London's FTSE 100 traded 0.4% lower at 6,747.46 early on Wednesday, despite the release of stronger-than-expected local economic data.Rising bond yields, and what they say about inflation and interest rate risks, had put US and Asian stocks under some modest pressure and the weak sentiment extended to Europe.UK gross domestic product grew by a relatively modest 1.3% in the fourth quarter of...

Bonds are often considered an integral part of a portfolio by providing diversification and, in many cases, adding a lower risk element to someone's investments. Unfortunately, many bonds have become unattractive due to prices being bid up and yields falling. As such, investors need to be very careful where they put their money in the fixed income space in 2021.This article explains the basics...

A number of bosses of small-cap companies have showed faith in their business over the past week with several sizeable transactions taking place.The biggest deal comes from rural broadband supplier Bigblu Broadband (BBB:AIM), with chairman Christopher Mills taking advantage of a recent dip in the company's share price on Tuesday to buy 2.89 million shares at 78p each, in a transaction worth...

UK stocks see-sawed throughout Friday due to a dearth of company updates and following the news that Japan's longest-serving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would resign for health reasons. Markets are closed on Monday for a bank holiday.The benchmark FTSE 100 index ended drifting off 36 points or 0.6% to finish at 5,963, back below the psychologically significant 6,000 level.Gains in Miners Anglo...

UK stocks edged higher on a quiet Friday for company news following an earlier setback on news that Japan's longest-serving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would resign for health reasons. Markets are closed on Monday for a bank holiday.At midday the benchmark FTSE 100 index added 4 points or 0.1% to take it back above the 6,000 level to 6,004 points. Miners Anglo American (AAL), Fresnillo (FRES)...

FTSE opened 0.3% weaker at 5,992 points on Friday as investors digested Fed chairman Powell's speech where he signalled the central bank would allow inflation to run higher and unemployment to run lower.Also impacting markets and foreign exchange today was news that Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was stepping down for health reasons, ending his run as the country's longest-serving premier....

Alternative broadband services provider Bigblu Broadband (BBB:AIM) said its subsidiary Quickline Communications had deployed its first rural 5G site in North Yorkshire.Quickline was selected earlier this year to lead a £6 million project to plug the mobile connectivity gap by designing and building a multi-use infill network in North Yorkshire.The MANY (Mobile Access North Yorkshire) project...

BIGBLU BROADBAND (BBB:AIM) 108pGain to date: 1.9%Original entry point: Buy at 106p, 21 February 2019Investor enthusiasm for Bigblu Broadband's (BBB:AIM) superfast satellite internet access story has ebbed again after the shares' strong April rally, but the underlying trends look very positive.Net new customer growth is accelerating and gross margins are on the rise, up from 37.4% to 43.7% for...

Bigblu Broadband (BBB:AIM) 116pGain to date: 9.4%Original entry point: Buy at 106p, 21 February 2019Full year results from the super-fast broadband provider were well received by the market. Total revenue increased by 26.1% to £55.4m and total customers grew by 13% to approximately 113,000 in the 12 months to 30 November 2018.Current trading is good with Bigblu adding more than 3,000 net new...

Consumers want reliable, superfast broadband. That's no problem if you live in towns and cities but what about the thousands who live in the relative backwoods?Bigblu Broadband (BBB:AIM) is part of the solution, not just in the UK but across mainland Europe, Scandinavia and Australia as well. From just £24.99 a month customers can jump onto the internet superhighway at average 12mbps with a...

Satellite broadband and airtime reseller Satellite Solutions Worldwide - now called BigBlu Broadband (BBB:AIM) could face a shake-up as part of an attempt to improve shareholder returns. Activist investor Christopher Mills has emerged on the share register after investing £5m as part of Satellite Solutions' recent £12m cash call.Mills has a long track record of shaking up poorly performing...

Some of the largest bond funds in the UK are resisting the temptation to rush into shorter-duration paper, despite a likely increase in interest rates next year. As rates rise investors conventionally look for bonds with four years or less until maturity as the longer the duration of a bond the greater its price is likely to fall for the same increase in rates.But rather than worry about the...