Wilkinson Financial Management

15/06/2026

Last week's market update in 6 minutes:
https://www.wilkinsonfinancialmgt.co.uk/article/detail/sjpp/weekwatch-15-06-2026.html

📈 Stock Take - The US and Iran have agreed on a framework peace agreement, announced late on Sunday and due to be signed later this week. The memorandum of understanding, which sent markets soaring on Monday morning, should see the immediate toll-free opening of the Strait of Hormuz.

💷 Wealth Check - The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a consultation into its proposed mortgage rule changes. It would give lenders greater flexibility to lend to certain groups of borrowers.

📷 In The Picture - Believe it or not, statistics suggest goalkeepers are often better served not diving when facing penalties. The same is true in investing. In a world full of headlines, reacting to short term noise can be tempting, but blocking out the noise and staying focused on a long-term approach is often better.

08/06/2026

Last week's market update in 6 minutes: www.wilkinsonfinancialmgt.co.uk/article/detail/sjpp/weekwatch-08-06-2026.html

📈 Stock Take - Friday’s sell-down is a reminder that investors should not assume that stock prices can only go higher, even if fuelled by AI.

💷 Wealth Check - The amount needed for people to achieve even a modest standard of living has risen sharply in recent years. This is based on the latest Retirement Living Standards report from Pensions UK.

📷 In The Picture - Withdrawing money when markets are weak can reduce the value of your portfolio and make it much harder for it to recover, even if market returns improve.

04/06/2026

🌳🚶‍➡️Team Training For The Cotswolds Way Trek🚶‍➡️🏔️

The Wilkinson Financial Management team spent last Sunday morning at The Roaches in the Peak District. The group covered 7 miles in 2 hours to help build the stamina they’ll need for the big day on 27th June 2026 when they will complete the Cotswolds Way Trek.

As you may be aware, all proceeds for the Cotswolds Way Trek will go to the St. James's Place Charitable Foundation who help disadvantaged children and young people both in the UK and abroad.

Well done to our team for their dedication last weekend and previously when they visited the Shining Tor, Cheshire! (Photos included)

If you haven’t donated yet, please do consider making a contribution. We've achieved 56% of our £1550 target so far, and every contribution no matter how small, really makes a difference.

How can you help?

Donate here👉 bit.ly/wfm-cotswold-way-trek
Share this post to spread the word 📣
Follow and engage with posts about our journey 🩷

You can also find out more about the St. James's Place Charitable Foundation here 👉 www.sjpfoundation.co.uk/

Thank you for your support so far!

20/05/2026

📢 ‼️ Charity Event Alert ‼️ 📢

🥾The team at WFM are taking on the Cotswold Way Trek on 27th June, raising money for the St. James’s Place Foundation. Carrie, Tach & Veronica are aiming to complete the half marathon course, while Richard 'stupidly' agreed (months ago) to do the full marathon route 😥🥾

💰We would welcome any support you can provide to benefit a foundation which provides grant funding to charities up and down the country. See Just Giving link below 👇🏼

🔗

Help Wilkinson Financial Management - Team WFM raise money to support St. James's Place Charitable Foundation

18/05/2026

Last week's market update in 6 minutes:
bit.ly/week-watch-18-05-2026

📈 Stock Take - UK government bond yields continued rising last week, as UK government leadership challenges and international questions increasingly weighed on investor minds.
💷 Wealth Check - The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is looking into how investment companies treat bereaved customers, to assess whether they are getting the right support.
📷 In The Picture - St. James's Place has published its fifth Financial Health Report, carried out by Opinium. It found that financial resilience has fallen since 2025, as cost of living pressures continue.

11/05/2026

Last week's market update in 6 minutes:
bit.ly/week-watch-11-05-2026

📈 Stock Take - Following bruising local election results, media reports have been awash with gossip around the prime minister Keir Starmer’s future.
💷 Wealth Check - Homebuyers committed more than a fifth (21.3%) of their gross income to meeting mortgage payments in 2025, the highest level since the global financial crisis.
📷 In The Picture - UK intermediate and long-term gilt yields are all at, or near, multi-year highs. This reflects a tough global economic outlook, but also specific domestic concerns (weak economy, high reliance on imported energy, political uncertainty).
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05/05/2026

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended the week at record highs. Despite a spike in energy prices, market sentiment remained upbeat, supported by a strong corporate earnings season and positive AI newsflow.

With reporting season nearly over, the four key US-based cloud operators Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services/AWS, Google Cloud and Meta (known as hyperscalers), all reported strong double-digit revenue growth, reflecting strong end-user demand and a payoff for the high spending already undertaken.

This is encouraging these companies, which account for almost 20% of the S&P 500’s weighting, to raise their already aggressive spending plans. Ahead of first quarter 2026 results, they were forecast to spend just over $650 billion on capital expenditure in 2026. Cumulatively, this figure is now set to be over $700 billion. The week ended with Apple also reporting strong earnings.

So far this quarter, US companies have reported annual earnings growth of almost 30%, more than four times the mid-single digit average growth recorded over the past five years.

Read more: bit.ly/week-watch-05-05-2026

28/04/2026

US markets continue to rise despite ongoing US-Iran 'tug of war'

Upbeat sentiment towards technology and AI, together with another strong week of corporate earnings supported US markets. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indices rose to new highs. Almost one third of companies in the S&P 500 have so far reported first quarter earnings, with the proportion reporting positive earnings surprises higher than average.

Chip manufacturers were sought out by buyers, fuelling upbeat investor sentiment across the technology sector. Investors believe these companies will play a crucial role as the use of AI broadens and competition between the main players intensifies.

Carlota Estragues Lopez, SJP’s equity strategist, commented on the US market’s narrow reliance on technology since the war started. Traditional hedges such as fixed income and gold have not worked as well as they have historically. She added: “This greater uncertainty has meant investors have been reluctant to sell risk to avoid being surprised on the upside.”

Read more: https://www.wilkinsonfinancialmgt.co.uk/article/detail/sjpp/weekwatch-27-04-2026.html

23/04/2026

Markets have continued their upward momentum, but the backdrop remains anything but straightforward.

Recent gains have been supported by easing energy prices and optimism around geopolitical developments. At the same time, inflation, interest rate expectations and global growth forecasts are still shifting.

It’s a reminder that markets can respond quickly to changing headlines - often before the full economic impact is clear.

While short-term sentiment has improved, uncertainty hasn’t disappeared. Different regions and sectors are being affected in different ways, from energy and tech to global supply chains.

As always, periods like this highlight the importance of keeping a long-term perspective, rather than reacting to each new development.

The value of investments may fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invested.

Read more: www.wilkinsonfinancialmgt.co.uk/article/detail/sjpp/weekwatch-20-04-2026.html

16/04/2026

As a team we have decided to take part in the Cotswold Way Trek which will test all of our strength and stamina.

Richard, Veronica, Carrie & Tach will form the WFM team on Saturday 27th June 2026.

If you can sponsor us, every contribution will go to the St. James's Place Charitable Foundation which is an integral part of our company and culture. The main focus of the Charitable Foundation is helping children and young people who have special needs or are disadvantaged, both in the UK and overseas.

Find out more about the challenge or make a donation via the link below 👇

bit.ly/wfm-cotswold-way-trek