Like the UK, Latin America has suffered greatly during the pandemic – perhaps even more so. The World Bank estimates that regional GDP may slip by as much as 8%, with more than four million…
Week in Review: investors seek refuge in safe havens
Traditional safe haven investments such as gold, US Treasuries and the Japanese yen were all boosted by growing worries about the global geopolitical climate this week. The yield on the 10–year Treasury fell to 2.3%…
A less imperfect solution: Investment trusts and income
Company dividends are under pressure, with positive currency effects fading and dividend cover falling There is dividend growth to be found, but investors will need to look a little harder The investment trust structure allows…
Markets don’t die of old age
Alex Scott, Deputy Chief Investment Officer. 12 April 2017. Investors seem to be a little less convinced about reflation trades now than they did at the turn of the year. Back then the rise in…
“The only certainty is there is much to be uncertain about”
By Charles Luke, Murray Income. With Article 50 now triggered, negotiations, which will undoubtedly be difficult and complex, around the future relationship that the United Kingdom will have with the European Union can begin in…
Sheltering portfolios around the French election
Chris Darbyshire, Chief Investment Officer. 10 April 2017. In three months’ time, the French will have queued up four times in two (separate) elections. Their first selections take place in April and May as they…
The Fed’s Message Turns Aggressive
They say that economic recoveries don’t simply die of old age. Typically, the Fed has been the actor that has tipped mature economic recoveries over the edge. There is a lot that could be said…
Week in Review: Trump meets Xi
Thursday saw US President Donald Trump welcome his Chinese equivalent, President Xi Jinping. It was the first time the two have met face to face: a blind date, if you like, albeit one with global…
UK triggers Article 50 – UK and European investment company managers comment on the outlook
The AIC has collated manager comments on the outlook for UK and European markets. On Wednesday 29 March Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon will be triggered, formally notifying the EU that the UK…
Where’s the clever money going? April 2017
Stock markets have shown no sign of an imminent reversal of fortune over the month of March. The FTSE 100 peaked at an all-time high of 7447 on 17 March, though it has retreated marginally…
Leaning Against the Inflation/Reflation Trade
This commentary does focus on the state of the potential reflation trade at quarter end and our suspicion it won’t work out as some investors hope. We have also written on India as the end…
Week in review: and so it begins
There is a saying that “markets hate uncertainty” and there can be few times when the UK has faced a more uncertain path than the one currently in front of it. On Wednesday, UK Prime…
After Article 50: Latent Soft Brexit Forces Released?
Chris Darbyshire, Chief Investment Officer. 30 March 2017. It has been a busy week for Brexit. Over the weekend, the Labour Party flexed its muscles for the first time since the EU Referendum. With Article…
Caught Between Growth and Capital Risk
Alex Scott, Deputy Chief Investment Officer. 29 March 2017. Markets continue to be caught between the economic backdrop and political events although now, for the first time in years, we appear to have a synchronised…
Peru’s Corruption Battle is Good for Honest Infrastructure Investors
Peru has done many things right in recent years. The economy has boomed, poverty has fallen and gradual improvements are even showing in education. However, one area that has stubbornly refused to improve is infrastructure.…
Political Events Force a Reality Check on the Trump Reflation Trade
After an extraordinary week in US politics, let’s take a step back here and try and assess what’s going on. At the recent peak in the S&P 500, the index had risen about 15% from…
Article 50: Which investment ideas and sectors are worth exploring?
Which sectors to watch? ‘In the view that “a bad stock in a good sector will tend to outperform a good stock in a bad sector”, looking at sector trends may be one way to…
Week in review: S&P slides on concerns over Trump agenda
A sharp sell-off for US financial stocks helped drive the S&P 500 index down more than one per cent on Tuesday – its worst one-day performance since before Donald Trump’s election victory in November. That…
Small savings get big
David Prosser explains how regularly saving small amounts can pay off in the long run. If your new year’s resolution for 2017 is to spend less and save more, it’s worth taking a look at…