Delfin, Italian eyewear maker Luxottica’s controlling shareholder, and lens maker Essilor have announced the signing of an agreement to merge Luxottica and Essilor. The combination of the two companies should happen through an exchange of shares and without any significant cash payout. The merger will create the largest vertically integrated… Read More »
Economic momentum is improving. It is supporting risk assets and delivering good returns to investors. Can it last? It can if the Federal Reserve (Fed) does not need to raise rates too quickly, if the new US Administration can deliver on tax cuts, if corporate animal spirits are revived and… Read More »
Mixed economic data and minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting weighed on the US dollar, prompting US$69mn of inflows into precious metals The gold price rose 1.4% on the week after the US dollar weakened following a somewhat dovish Fed minutes. Gold ETPs saw US$40.5mn of inflows last week.… Read More »
Christophe Eggmann -
Donald J. Trump’s accession to the White House, together with a comfortable republican majority in Congress, should alleviate investor trepidation about drug price legislation. On the same day, voters in California rejected “The California Drug Price Relief Act”, a deceptively simple proposal aimed at reducing drug prices paid by state… Read More »
The Chinese consumption story is too often overlooked or even worse: misunderstood and missed by most active managers and clearly underrepresented in passive vehicles. China’s consumption story is expanding quickly and the large pool of A-shares is where to find many of the most appealing investment cases. Urbanization is one… Read More »
S&P Dow Jones Indices has been the de facto scorekeeper of the ongoing active versus passive debate since the first publication of the S&P Indices Versus Active Funds (SPIVA) U.S. Scorecard in 2002. Over the years, we have built on more than a decade of experience publishing the report by… Read More »
After years of being under-invested and under-researched, and as inflationary pressures grow, it’s time for investors to consider reassessing their exposure to inflation-linked bonds. Ultra accommodative monetary policy has inflated asset prices, but has had little impact on consumption of goods and services. This combined with low commodity prices, particularly… Read More »
The profitability of the banking sector is back in the news with another flurry of dramatic headlines around Deutsche Bank. But it is important to be clear that there is a difference between profitability and solvency. Our investment approach is focused first on the safety and stability of the companies… Read More »
Valentijn van Nieuwenhuijzen -
Theresa May’s statements have sent the pound sterling even lower, a few days ago. Weaker pound supportive of UK equitiesA weaker currency does however not have to be negative. Financial conditions in the UK are supported by the rapid depreciation of the pound. This is a crucial element for the… Read More »
Frontier markets are typically characterized by reform processes, high economic growth and young populations. However, they are frequently misunderstood and overlooked by international investors as information is scarce and markets are often small. This is partially why their performance has recently been lagging behind the one of both developed and… Read More »
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