Monthly Newsletter – August 2026

The appointment of Andy Burnham as Prime Minister has been met with a relatively calm response from financial markets, with investors focusing less on the change in leadership itself and more on whether the new government can maintain economic stability and fiscal discipline.
While any change in political leadership naturally brings a degree of uncertainty, the initial reaction has been measured. Many investment professionals believe that continuity in economic policy will be far more important than political headlines over the coming months.
Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at IG, noted that Burnham faces a significant challenge as he looks to unite his party while delivering fresh ideas for the economy. He believes investors are prepared to give the new Prime Minister time to establish himself, although confidence will ultimately depend on the government’s actions rather than its promises.

One area attracting particular attention is government spending and its impact on the UK’s finances. David Roberts, Head of Fixed Income at Nedgroup Investments, believes markets had already priced in a degree of political uncertainty. In his view, avoiding a snap election and maintaining the current fiscal framework could provide reassurance for investors and support the UK government bond market.

For equity investors, the impact of the leadership change may be more limited than expected. Stuart Widdowson, Co-Portfolio Manager of Odyssean Investment Trust, points out that many high-quality UK-listed companies generate much of their revenue overseas, meaning their long-term success depends far more on strong management, innovation and global demand than on domestic politics. He also highlights that continued merger and acquisition activity suggests international investors continue to see attractive value in UK companies, despite ongoing economic and political uncertainty.

Looking ahead, markets are expected to remain focused on the key issues that have driven investment sentiment for some time: government spending, economic growth, inflation and the outlook for interest rates. While political developments will continue to attract attention, these underlying economic factors are likely to have the greatest influence on investment markets.

As with any change in government, there may be periods of short-term market volatility. However, long-term investors are generally best served by remaining focused on their financial goals rather than reacting to political events. History has consistently shown that investment markets can perform well under governments of different political parties, with long-term returns being driven far more by economic fundamentals and company performance than by changes in political leadership.
Anna Griffiths – Clear Technical Manager

Soybean Surprise

When Brazil played Japan in the World Cup the commentators were talking about how different the two countries were; “Samba vs Samurai”. Initially you can see why, but did you know that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu exists? Why would that be?
Well, Brazil and Japan actually have more than a century of joint economic and cultural history.  There are currently 2 million people of Japanese descent living in Brazil – the largest population outside of Japan, a surprising statistic.

But the biggest shared legacy is a bean!! Soybeans to be exact:

 

Soybeans are the most versatile bean in the world – used as food for animals and humans,  but also they are processed into biodiesel, industrial lubricants and even Crayola crayons!
Brazil is the definite champion of production, the country grows almost half of the world’s soy, and it’s Brazil’s biggest export product.

Source: US Department of Agriculture

But soybeans aren’t native to South America.

In 1908, 781 Japanese immigrants arrived in Sao Paulo. They were looking to leave their overcrowded home islands and were tempted by the wages offered in the Brazilian coffee fields. Over the next twenty years, 100,000 more followed. They brought with them items which were important to them and these included soybeans.

For the first couple of generations, these beans were used for small-scale farming; just enough to make sauce or tofu for the family, but in 1973, Richard Nixon banned the US from exporting soybeans.  This was to stop soaring domestic food prices, prevent animal feed shortages and counter high inflation. At this time, industrialised Japan imported almost ALL of its soybeans from the US, so this ban caused an immediate food crisis.

Japanese expats to the rescue!

They suggested South America as a solution, so the Japanese and Brazilian governments teamed up to solve the problem.
Billions of dollars and five years later, they had created a new soybean version which was resilient enough to be grown in the area around Brasilia, which had previously been deemed unproductive.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

In 1970 Brazil grew less than 2 million tons of soy, but this year, the Cerrado region shown above will produce 180 million tons.

Samba and samurai culture seem like opposites, but mash them together and you get one of the biggest agriculture markets in the world … what an argument for the unexpected impact of diversification!

Source:7IM

This report is produced three times a year and incorporates UK Services, UK Manufacturing and UK Construction.

Key Findings:

Source:S&P Global Marketing Intelligence.

Have you got a favourite motorway service station?
If you’ve been to a motorway service station in the UK recently, you might have noticed that SPEED seems to be prioritised. There are Starbucks and McDonalds drive-throughs,  more Greggs,  Cornish Pasty and coffee stalls outside the main hall so that you don’t even have to go inside.

Efficiency and time does matter but, there is another, more profitable perspective being demonstrated in the US at the moment.

Let us introduce you to Buc-ee’s (and their beaver mascot).

Source: Buc-ees

Buc-ees started in Texas 1982, with a really simple selling point – CLEAN BATHROOMS. They focussed on the key part of the experience that people hated (dirty toilets) and made it worth stopping for …
And actually, worth staying for. If the toilets are spotless it can have a knock on effect, you are more likely to trust the food, so hang around to eat. Whilst waiting for your food, you might as well browse, and get a photo of the kids with the giant Beaver.

A trip to a normal American convenience store lasts about three and a half minutes. At Buc-ee’s, people routinely spend 30 minutes wandering around. The locations are huge; hundreds of petrol pumps and toilets, open round the clock, serving 20,000+ people per day.

Buc-ees is now a cult phenomenon – families plan their road-trips around stopping there which turns into real money. The average petrol station in the US makes about $5.5m per year in sales, mostly from the fuel itself, but q Buc-ee’s site makes close to $100million, and, interestingly, they sometimes sell fuel at a loss as it can be made up in the building.

So, rather than minimising the wait time, they monetise it!
In the UK, more and more people are buying electric vehicles and charging takes longer than filling up (even with super-fast chargers). So how about stations turning a 30 minute wait into something worth staying for instead of spending more on building out the grid infrastructure.

Not every great business is about removing friction. Sometimes it’s about giving people a reason to stay!

Suncream – a topical subject, yet 36% of Brits don’t use it regularly in the summer and half the population get sunburnt at least once a year! For the age group 18-32 it’s two thirds!
Everyone knows they should be using it…..but it still stays in the drawer!
The reason for this is explained academically as “intertemporal discounting” or “that’s a problem for the future”

If you think of yourself in the future, it’s a different version of yourself, a vague person you haven’t met, but there is the current version you are right now. Which means that the benefits of putting on suncream (reduced likelihood of melanoma) are often outweighed by the temptation to simply close your eyes and not get up from the lounger.

Naturally we see the same behaviour in investing.

Saving for your pension is difficult to think about – and the younger you are, the harder it is (as with suncream), but if you can visualize a future you this can trick your brain a little.

In an experiment in 2011**, psychologists offered people the chance to choose a savings amount for retirement. The trick was that some of them saw an aged photo of themselves at retirement age, and those seeing themselves in a few decades’ time allocated twice as much to their retirement account! Suddenly the future you became more real and easier to think about.

In 2026 a study took it a step further by asking participants to write a diary for a week about their future self, using the aged photo as inspiration. Those who took part were still thinking about retirement planning six months later!

So, while most of the planning industry thinks the chart below is all the evidence you need to start saving …

Source: 7IM. For illustrative purposes only. The return assumptions used are not guaranteed, and actual outcomes may be higher or lower.

… it might be better to start by taking a picture of yourself and with an app add some grey hairs before talking about the maths!

But also, don’t forget the suncream!
Source:7IM