Monthly Archives: September 2015

Weekly Market Recap: W/E September 25th 2015

Posted on September 28, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Market Recap A strong rally in equity markets on Friday helped brighten up what was otherwise a miserable week for equity investors. Against an uncertain backdrop, the confession from Volkswagen that they had used software to cheat US emission standards, … Continue reading →

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VW & “Maximising Shareholder Value”

Posted on September 27, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Global equity investors have endured a difficult few months, amid concern about plunging commodity prices, the outlook for the global economy and the direction of US monetary policy. Against this uncertain backdrop, the confession from Volkswagen that they had used … Continue reading →

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Weekly Market Recap: W/E September 18th 2015

Posted on September 21, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Market Recap Global equity investors suffered another challenging week. Most of the major indices had notched up strong gains in the early part of the week, ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s all-important monetary policy meeting on Thursday. However, accompanying … Continue reading →

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A Karl Pilkington Perspective on Central Banks

Posted on September 20, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Those who have heard of Karl Pilkington probably know him as the guy in the TV show An Idiot Abroad. However, it was the podcasts with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (co-creators of The Office) in the mid-2000’s that earned … Continue reading →

Posted in Decision Making, Financial Markets, Monetary Policy, Thoughts | Comments Off

Weekly Market Recap: W/E September 11th 2015

Posted on September 14, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Market Recap Global equity markets ended the week in positive territory, albeit with continued volatility as uncertainty reigns. Talk of fiscal stimulus from the Chinese authorities was the main catalyst for markets to move higher in the early part of … Continue reading →

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Active Management: A Football Perspective

Posted on September 13, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Trustee groups face a plethora of choice when implementing an investment offering within a pension scheme. One important decision is whether to use passive or active investment managers. Passive managers simply look to replicate a particular index. For example, for … Continue reading →

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All eyes on Janet Yellen and the US Fed!

Posted on September 13, 2015 by VMcCarthy

A major source of the market volatility in recent months has been the uncertainty around the outlook for interest rates in the US. This week will be eventful, with the US Federal Reserve holding their much anticipated monetary policy committee … Continue reading →

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Saving up pension woe

Posted on September 13, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Article appeared in the Sunday Time Business section September 14th 2015 The return of the generals of the Celtic Tiger Boom and Bust – McCreevy, Ahern and Cowen – in front of the Banking Inquiry, attracted huge media attention, and was no … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Articles, Retirement Planning, Thoughts | Comments Off

Weekly Market Recap: W/E Ending September 4th 2015

Posted on September 7, 2015 by VMcCarthy

Market Recap Eurofirst 300 Index -2.86% German 10-Year Yield 0.67%; EUR/USD $1.112; Brent Oil $49.41 Global equity markets sold off sharply on Friday, to close out another miserable week for equity market investors. Fears over a steeper downturn in China … Continue reading →

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Draghi leaves the door open for QE2

Posted on September 6, 2015 by VMcCarthy

After disappointing Chinese data it was over to Super Mario – European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi – to try and lift the market on Thursday, in his press conference following the ECB’s latest monetary policy meeting. First, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Equity Markets, European Central Bank, Financial Markets, US Federal Reserve | Comments Off