher consumer spending to better balance its export-heavy economic model. And Japanese 10-year government debt offered its highest return in 15 years. Recent gains by the Swiss franc, the euro, Japanese yen and gold, which is up more than 7 percent in the past five trading days, support the idea that investors are looking for new ways to ride out the turmoil unleashed by the president. Advertisement Yet for major institutional investors, giving up on the dollar is not feasible. The $28 trillion treasury market is the world's largest and most liquid, meaning that investors can quickly sell their holdings if they need to raise cash. In contrast, there are only $1.4 trillion in German government bonds outstanding. Alternative currencies likewise fall short. The Chinese yuan is assuming a greater role in global commerce. But the Chinese government does not allow capital to move freely across its borders, meaning investors could find their funds trapped. The euro also is handicapped. Nations that use the euro share a central bank in Frankfurt, which governs the zone's monetary policy. But they lack a common fiscal authority akin to the US Treasury and a common bond market. 'That lack of a fiscal union probably has been the Achilles' heel for the euro. You would need to see more fiscal and political integration in Europe for the euro to become a real credible alternative,' said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist for HSBC in Hong Kong. It's too soon to say whether foreigners led last week's charge out of the dollar, said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist for Bannockburn Capital Markets in New York. Treasury Department data covering transactions through last week will not be available until midsummer. Related : Even if the era of global dollar supremacy survives the trade war, the currency's short-term outlook might be poor. Trump's imposition of widespread tariffs has made a recession more likely, economists say, which could hurt stock prices and prompt the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. That would make investing in dollar-based assets less appealing. Advertisement 'I think the dollar's down trend is just beginning. But there's no need to panic,' Chandler said. Meanwhile, investors who have been spooked by the president's unpredictable trade policy maneuvers worry about what's next. The president has returned to his first-term practice of publicly jawboning Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell to cut interest rates, despite tariffs' likely inflationary effects. And some aides have spoken of deliberately weakening the dollar to make US manufactured goods more competitive on world markets. 'I don't think we're quite out of the woods yet when it comes to bond market volatility,' Neumann said. 'And that, in the short term, doesn't help the US dollar either.'
Washington Post
15-04-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Investors dodge U.S. dollar and Treasuries, scared by Trump's trade war
The U.S. dollar is an early casualty of President Donald Trump's us-against-the-world trade war. The dollar has lost almost 10 percent of its value since Inauguration Day with about half of that decline coming this month, after the president's decision to lift taxes on imported goods to their highest level since 1909. The weaker dollar — now near a three-year low against the euro — is bad news for Americans traveling abroad and could also aggravate inflation by making foreign goods more expensive. U.S. exporters, however, should gain. The drop is especially striking because countries that impose tariffs usually see their currency rise. But the wobbly rollout of Trump's tariff plans — with the president and his aides contradicting themselves about key details — left investors doubting the administration's competence. 'The administration's approach to policy and its lack of transparency in terms of motivations have all led to a distinct sense of unease in financial markets,' said David Page, head of macro research for Axa Investment Managers in London, which manages $1 trillion in investments. 'It doesn't look like what we have been used to in terms of well-thought-out policy.' Those concerns last week sent investors fleeing from the dollar and U.S. government securities, historically a haven during financial crises. In the hours before Trump's latest tariffs took effect April 9, long-term government securities behaved abnormally. Investors typically rush to buy ultrasafe treasuries during a crisis, pushing their prices up and yields (which move opposite bond prices) down. Instead, at one point on Friday, the rate on the 30-year bond approached 5 percent, up from 4.4 percent one week earlier. At the same time, the dollar also dropped, confounding traditional patterns and triggering talk of a historic break by observers including Lawrence Summers, a former treasury secretary. On Monday, after markets quieted, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed those concerns. In an interview with Bloomberg Television, he said there was 'no evidence' that foreign investors were abandoning U.S. assets, saying they had been active participants in recent auctions of government debt. Long-term yields on Monday eased, but remained elevated. Those higher U.S. rates could linger as they have in the United Kingdom after a bond market revolt in 2022 over the Conservative government's plan to borrow heavily to pay for tax cuts. Higher yields would raise borrowing costs across the economy. Consumers would pay more for car loans and mortgages while businesses would find it tougher to secure loans to expand and hire. The federal government, meanwhile, would likely see its annual interest bill soar past $1 trillion. 