NEIL TURNER is assistant director at Liverpool stockbroker and investment manager Blankstone Sington.

Sports fan Neil lives in Upton, Wirral. This is an account of his day:

7.30am:I get up and have a bowl of cereal at my home in Upton before my half-hour drive into work.

9am: The first thing I do when I get into work is check the main news stories. I look for any market developments, read any market reports, read research ideas from different brokers and look at the news flow and the major movers in the market. Then I start looking at how that affects the portfolios I manage.

10am: We have our morning meeting, run by the research department and analysts. They will go through the main economic and corporate news and from this we will update our recommended buy / sell lists.

10.30am: Following the decisions made at our morning meeting, we start looking at any companies that may have been mentioned.

We speak to clients throughout the day. We manage funds under both advisory agreements – we advise the clients and they take the decisions – or discretionary agreements where we are delegated full responsibility for the management of the funds.

One thing we have seen recently is a shift from cash as people look for alternative investments.

I spoke to clients this morning who were looking at investing in corporate bonds. We decided to buy some for his portfolio.

12.30pm: I grab a lunch break. I normally grab a sandwich and come back to my desk.

1.15pm: I attend a presentation from a property fund we’re not currently investing in, and which is looking to attract interest. It’s the first time we’ve spoken to them, but the fund seemed interesting.

2.15pm: Back at my desk and I talk to colleagues about rights issues. A lot of companies are looking to raise equity funds at the moment.

We’re having to review portfolios to decide whether to take up the rights. I also get involved in some trading of Everton shares. A client of ours was looking to sell some shares. A buyer has been identified so I just need to make a quick phone call to his broker to agree terms.

3pm: Time for our monthly collective investment fund meeting. We discussed our 1.15pm presentation, and that fund was approved to go on our list.

4.15pm: I catch up on any further developments in the markets and watch how they close.

I also complete a six-month report for an advisory client.

6pm: I leave the office.

Today I’ll go to play five-a-side football with friends on Wirral.

7.30pm: I arrive home in Upton. Just a relaxed night – I’ll cook and watch a bit of television before going to bed.