This is an amalgamation of the “best bits” of the daily weekday newsletter/blog woven together to form a concise and coherent view on the things that matter in the commercial and economic news of the week.
THE DAY IN BRACKETS REFERS TO THE EDITION WHERE THE STORY APPEARED IN WATSON’S DAILY. Clicking on the day will take you to the appropriate edition of Watson’s Daily.
THERE WERE SOME MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS ON THE MACRO FRONT THIS WEEK...
- …what with the impact of the midterm elections (Thursday) which could mean a bumpier time for him in the second half of his term
- France and Turkey refused to comply with US sanctions on Iran (Wednesday) although everyone else has remained quiet on that front
- The oil price dipped into bear territory (Friday) ahead of the OPEC meeting this weekend as oil inventories have been trending higher in the last few weeks
- Europe couldn’t decide on a digital tax (Wednesday) as Denmark, Sweden and Ireland chickened out, given the importance of Big Tech to their respective economies
...AND THERE WAS A LOT OF CHAT ABOUT TRADE WAR EFFECTS...
- …with US soybean farmers getting annoyed with the side-effects of Trump’s tariffs (Tuesday) as there have been both winners and losers (Monday) in the trade spat so far with the Chinese
- China’s exports proved to be surprisingly robust (Friday) although Alibaba cut its full-year revenue forecasts (Monday)
- Other Asian countries could stand to benefit from the trade war as supply chains are realigned (Tuesday) with tech companies in Vietnam and Malaysia and Thai auto parts makers being amongst those who could benefit
RETAILERS CONTINUE HAVE A MIXED TIME OF THINGS...
- Marks and Spencer continue to disappoint (Thursday) although they are currently engaged in their latest turnaround plan
- Mulberry saw its losses widen (Thursday) as it experienced the aftershock of House of Fraser’s collapse, weaker UK demand and lower footfall
- It’s not just chain restaurants that are suffering – independent London restaurants are closing at a record rate (Thursday) as consumers are bombarded with too much choice
- Sainsbury’s continued to harp on about the merits of a merger with Asda (Friday) and Halfords unveiled disappointing profits (Friday) although I think its turnaround plan sounds reasonable
BANTER
I’m sorry – I admit it. I found this to be the thing that made me laugh the most this week: Teacher accidentally plays p0rn to entire class full of students (Metro, Harley Tamplin https://tinyurl.com/yakv2u6o). Ouch.
I hope you have a great weekend!