#interest-rates

#interest-rates

I have a retirement lump sum, some of which I will spend and some of which I will invest or save.

Investors looking to put capital to work in this difficult-to-predict market certainly have plenty to consider right now. Whether we're talking about monetary policy (what the Federal Reserve will do with interest rates) fiscal or trade policy (largely set by congress and the White House) or other geopolitical concerns stemming from domestic or international shifts, there's a lot going on right now for investors to digest.

Following in the footsteps of David Solomon at Goldman Sachs and Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan, Ark Investments guru Cathie Wood recently warned of the potential for a reality check for the stock market after the massive Artificial Intelligence rally that has driven the major indices to all-time highs over the last three years. Of course, "Reality Check" is Wall Street word salad for a sell-off and a potential correction.

In the short term, risk appetite has strengthened thanks to recent progress in trade relations between the U.S. and Asian economies. President Donald Trump's visit to South Korea, and his expected meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his Asia tour, have helped ease concerns about potential tariff escalations. Markets are now hopeful that such a bilateral meeting could lay the groundwork for a large-scale investment package or a new trade agreement, thereby reducing the risk of prolonged trade frictions.

Over halfway through: In its H1 results in June Barclays highlighted the midpoint of its 3-year revamp and noted it had achieved over half (£17bn) of the c.£30bn planned UK risk weighted assets (RWAs) growth, half of the target income growth and realised two-thirds of the £2bn planned gross cost efficiency savings. Group income of £14.9bn was up 12% year-on-year, with group net interest income (NII) up 13% to £6.1bn.