Companies buying companies is what drives markets higher, and with the FTSE market back to 7400 it is starting to ring true again.  Or to put it another way, stockmarkets are driven higher by M&A activity.  And there is plenty of that going on with deals for GKN, Sky, Wembley and Shire all in progress.

There has never been a better time to be an IFA.  Closed protectionist markets, high barriers to entry, strong demand and little evidence of an increasing supply of IFAs, although examination rooms are reportedly full. 

According to AJ Bell, a dividend yield forecast for the UK’s biggest ten listed companies are an eye watering 7.9%. the Americans in particular involved as their economy powers ahead.

The only shadow on the horizon is debt.  From the enquiries we at IFAC receive it is clear that the mortgage market is the fastest growing part of retail financial services.  Many are new entrants with less than ten years experience, meaning that they have no direct meaningful experience of the 2007 credit crunch!  The Office of National Statistics ONS now say that savings levels are at their lowest since 1963.  And there is just as much debt around as at the peak of the last boom cycle when RBS took on ABN in a deal too far.