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  • Tim Leary
    Features

    US high yield bonds punch out of a corner

    October 2024 (Magazine)

    US high yield has come a long way from its murky beginnings with the very high yielding bonds of so called ‘fallen angels’, and Drexel Burnham Lambert’s Michael Milken offering bonds newly issued by corporates with sub-investment grade ratings for the first time in the 1980s, properly introducing the world to high yield bond investing.

  • John Butler
    Features

    Can central banks retain their independence?

    October 2024 (Magazine)

    Over the last few decades, following central bank behaviour has been a rewarding investment strategy. That is why there is now a community of people employed to analyse every word central bank officials utter.

  • US net international investment position
    Features

    Fixed income, rates, currencies: All eyes are on US elections

    October 2024 (Magazine)

    With so many important elections taking place this year, politics were likely to have an outsized influence on financial markets. 

  • Net sentiment equities
    Features

    IPE Quest Expectations Indicator - October 2024

    October 2024 (Magazine)

    In generic US polls, Democrats beat Republicans, with a small but increasing margin, signalling an opportunity for reforms if Kamala Harris wins and a continuation of a divided and blocked Congress if Donald Trump wins.

  • The shifting relationship between demand and supply of workers
    Features

    Fears grow of US slowdown

    September 2024 (Magazine)

    US president Joe Biden’s decision to step aside was much murmured about following his disastrous performance in a debate with Donald Trump, but it was still a surprise when he announced his decision. However, market reactions were relatively muted, despite shaking pollsters’ predictions on who might now win the election. 

  • Elizabeth Traxler
    Features

    NAV finance takes hold as a niche form of private credit

    September 2024 (Magazine)

    Private equity investments are by their nature illiquid, which is why PE general partners (GPs) raising a new fund only call on the committed capital when it needs to be deployed in a new investment – and that may be up to a few years after the fund closes. 

  • Christopher Jeffery
    Features

    Secondary markets and innovation boost private equity liquidity

    September 2024 (Magazine)

    Liquidity has reduced significantly in global private capital markets. Whilst private equity-backed IPOs are up this year, overall exit value is down by 66% and there is currently a large backlog of unsold assets, of which 40% are four years or older. The cumulative sum of unsold assets sits at $3.2trn (€2.9trn), according to Bain. Recent data from Preqin shows that capital called has exceeded capital distributed by $1.57trn since 2018, highlighting the lack of free capital in private markets.

  • Chris Brightman
    Features

    Change is required as populations age

    September 2024 (Magazine)

    During a recent weekend in the artsy California mountain town of Idyllwild, my wife and I enjoyed a performance of a local band. Seated near us was a gentleman wearing a T-shirt proclaiming, We the People ARE PISSED OFF.  The message on this shirt caught my attention.

  • Net sentiment equities
    Features

    IPE Quest Expectations Indicator - September 2024

    September 2024 (Magazine)

    Kamala Harris’ candidacy has turned the political mood in the US. The two candidates are very close together in the polls but while Trump’s score is stable – except for a worsening favourability – Harris’ statistics all show a positive trend.

  • Klotter Don
    Features

    The next Magnificent Sevens are hiding in plain sight

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    Like the so-called FANGs that preceded them, one could argue that the Magnificent Seven group of US tech mega-caps that accounted for a large portion of market performance in 2023 are now a part of Wall Street’s history books. Besides two names that have continued to pull away from the pack, the group is no longer commanding investors’ undivided attention.

  • Members and contributors in private pensions as a % of the working age population
    Features

    Reforms are needed to improve pensions in emerging markets

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    The emerging world is ageing the fastest. Despite having the advantage of a young population, emerging countries are expected to transition to older age groups within 25 years, a change that took over 150 years in some developed nations. 

  • Charlotte Acton
    Features

    Cyber catastrophe bonds make a debut as insurers offload risk

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

     Cyber catastrophe bonds may be the new kid on the insurance-linked securities (ILS) block, but they have been talked about for years. The jury is out, though, as to whether they will follow the same trajectory as their natural cat bond peers. While some analysts believe they have the potential to go mainstream, others cite concerns over modelling and lack of diversification.

  • Kansas City Fed
    Features

    Analysts push back on rate cuts

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s June press conference was, like most careful central bank-speak, open to interpretation. It was possibly slightly dovish with a hint of hawk. However, in the aftermath of the press conference, and following a few busy days of US economic data releases, many analysts have pushed back their forecasts for the number of interest rate cuts this year. 

  • Members and contributors in private pensions as a % of the working age population
    Features

    How the EU's pay transparency directive affects pension sponsors

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    Pay transparency is looking set to be the employment hot topic of at least the next few years and reflects an ongoing global conversation around addressing equal pay. The latest figures in the EU put the gender pay gap at around 12.7% and the gender pension gap at in excess of 30%, with very little movement over the last few years. Greater transparency over pay is the route being adopted in a growing number of countries as the silver bullet to accelerate progress.

  • Net sentiment equities
    Features

    IPE Quest Expectations Indicator - July 2024

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    Both US presidential candidates are slowly losing popularity, while staying very close in the polls. Trump seems to have more trouble than Biden getting through to the undecided. Trump’s legal troubles may yet hinder his candidacy, in particular among independents.

  • Net sentiment equities August 2024
    Features

    IPE Quest Expectations Indicator - August 2024

    July/August 2024 (Magazine)

    Joe Biden’s weakness was a lucky stroke for Donald Trump, who has shown similar symptoms for years. It remains to be seen what effect Kamala Harris has on the polls. Trump and his chosen VP are both proponents of weakening the USD.

  • Kate Levick 2021 E3G - small file size
    Features

    Corporate transition plans need to spell out net-zero dependencies

    June 2024 (Magazine)

    Corporate climate transition plans are gaining momentum globally. Essentially, these are reports about how a company plans to achieve emission reduction targets, but the idea is that the company will have engaged in strategic thinking and planning to produce such a plan, rather than just churn out more disclosures.

  • Deborah Ng_GMO_2
    Features

    Why investors should focus on Scope 3 emissions

    June 2024 (Magazine)

    The investment industry is preoccupied with reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions in portfolios to meet net-zero commitments. However, this focus will not provide a way to effectively manage climate transition and physical risk. 

  • Refinitiv
    Features

    Market predicts US soft landing - June 2024

    June 2024 (Magazine)

    A combination of Fed­eral Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s press conference and a slightly weaker-than-expected US April non-farm payrolls outcome succeeded in flipping the market back to a soft-landing narrative for the US economy. US Treasury bonds rallied sharply, taking other markets with them, while the yen weakened significantly against the dollar before recovering.

  • IPE Quest June 2024
    Features

    IPE Quest Expectations Indicator - June 2024

    June 2024 (Magazine)

    Trump and Biden are both losing to undecided voters, a group that is now unusually large and may be sensitive to Trump’s legal troubles. Biden’s approval rate is below his score in presidential polls, while Trump’s score is the same in presidential polls and those measuring voters’ opinion of him. In the UK, the Conservatives took another drubbing in the local elections.