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Today we are watching…
1. London Stock Exchangeย (#lse)
The British bourse is changing its opening hours from the longest in the world to a more reasonable length. The majority of those surveyed favored a 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. trading day, which would mean a one-hour delay to the open and a 30-minutes earlier closing time. 74% of finance professionals favored shortening the hours, which is significant, and some even want a lunch break! This will cram more trading into a shorter window, boosting liquidity. It will also improve work-life balance for traders, and help industry diversity. Itโs not good for day traders, necessarily, but thereโs plenty exchanges around the world to play with, and long-term investors shouldnโt bat an eye over this latest development.
2. H&M (#hm)
โBlack Lives Matter, but please stop ransacking our stores.โ Thereโs no excuse for looting, but the luxury goods industry canโt hold a grudge right now. In fact, brands like H&M are getting on the bandwagon, offering words of support and reposting activism on social media. Itโs great to be using a global platform to send a positive message, and investors would rather new โBLM’ fashion accessories werenโt rolled out in high volume. The concern for business is that the protesting triggered a second wave, but in the context population sizes, there arenโt many protestors. Most people are watching it on TV from home.ย