1992, a fantastic year that saw Kris Kross make us “Jump”, Jon Secada claimed it was “just another day”, Bobby Brown was “Humpin Around”, Right Said Fred declared “I’m too sexy” and the great Luther Vandross & Janet Jackson reminded us “The best things in life are free”. But something disappeared in 1992, and hasn’t made a comeback until 2024… Vinyl! OK, OK, vinyl itself didn’t actually ‘go’ anywhere, but today it has reappeared in the UK Consumer Price Inflation basket for the first time since…

The big gets bigger, because it helps you get smaller… If I had a pound (lb) for every time I wrote about Novo Nordisk & their weight loss drug I’d be very well off, but today something happened that could take things to the next level, and we can seemingly thank trypanophobia. Novo Nordisk had their CMD today in Copenhagen, and they aren’t normally one to announce big reveals at these events, but what appeared on the surface an innocuous headline, that amycretin demonstrated 13% weight loss in…

When it comes to accessories synonymous with finance, the good old brick mobile phone of the late 80’s, a bowler hat, FT tucked under the arm, the chalk stripe suit all spring to mind, or more recently a Patagonia gilet has to be outerwear of choice. But there’s nothing quite like the red briefcase to keep investors & the UK public on tenterhooks as they await the budget, and given Conservatives have much work to do in arresting the yawning gap with Labour on the popularity front, expectations…

Sometimes, the more hyped an event becomes, the greater the disappointment. Often that film sequel just doesn’t quite fulfil the anticipation (Ghostbusters 2, Jaws 2/3/4 etc we’re looking at you), or that ‘must visit’ restaurant when the steak comes up warm or the mains don’t come at the same time (The Devonshire I’m looking at you). Whatever it may be, the disappointment can sometimes do more damage than the hype into the event. China’s National People’s Congress started today and after 2023’s…

As much as I love finding a great pub for a Sunday roast, you can’t beat cooking it yourself (outside of the obvious clearing up, and Mrs W thinking I’d set fire to the kitchen after searing off the roast sirloin joint y’day). Being master of your own portion controls is worth it alone, but as I never like to do anything by halves, creating a lot from scratch I’m usually met with an overwhelmingly long list of to do’s, so preparation is key. It felt a little like that when looking at the long l…

A little something I write each year now, so thought as no snapshot for a day or two this may be so good light reading.

Like a super sub I’m being drafted in on Snapshot duty as Courteney has surgery today to replace the cartilage in his knee. It’s unsurprising but we’ve been calling him ‘Court’ recently until they give him his ‘knee’ back, but we wish him a speedy recovery nonetheless.

Those of us that commute into London via rail have by now got used to train strikes, & those of us early birds travelling in at stupid-o-clock know the day after a train strike (today for instance) is impacted too. Luckily for me, coming in from Shenfield I rely heavily on the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) which was described by the manufacturer of its rolling stock as a line that will “transform London”. Well, that manufacturer is none other than Alstom, and the only transforming they’ve done tod…

“It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life for me… and I’m feelin’ good…” The dulcet tones of Nina Simone were running through my head this morning as we headed into Q4 with a US gov’t shut down averted, China ‘official’ PMI data Saturday morning beating cons, and signs of early qtr confidence… BUT… and there is a but! The congratulatory applauding by US politicians for staying up late on Saturday to get a deal over the line only kicks the can further down the road, with far right Republ…

If you’re a seasoned commuter like myself, especially in the UK, you’ll no doubt at some point have fallen foul to the old “Wrong type of… snow / rain / leaves” (delete as applicable) excuse when it comes to delays or mishaps. It did strike me as a little ironic that today’s majorly underperforming sector, the Utilities space has been hit by material impairments at Orsted related to its troubled US offshore wind assets, sending shs down 25%! This on a day where news stations are awash with foot…