Excavating Egypt: this weekend’s money sections
The political unrest in Egypt was the source of many headlines this weekend, including money sections which took a personal finance view of rushing to dig into the Egyptian economy.
Patrick Collinson (@pcollinson) in Saturday’s Guardian looked at the possible profits to be made from acting quickly and investing in the country. Egyptian shares fell by 11 per cent before the exchange was forced to close, so purchasing shares in value-hit companies could offer quality rewards when the troubles have calmed.
However, Kathryn Cooper in the Sunday Times (@TimesMoney) warned that the Egyptian opportunity is too risky for the average investor, especially with the continuing uncertainty surrounding emerging markets and inflation. In his Independent on Sunday column, Julian Knight (@ukmoneyguru) also alerted would-be investors to the difficulties of getting your money back out of an unstable economy.
Investors who heed these risks but are keen to look abroad to increase their portfolios could consider Nina Montagu-Smith’s (@ninamontagu) Sunday Times recommendations. Montagu-Smith’s tips for Europe and America reference the Ignis Argonaut European Income fund amongst others.
Putting Egypt aside, Julian Knight’s column (@ukmoneyguru) also commented on the announcement of Martin Wheatley to the position of new chief executive of the CPMA whilst Jo Thornhill in the Mail on Sunday (@DMAILmoney) explored the latest victim of the Government’s spending cuts – the free debt advice services supported by the Financial Exclusion Fund.
There was a general lack of movement elsewhere on the scoreboard, with the exception of regulation which saw a threefold increase in stories this week.
The rest of the scores on the board were:
Charity 3%
Credit cards 2%
Fraud/scams 2%
IFAs 0%
Insurance 4%
Investment 33%
Mortgages 8%
Pensions 8%
Property 6%
Regulation 6%
Savings 12%
Tax 8%
Utilities 8%