AJ Bell Money & Markets

Join Dan Coatsworth and Hannah Williford in a new bonus episode of the AJ Bell Money & Markets podcast all about investment trusts. They break down the latest trends in investment trust discounts, and which names are looking cheaper or more expensive. 

Dan speaks with Martin Connaghan of Murray International to discuss the investing debate around sin stocks, ethical investing, and whether morals come into fund manager portfolio decisions. 

Hannah interviews Nicola Takada Wood from AVI Japan Opportunities Trust about Japan’s recent election and the outlook for investing in the country. 

Finally, Dan chats with Stephen Anness from Invesco Global Equity Income Trust about the prospects for dividend growth and why he's looking in less obvious places for income. 

00:00 — Introduction: What’s coming up 
01:23 — What investment trust discounts are, why they matter, and the big changes observed by Hannah and Dan 
12:42 — Dan talks to Martin Connaghan on sin stocks and ethical investing 
27:25 — Hannah chats with Nicola Takada Wood about Japan’s political landscape and what that means for investors 
41:00 — Interview: Stephen Anness on the search for attractive dividends 


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UK and European markets reach record highs. That's despite the tariff turmoil since the Supreme Court struck down President Trump's liberation day plans. Danni dives into the latest on Meta's deal with AMD, Anthropic's latest plug ins and Paramount up the stakes in the bidding war for Warner Bros.

Diageo’s first results under Sir Dave Lewis show that not even Guinness couldn’t steady the ship at the big brand giant, plus a £1 billion funding boost for UK self-driving tech firm Wayve. Cuts to the energy price cap and the odds of winning on Premium Bonds.

Adam Rackley from the Cape Wrath Focus Fund tells Dan Coatsworth why he likes to invest when others are jumping ship.

[00:10] – Welcome 
[01:34] – Markets are shrugging off the latest tariff drama...for now
[08:45] – Danni Hewson has the latest on the AI arms race, with AMD, Meta and Anthropic
[14:40] – Diageo results show 'Drastic Dave' has his work cut out
[20:00] – Danni shares AJ Bell's consumer trends research findings
[24:00] - UK self driving firm Wayve raises another £1 billion in a funding deal
[27:45] - Bidding war for Warner Bros: Paramount comes back with a sweeter deal
[30:00] – Energy price cap cut: Charlene Young looks at how this measures up against promised £150 cuts to bills
[32:51] - Rachel Reeves delivers her Spring Statement next week; what might be in it? 
[38:11] – NS&I slashes premium bond prize funds rate and chances of winning 
[42:10] – Dan Coatsworth talks value investing with Cape Wrath Focus Fund

Why the UK stock market is smashing expectations in 2026, and a crucial warning about fake celebrity investment ads fooling thousands.

Dan Coatsworth also sits down with Filtronic, the company behind an 800% share price surge and major new contracts with SpaceX. Big gains, big deals – and big insights you won’t want to miss.

If you enjoy this podcast, please select ‘like’ and ‘subscribe’.

 

[00:09] – Welcome & what’s moving markets this week
[01:21] – How the UK stock market is outperforming the US (again)
[03:48] – Why insider trades at Raspberry Pi & M&S really matter
[07:53] – The Japanese toilet company tipped as the next AI winner
[09:36] – UK inflation: Charlene Young breaks down the latest numbers
[12:20] – Scam alert: Charlene exposes fake celebrity investment ads
[16:26] – Filtronic CEO interview: SpaceX contracts, defence deals & an 800% share price surge
[31:49] – Why annuities are suddenly back in demand
[36:19] – The worrying rise of UK households struggling to earn a decent living
[39:03] – Small caps comeback? Fund manager Richard Penny shares his signs of recovery

On this episode of the AJ Bell Money & Markets podcast, how financial markets reacted to speculation around the future of Keir Starmer as UK prime minister. [02:00] 

Dan Coatsworth and Tom Sieber unpack the latest results from Shell, BP and Barclays. [05:05] 

AI has haunted parts of the stock market once again, with financial comparison websites and insurance brokers the latest victims as investors fear major disruption to their business. [11:12] 

There was some remarkable news in the pharmaceutical space as Novo Nordisk battled Him & Her’s amid controversy around the launch of copycat weight-loss drugs. The pod team explore the weight loss drug space in more detail and explain why one analyst thinks Greggs is a major loser as people slim down. [15:05] 

Dan talks to Trevor Polishchuk from Worldwide Healthcare about how Eli Lilly has scored the top slot in the weight-loss drug market [24:13]. Martin Gamble chats to Oliver Kenyon from RTW Investment about other names to watch in this space. [30:13] 

Charlene Young is on the show to explain why everyone’s talking about student loans. [33:00] 

Finally, Danni Hewson talks to Pathos Communications about its experiences of listing on the UK stock market and the use of AI in the public relations industry. [45:32]

On this week’s episode of the AJ Bell Money and Markets podcast Danni Hewson and Laura Suter dig into what has been another action-packed week with Space X buying fellow Elon Musk vehicle Xai ahead of the companies anticipated IPO [01:32]. Danni checks out why Anthropic’s new AI tools resulted in a global sell off in companies like Sage, Pearson and Legal Star [06:33]. Disney delivered a crowd-pleasing update, but it was all about the exit of CEO Bob Seager and whether this handover will be smoother than the last [10:16]. Plus, Walmart becomes the first retailer to hit a $1 trillion dollar valuation [13:54] and gold and silver prices fall back after Donald Trump unveils his pick for the Fed [16:43].

There’s plenty to go at on the personal finance front with Santander becoming the biggest lender to offer a mortgage with just a 2% deposit for first time buyers [20:46], but new data shows one in three of those taking their first steps on the housing ladder are doing it with a 25% deposit [18:32]. Plus, an estimated 1 million people have missed the self-assessment tax return deadline. [24:59]

We’ve got two guest interviews this week, first with Andrew Westhead, retail director at NS&I, about what makes premium bonds the most popular savings product in the UK [29:56]. And with Kier Starmer becoming the latest world leader to thaw relations with China, Chris Tennant from Fidelity Emerging Markets discusses if that makes China more investible and the allure of companies like TSMC benefiting from the AI boom [44:31].