News

The Smartphone Banking Revolution: Leaders of the Pack

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By 2020 it is projected that 70% of the world’s population will own a smartphone – 1.2 billion smartphones were sold worldwide last year alone. Users increasingly rely on their smartphones for conducting a variety of daily activities including banking transactions[i]. As retail banks respond to this shift toward mobile… Read More »


Euro area unemployment rate at 10.9%

Eurostat -

The euro area (EA19) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 10.9% in July 2015, down from 11.1% in June2015, and from 11.6% in July 2014. This is the lowest rate recorded in the euro area since February 2012. TheEU28 unemployment rate was 9.5% in July 2015, down from 9.6% in June 2015,… Read More »


Don’t Panic: Putting Market Turbulence in Context

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Sharp declines in China’s equity markets have heightened fears about the country’s economic prognosis and what it might mean for global growth. While concerns center on the emerging markets, the tumult has spilled across global financial markets. Our advice: don’t panic. August regularly brings periods of particularly low liquidity in… Read More »


Investor Confidence Falls in August by 4.5 Points to 108.7

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State Street Global Exchange released the results of the State Street Investor Confidence Index® (ICI) for August 2015 The Global ICI decreased to 108.7, down 4.5 points from July’s revised reading of 113.2. Confidence among North American investors decreased with the North American ICI falling 0.8 points to 119.1, down… Read More »


To Hike or Not to Hike

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The attention of investors is dominated by EM turbulence and speculation about the Federal Reserve’s tightening cycle. The view of Roubini Global Economics on the most likely timing of the Fed’s first rate hike has moved from September to December. Heatmap: Sensitivity to Fed Policy (0 = vulnerable, 10 = resilient)… Read More »


What to think about the correction in the equity markets?

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The announcement by the Chinese government on the 11th of August 2015 relating to a change in the yuan quotation method and the consecutive depreciation triggered a new phase of panic in the financial markets. The pressure was particularly focused on emerging markets currencies, with fears of a currency war… Read More »


China’s ‘Black Monday’?

Maria Municchi -

Newspaper headlines: China Shares Wipe Out All Gains This Year (WSJ), European bourses join global sell off (FT) and the Daily Telegraph’s Black Monday, as the FTSE 100 headed below 6000 within minutes of the opening bell. So what has really been happening and what has been driving recent market… Read More »


The Crux of the Fed’s Dilemma

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With inflation slipping further below 2 percent, and Greece, Puerto Rico and China firmly on investors’ watch lists, here’s why it appears the Fed will still raise rates this year The US Federal Reserve (Fed) is tasked with the dual mandate of promoting maximum employment and stable prices. Under normal… Read More »


Additional thoughts on recent RMB weakening

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In the immediate aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, observers all over the world were astonished by China’s stellar growth performance But enthusiasm among many has faded, more particularly since 2013 when interbank interest rates sparked a first time, the housing market deteriorated quickly, the stock market was gripped… Read More »


Chasing yield: Is sustainable income a better way?

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While some retirees and their advisors clamor for yield-oriented investment strategies, Brian Meath (Russell Investments) believes this fascination with yield can result in some unexpected, often unpleasant, consequences The current market environment, with all eyes on the timing and pace of an U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hike, should give yield-seekers… Read More »