Asking the Right Questions
Global equity markets closed lower last week despite a late relief rally on Friday after better than expected US payroll data. While the unemployment rate is at a 6-year low of 5.9%, weak wage growth dynamics and the labour force participation rate being at…
While the global economic recovery is in the balance under the stewardship of politicians and central bankers, I have much more faith in the ability of Brendan Rodgers to bring back the good times at Liverpool FC. Football fans are like investors in financial…
With the price of gold in decline, despite massive central bank money printing, it begs the question why should anyone own gold? Well according to the bubble maker himself, former US Fed Chairman Dr. Alan Greenspan, it is because “for more than two millennia,…
When considering the available investment opportunity set investors should theoretically be rewarded as they move out the risk curve. That is, as an investor moves from the safest asset class, being cash (obviously requires some assumptions), there should be an extra return or premium…
It turns out size does really matter, well when it comes to central bank balance sheets anyway. While confirming that purchases of asset back securities (ABS) and covered bonds will begin mid-October, for at least two years, Mario Draghi disappointed investors by not announcing…
Global equity markets struggled again last week as volatility picked up while demand for government bonds saw yields move lower. Of the major indices, Germany’s DAX equity index suffered the steepest decline, down 3.15%. In the US, the tech-heavy NASDAQ fell 1.48%. In Asia,…
Most major equity indices moved higher last week with markets buoyed by the monetary policy statement from the US Federal Reserve and also the news that the Kingdom would remain United, for now! The S&P 500 closed up 1.25%, while the yield on the…
The major equity indices in Europe and the US moved higher last week while the performance in Asia was mixed. The French CAC 40 equity index was one of the standout performers, up 3.02% for the week, pushing the index back into positive territory…
On the central bank front, US Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s semi-annual monetary policy report to Congress offered few surprises in terms of the outlook for monetary policy. The overriding message is that the Fed will continue to support the recovery as “too many Americans…
In his testimony to the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke gave the green light for risk assets to push higher, with his defence of the Fed’s highly accommodative monetary policy. Bernanke reiterated the benefits of low interest rates…