Economics 2018: Stock Market Turmoil, Trade Wars, Brexit Uncertainty

2018 in economics: from market turmoil, to trade war and Brexit

Market turmoil, a trade war, a softening global economy, a sputtering Germany, a budget-busting Italian government and Brexit: FT.com's economics commentator Martin Sandbu reviews a tough year in economics. Video above published Dec 21, 2018.

There exists a credible alternative to the present Brexit shambles. We must take it, seize the Brexit prize, and give the people of Britain the future they deserve. https://t.co/AOJKj3zc3V

— David Davis (@DavidDavisMP) December 16, 2018

The no-deal option: About a dozen Cabinet members now back completing Brexit on world trade terms rejecting the EU’s offer.
My Telegraph column on why this could now be the least risky option: https://t.co/evgc8IEbLE

— Fraser Nelson (@FraserNelson) December 21, 2018

Brexit Britain will be just fine https://t.co/29oIdcqAqF

— Toby Young (@toadmeister) December 26, 2018

On the other hand, Martin Wolf, associate editor and chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, disagrees:

Martin Wolf: The nightmare of a no-deal Brexit looms and must be prevented https://t.co/YFV3bHIFvR

— Martin Wolf (@martinwolf_) December 13, 2018

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DISCLAIMER

Pearson Sells Financial Times to Nikkei, CEO John Fallon Statement

UPDATE (video above) July 24, 2015: Why Nikkei paid Pearson $1.3 billion for the Financial Times: Japan’s biggest financial news publisher surprised the media world by buying the Financial Times and paying a quite a premium compared to other recent newspaper deals. Nikkei Inc., whose flagship Nihon Keizai Shimbun is Japan’s leading business daily, is paying $1.3 billion to Pearson Plc to buy the FT Group, which owns the salmon-hued paper with an editorial team of roughly 500 journalists in more than 50 locations around the world.

Pearson PLC, 5-year stock chart above (source: google.com)

Pearson NYSE:PSO (5-year chart above) announced today it has agreed to sell its financial media asset Financial Times (FT) to Nikkei, a Japanese financial newspaper. Statement at Pearson to sell FT Group to Nikkei Inc.

Principal domain names of referenced entities:
pearson.com
ft.com
nikkei.com

Pearson CEO John Fallon to Pearson staff (emphasis added)--

"Dear Colleagues,

Today we have made a significant announcement, which is that we have agreed to sell the Financial Times to Nikkei. This is an important moment for both Pearson and the FT, so I wanted to share more about what’s happening and why.

For fifty-eight years, Pearson has been the proud owner of the Financial Times. We’ve invested in its global expansion and digital transformation, through good times and bad; and all the time, protecting its editorial independence and championing the quality and breadth of its journalism. Both Pearson and the FT have benefited greatly from the relationship. The FT is recognised across the globe as an intelligent and authoritative commentator on world events, finance, commerce and economics.

As you all also know, in recent years, we’ve developed an increasing focus on our biggest, most exciting opportunity – to help people make progress in their lives through learning. As that opportunity has crystalised, it’s become clear to me and the Pearson board that the scale of the challenge requires our undivided attention.

The changing media landscape

At the same time, we are at an inflection point in global media.The pace of disruptive change in new technology – in particular, the explosive growth of mobile and social media – poses a direct challenge to how the FT produces and sells its journalism. It presents the FT with a great opportunity too – to reach more readers than ever before, in new and exciting ways.

Nikkei has a long and distinguished track record of quality, impartiality and reliability in its journalism and global viewpoint.The Board and I are confident that the FT will continue to flourish under Nikkei’s ownership.

I’ve every confidence in the FT’s ability to seize the moment, as it has done ably so far, in its digital transformation. The readership is at an all time high, with readers willing to pay more than ever for its journalism. But, after much reflection and detailed analysis of both the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, we have concluded that the best way to ensure the FT’s continuing journalistic and commercial success is for it to be part of a global, digital news organisation that is 100% focused on these same issues.

The FT remains part of Pearson until we complete the transaction around the end of this year. I’m very pleased that we will continue to work together in areas like business education and teaching English to professionals in countries such as China.

I’ll be over at the FT later this afternoon to meet in person with as many colleagues as possible.

I know many of you across Pearson will have questions about what this means for our Professional line of business, of which the FT is a part. Pearson VUE and our English business remain incredibly important to Pearson, and are a big part of our future. John Ridding, Bob Whelan and Tas Viglatzis will be in touch directly with the Professional teams today, and in the weeks ahead, to keep everyone updated.

Looking Ahead

We plan to reinvest the proceeds from today’s sale to accelerate our push into digital learning, educational services and emerging markets. We will focus our investment on products and businesses with a bigger, bolder impact on learning outcomes, underpinned by a stronger brand and high-performing culture.

This will help us progress toward a future where learning is more effective, affordable, personal and accessible for people who need it most. By doing so, we can help more people discover a love of learning and make progress in their lives.

This is the promise of learning– and the future of Pearson."

Pearson PLC is a British multinational publishing and education company headquartered in London. It is the largest education company and the largest book publisher in the world. (source: Wikipedia)


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Financial Times, Print Redesign, HTML5, Digital Strategy

I wrote a few days ago in Are Domain Names Dinosaurs that although the mobile web appears to be disappearing into a world dominated by native apps, all is not hopeless. A company that has successfully utilized a HTML5 mobile app in lieu of native apps, is the Financial Times (ft.com), which is launching a redesigned print product Monday:

Financial Times to debut big redesign Monday | Capital New York: "The Financial Times will hit newsstands Monday with its first major redesign in seven years. And between the lines (set in a new typeface, called Financier, developed by rockstar New Zealand type designer Kris Sowersby) it’s possible to read an idea that’s been inching forward among quality broadsheet newspapers in recent years: the primacy of digital for delivering hard news. Broadly characterizing the redesign of the paper as a “simplification” in a memo to staff obtained by Capital, editor Lionel Barber nearly makes the point: “It shows the market that the FT is confident in its print product and prepared to invest in it while pacing ahead with digital development at the same time. The newspaper's simplification enables us to shift our focus more into digital platforms and strike the right balance in our digital first newsroom.”..."

And indeed, the Financial Times has been leading the way with its Web App based on HTML5--no need to pay Apple or Google:

Financial Times: 'There is no drawback to working in HTML5' | Media | theguardian.com: "When the FT first switched from native to HTML5 on iOS in 2011, it was seen in some quarters as a snub to Apple. Although that was partly true – the FT and Apple disagreed over control of subscriber data – a more important reason was the desire to make porting and maintaining the app across multiple platforms and devices easier in the longer term. Two years on, Grimshaw says the strategy is proving a success. "I challenge anyone to tell the difference between our HTML5 app and a native app. There is no drawback to working in HTML5, and there are lots of advantages," he says."

see also: Building The New Financial Times Web App (A Case Study) | Smashing Magazine

domain name: ft.com

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