It’s a quiet public holiday today but I have a few things to talk about.
The financial media seem to be dominated at the present time by commentators who are forecasting doom for the UK economy. Bailouts by the IMF are forecast, rampant inflation and higher taxes because the Government is spending more than we can afford, or are raising in taxes.
That may be so although I never try to forecast national economics. Certainly higher taxes are eroding confidence in UK companies although fortunately many are more reliant on overseas businesses.
There were some interesting comments by John Baron in the Investors Chronicle this week. He has been reducing his exposure to equities in his “Growth Portfolio” and had this to say: “Apart from higher inflation, ever higher government borrowing across the western world is a factor [which has encouraged diversification into other asset classes]. Politicians need to face reality by cutting spending, which is growing faster than their economies can fund – in part due to ageing populations. For example, estimates suggest UK GDP would need to rise by 3 per cent every year in the coming decades to compensate. This will not happen. And taxes cannot keep rising. High government spending crowds out the private sector and, together with high taxes, stifles enterprise and economic growth…”
That’s a good summary of the current UK economy in my view.
But I am still looking to spend money personally – namely on a new laptop to replace my very old Windows 10 Lenovo one (purchased in 2021). Apart from it not being capable of running Windows 11, the battery now has a short life. The latest Lenovo Carbon X1 looks a good replacement and gets good reviews. I have been very happy with my old Carbon X1 so prefer to stick with the same supplier if possible.
I also have a Win 11 Desktop PC and a Samsung tablet I use for web browsing and book reading while in bed, so a new Lenovo laptop should keep me in IT kit for a few years.
If any readers have any comments on the above, please let me know.
Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson )
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