FTSE 100 Live July 19: Stocks Rise, GBP Falls as UK Inflation Drops to 7.9%, Rio Tinto Posts Update

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City comment

An upbeat note from Morgan Stanley chairman and CEO James Gorman, on the back of disappointing second-quarter results released last night.

“Strong results….challenging market environment….subduing client activity…but…more constructive tone.”

The view from the trading floor is a little less positive, and goes like this: “Are they going to fire you or me?”

Post Covid investment banks decided it was possible to use their HR departments to do things other than push people out.

Let us ask our people how they are doing, and let us not go through this ridiculous hiring and insane firing any time there is a business boom followed by the inevitable bankruptcy, as they say.

Let’s cherish our people!

This beloved phase will not last long.

Morgan Stanley paid $308 million in compensation costs for 3,000 jobs in the last three months alone.

Goldman Sachs, the bank that used to be called a mighty vampire squid but now wishes anyone it thought still had those kinds of killer instincts, reports results later today.

The argument on Wall Street goes like this: How bad will they be?

Goldman has already dumped several thousand in New York and London, but it may not be done yet.

As for CEO David Solomon, who works as a DJ, he’s starting to ask questions about whether he should also be spending more time with his turntables.

I guess we can assume that a few of his dealers will have to dance out first, but the point remains: It’s grim out there.

If inflation continues to fall, interest rates follow and customers move back into stocks and away from bonds, things will get better.

Until then, it’s murder on the trading floor.

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