In keeping with yesterday’s damp and windy weather, the Rugby World Cup final in Yokohama turned into a bit of a damp squib…especially if you were an England fan. Fair play to the Springboks who put on a ruthless display of power rugby to claim their third Rugby World Cup, at a tournament that has seen a large number of 'firsts'. Never before has a team which had been beaten in the group stages gone on to win the trophy. Siya Kolisi became the first black captain to lift the William Webb Ellis trophy aloft. More than 54 million people in Japan followed their crucial pool match against Scotland on TV – almost half the population and a record for any rugby match. More than a million people crammed into the fanzones and a quarter of a million Japan replica jerseys were sold. And all this in the first Rugby World Cup in Asia, the first time that the tournament was hosted by a nation not in the first-tier of the sport. So, what’s next for the game of rugby? Will the fever subside now that Jerome Garces has blown the final whistle on the tournament? Not according to World Rugby, the sport’s governing body, who says its Impact Beyond 2019 legacy programme has added 1.8 million players across Asia, including more than a million in Japan. Beware the Cherry Blossoms in France in 2023.
Last week, TheWeekly mentioned JLL releasing data suggesting that UK commercial property investment volumes may meet or exceed their original forecast for 2019 of £45 billion. This week it was the turn of LSH to add further fuel to the investment volumes fire by advising that Q3 volumes had rebounded by 58% from Q2. £13.9 billion was invested in Q3, only 4% below the five-year quarterly average. What’s changed you may ask? Has investor sentiment really changed over the summer? In short, no, not really. A flurry of portfolio transactions that overhung the first half of this year was integral to the Q3 numbers. In fact, portfolios represented 30% of all investment, with nine exceeding £100 million. Furthermore, ‘the living sectors’ (student property, PRS, hotels and healthcare) led the way, although it would be remiss not to mention that there was also improved activity in the office and industrial sectors too. Investment in the living sectors more than trebled in Q3, quarter-on-quarter, to hit a near-record volume of £5.5 billion. With now less than two months to go until the year-end, Brexit prolonged until at least the New Year and a General Election scheduled for 12th December, the continued uncertainty doesn’t bode well for the Q4 figures. Even if they reach £10bn, volumes for 2019 would still be a seven-year low of circa £45 billion.
The latest Brexit delay has been a source of frustration to many. Aside from the apparent recent economic impact (stagnating business investment and the first fall in UK employment in two years), the Government this week was forced to pause its campaign urging the public and businesses to Get Ready for Brexit on 31 October. The Brexit advertising blitz across social media, billboards and TV is reported to have cost £100m. Cue the accusations of wasted public funds. Plus, the Treasury confirmed this week that approximately three million limited edition commemorative 50p coins would have to be scrapped and melted-down now that the EU has agreed a Brexit extension to 31 January. The coins had been designed to invoke the spirit of a post-Brexit nation and bore the inscription “Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations”, above the leave date of 31 October 2019. However, for any disappointed coin-collectors amongst our readership, you may be comforted by knowing that this week The Royal Mint launched a new 50 pence piece to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of Wallace and Gromit hitting television screens across the UK. This launch comes shortly after a Gruffalo coin was also revealed. Sadly, however, we suspect there will be no 2019 Rugby World Cup commemorative coin after yesterday’s disappointing defeat.