Investors voted long before the electorate

The headlines proclaim now the real work starts. After months of debate and ducking of the issues there is no hiding from hard decisions about cutting public spending and reducing the deficit.

But for investors there are broader global issues which have been exercising their minds. After all, for some time a number of fund managers have been fairly agnostic about the election result. They have argued market pressures will force politicians into making cuts – regardless of which persuasion holds the reigns of power. Do not forget, it is a socialist government which is trying to reduce payments to Greek pensioners.  So while the UK has been consumed with election fever, from an investment point of view only those who have had their heads firmly buried in the sand will not hav...