The Monday note - 14 January 2019

• The FTSE 100 added 77 points last week, closing at 6,914.5, as some investors took the view that equities are oversold. The ten year Gilt yield stood at 1.29%. 
• Crispin Odey, the Brexit supporter and hedge fund manager, told the Financial Times he has closed his short positions on the pound in anticipation of a softer Brexit. 
• China is lowering its economic growth target for this year, and planning to roll out employment stabilising measures like tax cuts and zero lay-off incentives for firms. 
• A Reuters report found that start-ups working on electric cars are drawing money from beyond the auto-sector. Oil, aeronautics and telecoms firms have been recent investors. 

Chief Economist comments: 

So, is this the big week for Brexit? Actually, that is probably next week. Unless the Prime Minister pulls a big rabbit out of the hat in the next 24 hours, defeat in tomorrow’s vote looks inevitable. In the confidence vote Labour is threatening to call, the Tory rebels and the DUP will back the government to avoid a general election. Consequently, the next milestone for Brexit comes next week, when the government sets out a plan B. I suspect this will involve a customs union, to get Labour to least abstain at a future vote.