Are we on the cusp of a global capex boom?

Expected to surge by almost 12% in 2021

clock • 4 min read

It has been an eventful time for petrol stations across the UK. Panic buying of fuel has seen demand overwhelm supply. More broadly, the huge pent-up savings from the pandemic has seen a significant demand surge for goods.

While global manufacturing continues to supply goods at a record pace, supply chains have not been able to keep up - from used cars, semiconductors and furniture, to Nandos' chicken. Businesses without sustainable supply chains will see share prices fall This has been further exacerbated by global capital expenditure (capex) levels having slumped in recent years. Capex levels have not kept pace with depreciation since 2017, and the pandemic unsurprisingly caused a further depression in capital spending. The MSCI AC World Capex to depreciation ratio (ex-financials) dropped to around on...

To continue reading this article...

Join Investment Week for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, analysis and opinion from the investment industry, including the Sustainable Hub covering fund news from the ESG space
  • Get ahead of regulatory and technological changes affecting fund management
  • Important and breaking news stories selected by the editors delivered straight to your inbox each day
  • Weekly members-only newsletter with exclusive opinion pieces from leading industry experts
  • Be the first to hear about our extensive events schedule and awards programmes

Join now

 

Already an Investment Week
member?

Login

More on Markets

How big an impact could global elections have on portfolio allocation in 2024?

How big an impact could global elections have on portfolio allocation in 2024?

US, UK and India main focuses

Investment Week
clock 19 February 2024 • 8 min read
Hotter than expected US inflation tempers Fed rate cut expectations

Hotter than expected US inflation tempers Fed rate cut expectations

Annual price growth falls to 3.1%

clock 13 February 2024 • 1 min read
Investors turn defensive in January as rate cut expectations change

Investors turn defensive in January as rate cut expectations change

State Street Risk Appetite index

clock 08 February 2024 • 1 min read
Trustpilot