Hugh Hendry: Osborne's minimum wage plan has an investment upside

Eclectica Absolute Macro manager Hugh Hendry has said the UK government's decision to introduce a 'national living wage' lends credence to his investment thesis that politicians realise they must now reward workers in order to boost growth.

Chancellor George Osborne used this month's Budget to announce the minimum wage will be raised to £9 an hour by 2020. While some criticised the Chancellor's concurrent tax credits cull, brokers focused on the downside for businesses which they said will be negatively affected by the increase. JD Wetherspoon was the first to acknowledge its profit margins will be hit. But Hendry sees the Budget announcement as part of a global trend which he has begun playing in his portfolios by initiating positions in recruitment companies. "The Chinese have definitely targeted a better lot for th...