'From 2022 onwards, it's been harder for U.K. citizens, businesses or households to get cheaper borrowing rates. That's definitely a risk [in the U.S.] given the uncertainty that we've seen over the last couple of weeks,' Page said. The dollar retreat reflected in the bond market's gyrations is unlikely to threaten the greenback's status as the dominant global currency. Central banks hold almost $7 trillion worth of dollars in reserve, almost three times as much as the No. 2 reserve currency, euros. The dollar also remains the most widely used currency in global payments. In March, financial institutions used dollars for almost 49 percent of cross-border transactions, close to a 12-year high, according to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. 'The dollar is incredibly entrenched in the global financial system in ways that no other currency is. Importing, exporting, borrowing, hedging, using the dollar for collateral, all of these things that major actors in the international economic system use the dollar for, would be so difficult to modify,' said Paul Blustein, author of 'King Dollar: The Past and Future of the World's Dominant Currency.' Foreign investors spent recent years moving into U.S. stocks and bonds, seeking to capitalize on the fastest economic growth in the developed world. But with U.S. assets trading at high prices, many investors have been overdue to rebalance their portfolios. The United States at the beginning of 2025 accounted for approximately one-quarter of the global economy but about 65 percent of global stock market capitalization, according to Barclays. Clumsy U.S. policymaking this month provided the catalyst for that investment reshuffle. 'U.S. assets were outperforming. The U.S. economy was outperforming. So by definition, people were holding lots of dollars. What we're seeing today is a normalization of the overwhelming skew toward holding U.S. assets,' said Eric Robertsen, head of global research and chief strategist for Standard Chartered Bank in Dubai. As the president's enthusiasm for tariffs made the United States look riskier, investments in other markets became more attractive. In Europe, the German government last month abandoned a constitutional borrowing limit and made plans to spend heavily to spur the economy and fund a military buildup, raising growth prospects. China encouraged higher consumer spending to better balance its export-heavy economic model. And Japanese 10-year government debt offered its highest return in 15 years. Recent gains by the Swiss franc, the euro, Japanese yen and gold, which is up more than 7 percent in the past five trading days, support the idea that investors are looking for new ways to ride out the turmoil unleashed by the president. Yet for major institutional investors, giving up on the dollar is not feasible. The $28 trillion treasury market is the world's largest and most liquid, meaning that investors can quickly sell their holdings if they need to raise cash. In contrast, there are only $1.4 trillion in German government bonds outstanding. Alternative currencies likewise fall short. The Chinese yuan is assuming a greater role in global commerce. But the Chinese government does not allow capital to move freely across its borders, meaning investors could find their funds trapped. The euro also is handicapped. Nations that use the euro share a central bank in Frankfurt, which governs the zone's monetary policy. But they lack a common fiscal authority akin to the U.S. Treasury and a common bond market. 'That lack of a fiscal union probably has been the Achilles' heel for the euro. You would need to see more fiscal and political integration in Europe for the euro to become a real credible alternative,' said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist for HSBC in Hong Kong. It's too soon to say whether foreigners led last week's charge out of the dollar, said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist for Bannockburn Capital Markets in New York. Treasury Department data covering transactions through last week will not be available until midsummer. Even if the era of global dollar supremacy survives the trade war, the currency's short-term outlook might be poor. Trump's imposition of widespread tariffs has made a recession more likely, economists say, which could hurt stock prices and prompt the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. That would make investing in dollar-based assets less appealing. 'I think the dollar's down trend is just beginning. But there's no need to panic,' Chandler said. Meanwhile, investors who have been spooked by the president's unpredictable trade policy maneuvers worry about what's next. The president has returned to his first-term practice of publicly jawboning Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell to cut interest rates, despite tariffs' likely inflationary effects. And some aides have spoken of deliberately weakening the dollar to make U.S. manufactured goods more competitive on world markets. 'I don't think we're quite out of the woods yet when it comes to bond market volatility,' Neumann said. 'And that, in the short term, doesn't help the U.S. dollar either.'
