Reuters (March 16)
“Simmering fears of a global trade war. An embarrassing political scandal in Japan. Rapid job-turnover inside the White House and the threat of faster interest rate hikes in the United States….” Yet somehow “markets have brushed aside risks and recurring bad news on geopolitics to stay focused on positive macro-economic cues.”
Tags: Embarrassing, Fears, Geopolitics, Interest rate hikes, Japan, Markets, Scandal, Simmering, Threats, Trade war, U.S., White House
Institutional Investor (July 6)
“For private equity managers, it is a tale of two markets. Fundraising is going through the roof, but valuations are sky-high and exits are on the decline—a sign, market observers say, that the private equity market is nearing the end of its cycle, which could be bad news for managers looking to put new capital to work.”
Tags: Capital, Cycle, Exits, Fundraising, Managers, Markets, Private equity, Sky-high, Valuations
The Economist (March 2)
The planned $30 billion merger between Deutsche Börse (DB) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE) “had been billed as a bridge between Europe’s two main financial hubs.” In tatters, the merger now stands as “a symbol of their growing competition—and of the uncertainty into which Brexit has plunged the EU’s markets.”
Tags: Brexit EU, Competition, Deutsche Börse, Europe, Financial hubs, LSE, Markets, Merger, Tatters, Uncertainty
Institutional Investor (February 23)
As private capital firms accumulate extra funds, the growth in “dry-powder” has caused considerable alarm. Uninvested capital expanded 26.8% in 2015 alone. According to McKinsey & Co., there really isn’t that much to worry about. Though “uninvested capital in the private markets has reached $1.6 trillion,” it “hasn’t outpaced growth in deal volumes.”
Tags: Capital, Deal volumes, Dry-powder, Funds, Growth, Markets, McKinsey, Private capital, Uninvested
The Economist (November 12)
Trump’s election “threatens old certainties about America and its role in the world.” America’s allies have been rocked by “the sense that old certainties are crumbling…. The fear that globalisation has fallen flat has whipsawed markets. Although post-Brexit Britons know what that feels like, the referendum in Britain will be eclipsed by consequences of this election. Mr Trump’s victory has demolished a consensus. The question now is what takes its place.”
Tags: Allies, Brexit, Certainties, Consensus, Election, Fear, Globalization, Markets, Trump, U.S.
The Economist (November 5)
“It is rare for a court judgment to cause turmoil in the foreign-currency markets. Yet the pound soared on the morning of November 3rd after the High Court in London ruled that only Parliament has the authority to trigger Article 50 of the European Union treaty, the legal route for Britain to leave the EU.” The decision ignited market hopes “that Parliament might choose to block Brexit altogether or, perhaps more plausibly, that it will attach conditions,” increasing the likelihood of a “soft” Brexit.
Tags: Article 50, Brexit, Court, EU, Foreign currency, Judgment, Markets, Parliament, Pound
Institutional Investor (September 12)
“Weak markets and worries about growth are putting pressure on fund managers across Asia. Chinese stocks barely began recovering from the summer 2015 meltdown before taking another hit earlier this year, while investors in Japan turned bearish on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s economic policies as growth slowed.”
Tags: Abe, Asia, Bearish, China, Fund managers, Growth, Investors, Japan, Markets, Meltdown, Pressure, Weak
Bloomberg (June 20)
“Brexit stresses are seeping into virtually every corner of the global foreign-exchange market. Of 16 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg, all but three have seen a jump in the cost to hedge against big declines.” The Japanese yen Brazilian real and Swiss frank are the three exceptions.
Tags: Brazil, Brexit, Cost, Currencies, Declines, Forex, Hedge, Japan, Markets, Real, Switzerland, Yen
Reuters (May 15)
“Fears policy makers are out of ammunition has led a growing number of overseas investors to speculate the BOJ might resort to helicopter money,” but this remains unlikely. “Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda likes to keep markets guessing by saying one thing and doing another, but… officials and close associates say he almost certainly means it” when he rules out using helicopter money to reinvigorate the economy.
Tags: Ammunition, BOJ, Economy, Fears, Guessing, Helicopter money, Kuroda, Markets, Overseas investors, Policy makers
Institutional Investor (April 27)
With no major changes resulting at the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), “it’s easy to overlook the seismic shifts going on just beneath the surface that will impact policy and markets for the remainder of 2016.” The “astounding number of mixed signals and conflicting messages” emanating from Fed speakers of late is one clue to the divisions on the committee and the uncertainty regarding the U.S. economy.
