Investors are hopingforcut
INVESTORS desperate for an interest rate cut will scour Bank of England minutes today for hopeful signs amid continuing market turmoil.
But Tees Valley Regeneration and council officials remain confident of attracting continued investment in Teesside, despite the crisis, although exporters have been cautioned to look east rather than west for future growth.
London’s FTSE 100 index bounced back yesterday to close up 3% on Monday, after the US Federal Reserve cut its interest rates by three-quarters of a point.
The Bank of England said it had no immediate plans to follow the Fed’s lead but all eyes will be on today’s publication of the minutes of the last meeting for clues to its future intentions.
Despite the gloom, one Northern analyst believes market losses present genuine investment opportunities.
Fraser Irvine, regional director of stockbrokers Edward Jones, which has offices in Hartlepool and Yarm, said: “Yesterday stocks were 5.5% cheaper so there is a good buying opportunity for clients with a long-term plan.”
Joe Docherty chief executive of Tees Valley Regeneration added: “There is an under-supply of new commercial property in the Tees Valley, which holds strong investment opportunities. At the moment we have seen no change in investor demand.”
Richard Poundford, Stockton Council’s head of regeneration and economic development, said the ailing economy could even prompt further investment.
“Regeneration, unlike the currently turbulent stock market, is a long term process,” he said.
“Many of the most successful investors ‘buy-in’ at the bottom of the market, enabling greater returns as the economic cycle progresses.”
And he was hopeful for the chemicals and process industries where economies continue to develop.
David Coppock international trade director for the North-east with the export agency, UKTI, said while it was too early to say if exports had been affected by the US market’s rollercoaster ride, companies would be advised to look East long-term.
There had already been a “substantial” increase in trade to Eastern Europe, Russia, China and South East Asia. “We have seen a balancing off in trade to the US.”
