State Street Global Exchange released the results of the State Street Investor Confidence Index® (ICI) for January 2017. The Global ICI decreased to 93.8, down 0.3 points from December’s revised reading of 94.1. The decline in sentiment was driven by the 7.0 point decrease in the European ICI to 92.9… Read More »
Paul Jackson, András Vig -
Investors believe that Republican tax proposals would be dollar positive. If that were to be the case, some obvious beneficiaries would be overseas earners in markets such as the Eurozone and Japan. However, the analysis is complex and we are not convinced that the dollar has much more upside. Donald… Read More »
Donald Trump’s economic program is neither inconsistent nor unpredictable. It is actually a very rigorous form of neo-mercantilism. We Europeans have learnt in history books what mercantilism was during the XVII and XVIII centuries: the effort by strong States to accumulate wealth by protecting their industries behind high tariff barriers,… Read More »
A number of major political and economic events shaped financial markets in 2016, forcing investors to navigate a landscape of heightened volatility. But with uncertainty likely to continue through 2017, GAM’s investment managers have identified some unique investment opportunities that go against the grain. Wind Turbine ManufacturersWind turbine manufacturers sold… Read More »
Among the 19 eurozone sovereigns, we rate 16 in the investment-grade category (‘BBB-‘ or above), while three–Portugal, Greece, and Cyprus–are speculative grade (‘BB+’ or below). Over the past six months, we have raised the ratings on Cyprus (to ‘BB’ in September) and Malta (to ‘A-‘ in October). This extended a… Read More »
Financial markets’ attention has understandably been focused this past week on the U.S. presidential inauguration ceremony and the first economic decisions that could be announced by the new administration. Meanwhile, the first European Central Bank (ECB) governing council meeting of 2017 that took place on Jan. 19 appeared uneventful at… Read More »
Simon Wells, Elizabeth Martins -
As had been widely leaked, the UK Prime Minister today stated clearly that her aims for post-Brexit Britain were incompatible with membership of the EU Single Market and full membership of the Customs Union. Prepare for a ‘hard’ Brexit. As set out previously, the government’s primary aims are the ability… Read More »
… “I warned about the dangers of inequality in 2013 and nobody listened” If there’s one theme that has dominated discussions in Davos so far, it’s inequality.At the start of the week, Oxfam released its annual report about the growing divide: this year, just eight men own the same wealth… Read More »
The crowded European electoral schedule (general elections in March in the Netherlands and in Italy by May next year, general and presidential elections in April-May in France, and a German federal election in September), and the possibility of unexpected political outcomes, could lead to sharp policy shifts in eurozone member… Read More »
With so much happening in parallel across political, economic and financial landscapes, it seems daunting to try to identify the one event that shaped 2016. In the following short statements, our investment experts share their predictions on which events will prove pivotal in 2017. Fed and ECB in the spotlightMonetary… Read More »
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