Insights

The murder of past Japanese Prime Minister Abe is a reminder of how much we should value our public servants and politicians. We should be grateful to all our politicians that they are prepared to do a job we need so much....

Overview: Energy price shock turns into central bank focal pointAs we start the second half of 2022, the pressure is clearly building. The excess monetary liquidity – the unavoidable consequence of central banks’ pandemic-fighting measures – is now draining from markets and...

More than two years since the COVID virus hit Europe, it is clear that most peoples’ livelihoods have been affected more by the policy ‘medicine’ than the virus itself. Of course, without those interventions which were needed until vaccinations become prevalent, it...

Overview: Public sentiment wrestles with economic realitiesInflation continues to dominate the financial market narrative. Last week the Office for National Statistics (ONS) announced that inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose from 9% in April to 9.1% in May,...

Through much of this second quarter, the financial market narrative has been about inflation. This week the Office for National Statistics (ONS) informed us that inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose from 9% in April to 9.1% in...

Overview: Market wobbles turn into a routLast week, as central banks around the world were reasserting their credibility as guardians of monetary stability, recent stock market wobbles turned into a fully-fledged rout. Persistent growth concerns turned into fears that central bank actions...

As central banks around the world were busy reasserting their authority and credibility as the guardians of monetary stability, last week’s stock market wobble turned into a fully-fledged rout this week. The growth concerns that preoccupied investors morphed into fears that central...

Outlook: new worries, old concerns?After renewed positive sentiment in recent weeks, markets once again are showing signs of fragility. We could characterise this ‘risk off’ mood as growth scepticism or more wariness that inflation needs even stronger and swifter central bank policy...

Outlook: A volatile month – but the global economy now looks in better shape Throughout May, the swings of capital markets resembled an unpleasant rollercoaster ride rather than cohesive market action. Equity indices jumped in the first few days of the month,...

Party stalls are going up and libations are flowing for the Platinum Jubilee. But no fairground is complete without some thrilling rides. Over the last month, capital markets chipped in with a rollercoaster of their own: equity indices jumped in the first...