Fund Manager Views
'UK investors must look at what they own'
UK equities continue to be buffeted by the Brexit debate, with this coming on top of a global risk-off trade sparked by rising rates in the US, the US-China trade war and other idiosyncratic events.
The secular growth stocks bucking the Brexit negativity
The challenges facing the UK economy are clear. Brexit uncertainty is affecting business and consumer confidence, while also contributing to a difficult political backdrop.
Merian's Harris: Peak in rates will be 'surprisingly shallow'
Markets have been far more volatile this year than last, taking fright at trade wars, the Italian budget, and the rout of the Turkish lira, for example. Yet most of the volatility has been in equity markets, while corporate bonds have provided a relatively...
Will India 'sparkle once more'?
Emerging markets have endured a turbulent few months, with a sell-off in a string of economies stretching from Latin America to Asia sparking fears of global contagion.
What is making US stocks good value for the first time in two years?
For investors in US equities, October was a painful month. But at least we did not suffer alone - it was a brutal month for almost every asset class. Amid fear and panic selling, only gold posted a meaningfully positive return.
JPMAM's Ward on how Europe is being impacted by the global trade storm
The European economy has proved a major disappointment this year. Investors started 2018 full of optimism.
Will UK energy stocks cause another disappointment?
I cannot count the times I have burnt my fingers investing in oil stocks in the last ten years. Ever since oil started its decline from $150/bbl to less than $30/bbl and back to $75/bbl, there have been multiple tactical rallies that disappeared as fast...
The appeal of investing in family-owned companies
Recently published research from Credit Suisse concluded family-owned companies provide superior growth and returns. As managers of the British Empire Trust, which has over a third of its NAV invested in family-backed holding companies across Europe,...
Peter Rutter: Why global equity outlook remains attractive
It has been a difficult year for global equities, with volatility caused by factors such as concern about trade wars leaving many of the world's stock markets in retreat.
What happens next for Asian equities after a 'tough year'?
Asian stockmarkets have had a tough year, culminating in October as trade tensions, a strong US dollar, rising bond yields and weaker Chinese macro data combined to send share prices sharply lower.
Why now is the time to back 'out of favour' UK equities
The UK remains out of favour among global investors and, with domestic fund flows retreating, we have been taking this opportunity to add to UK equities as sentiment seems to have reached extreme levels.
Comgest's Wittet on how to find disruptors in Europe
Many investors spend their time trying to find the next disruptor, the next Uber or Netflix. Identifying the 'Next Big Thing' can make for a very profitable investment, as those companies have shown. However, predictions can more often be wrong than right....
US distributors to feel the pressure from Trump's trade tariffs with China
The campaign fury in the build-up to the US mid-term elections may have been a factor in 'Red October', which saw the S&P 500 take a 10% intra-month hit.
Architas' Causton: UK CEOs must be pragmatic about dividends
At this stage in the cycle, and in many sectors, there is continued pressure on company management to grow their dividends. There was record dividend growth in the UK in the second quarter and dividends are on track to reach a record high of close to...
Crux's Penny: Navigating the Brexit 'unknowables' in UK equities
When the referendum vote for Brexit occurred in June 2016 few could have predicted the outcome, and even fewer still could have positioned a portfolio accordingly. An unexpected outcome and disruption led to the UK stockmarket rising.
The 'encouraging signs' from Vodafone
After a terrible share price performance since the start of the year, Vodafone provided a more reassuring set of half year results last week.
Lyxor's Barjou: Bonds are not out of the woods yet
Fixed income investors could face a challenging end to the year, as the combination of shrinking central bank balance sheets and still solid growth data could be a headwind for bonds.
Premier's Hudson: Which companies will benefit from the hard-up consumer?
While surveys suggest the UK consumer is reasonably confident about their personal finances, we are less convinced.
Does Japan needs to implement excess cash levy?
Japanese stocks are about as cheap on a price to 12-month forward EPS ratio as they have been in many years and are cheaper than many of their global peers.
Miton's Ford: Are economic conditions in the US set to decelerate?
After the S&P 500 index's 10% rally from the beginning of May to the end of August in dollar terms, investors have begun to question whether further gains are possible by year end.
Kames' Peden: Are markets seeing a changing of the guard?
Is the longest post-war equity bull run coming to end? Perhaps not entirely but global stockmarkets are certainly showing signs of fragility in a number of sectors.
Does Europe have room to push higher?
For many the Global Financial Crisis is a distant memory, having just seen the longest bull market in history. These extraordinary gains were achieved despite a difficult economic and political backdrop over the past decade. Recently the prospect of trade...
It is not necessarily the best tactic to just buy the highest-rated bonds
Expect government bond yields to rise
The prospect of new cities (and accompanying flow of capital) in the Gulf
Recent revelations about Saudi Arabia's hand in the Jamal Khashoggi affair has marred what is an otherwise engrossing growth story, not just for the largest of the Gulf states, but for other countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
