News

Markets finished last week in an ebullient mode overall which saw MSCI ACWI rising +2.1% in Sterling terms. This was aided in particular by a strong rise in Chinese Equities which jumped +3.9% for the week as investors became more cheerful about a swift economic recovery from the Coronavirus pandemic. Investment grade Fixed Income was…

Should I stay or should I go (out)?  The Clash here is the interminable quandary between stemming the spread of COVID-19 and resuscitating economies.  Decisions have to be made without full clarity of the potential outcomes and are typically counter-productive to each other; what is good for the economy is not necessarily good for controlling…

Following on from last week’s opening of some non-essential businesses, it is likely that Boris Johnson will announce a relaxation of the 2-metre social distancing rule tomorrow.  This should pave the way for a potential reopening of the hospitality sector from the 4th July. Whilst the recommencement of the Premier League has been met with…

It appears to be more of the same for this mid-week update.  The predictable cycle of forward guidance regarding more economic stimuli, in order to combat the fear of unemployment numbers, and the containment of COVID-19.  The desired outcome being sufficient reassurance to consumers to help ignite the economic bounce back. US sales data published…

It has been 84 days since lockdown in the UK was announced in which we have seen a period of great change and an immediate shift to our lifestyles. We have seen just over a quarter of the UK‘s working population supported by the Government’s furlough scheme with its estimated cost currently sitting at £19.6bn….

Two important publications have been produced since our update on Monday.  Firstly, we had the OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Economic Outlook, which was predictably gloomy. As part of our macroeconomic monitoring, we track the OECD’s Composite Leading Indicators on a monthly basis which gives us a broad-based indication of where each economy…

Risk assets enjoyed another strong week at Friday’s close, led by US equities. It is almost incomprehensible to think that the S&P 500 and the US dollar are almost back to the same levels seen at the beginning of 2020. Positive data helped spur the rally; US non-farm payrolls surprised to the upside, climbing 2.5…

They just keep on coming.  The latest in stimulus packages, at a modest €130 billion, comes courtesy of Germany.  This is for Germany rather than the Eurozone and was much larger than expected, with the emphasis firmly on increasing demand.  It will include a cut to their VAT, several infrastructure projects and €300 for every…