Comment, analysis and other offerings from Tuesday’s FT,
Philip Stephens: It’s too late to take the politics out of banking
The storm may be raging about them, but bankers have been locked in a contest to say something truly silly, writes the FT’s Philip Stephens. A year that began with a threatened collapse of the international financial system thus draws to a close with a reminder of why governments cannot again trust the future of their economies to the self-styled titans of finance.
Michael Skapinker: Time to take the blinkers off in business class
It matters to me that the City survives and thrives, but then my job depends on it, writes the FT’s Skapinker. If bankers really do leave for Zug or Singapore, I suspect most of Britain will ask if they would like directions to the airport.
Analysis: Japan – The spectre of stasis
This Democratic Party of Japan’s drive to shake up how “Japan Inc” works has implications across the archipelago and beyond. A more responsive and dynamic government could help the nation finally shake off the lingering effects of the bursting of its huge asset bubble 20 years ago and address pressing new problems of demographic decline and fiscal frailty. At the same time, the DPJ’s desire to establish a more equal alliance with the US implies a recalibration of security ties across east Asia.
Energy Source: Iraq readies for fight over Opec quota allocations
Iraq has set the stage for a fight with fellow Opec members about production levels, warning it has been “deprived of its fair share” of oil output for long time.
Lex on Nigerian oil
Force majeure is a phrase any oil and gas executive dreads. Sadly, it is one heard all too often in connection with Nigeria. The country produced almost 2m barrels a day of crude last year but could have achieved a third more if not for man-made shut-ins, according to the US Energy Information Administration. For a country that derives 85 per cent of government revenue from hydrocarbons, this gets expensive. Nor is it a picnic for oil companies such as Anglo-Dutch Shell.
The Short View: Return on commodities
Commodity markets have been around for centuries. Yet it has only been in the past decade that commodities have been widely bought and sold by investors like stocks and bonds. “Commodities” has become an asset class. According to research by Barclays Capital, commodity assets under management have grown from less than $10bn at the beginning of the decade to almost $250bn now.
Market Insight: Charles Dumas – Testing times for gilts and sterling
The past three weeks have seen what looks like the end of the recovery phase in global markets, writes Dumas, chairman of Lombard Street Research. Since March global investors have shifted from havens – the dollar and US Treasuries – to risk assets that had crashed. The S&P index has now recovered half its fall from the late-2007 peak to last March’s low of 666 – 50 per cent retracement is a traditional rally in a bear market.