COVID-19 hub: Investment

07/08/2020 - After reaching a low on 23 March, global equities (as measured by the MSCI All Country World Index) have recovered 44%. 

09/07/2020 - Why investing in low carbon portfolios may not be the solution on climate change

03/07/2020 - With lockdown life easing back to normality, there are tentative signs of a new business cycle emerging. As such, global equities rose 19% in the second quarter, the strongest rally for 11 years, a 72% retracement of the prior falls since COVID-19.

30/06/2020 - Inflation has notably decelerated in response to the COVID-19 induced recession we are currently experiencing. However, over the medium term, we see scope for a revival in consumer prices, a topic we have discussed previously.

23/06/2020 - The sight of a queue can evoke a range of emotions. Despair, panic, frustration or perhaps patriotism for some British citizens. However, the queues outside shops on 15th June was a sight of hope for many.

16/06/2020 - The term Emerging Market (EM) was coined by author Antoine Van Agtamel in the early 1980s. Technical definitions vary, but generally an EM is understood to be an economy with a low to middle income per capita, which is transitioning from a closed economy to a more open market economy.

16/06/2020 - UK GDP fell by 20.4% in April, not far off economists’ expectations of 18.7% (according to a survey by Bloomberg), and much lower than the drop of 5.8% in March. In terms of level, this decline effectively erased 18 years of economic growth, bringing total GDP back to 2002 levels!

08/06/2020 - Value and growth are the two most traditional schools of investing. Value investors seek to find companies that they believe are undervalued. Growth investors seek companies offering capital or earnings growth that they believe will outperform the market. 

01/06/2020 - Amongst financiers, particularly forex traders, the term ‘cable’ denotes the exchange rate between GBP and USD or even just GBP itself. The name is derived from 1800s transatlantic cables used to transmit the GBP/USD exchange rate. Downwards cable equals sterling depreciation and dollar appreciation and upwards, the opposite.

22/05/2020 - Since the US equity market bottomed out, its subsequent rebound has caught many investors off-guard.

18/05/2020 - Governments are gently beginning to ease lockdowns, allowing economic activity and hope of a V-shaped recovery to continue. But a critical risk, for markets and society, is the risk of a ‘second wave’ of COVID-19 and subsequent government responses.

04/05/2020 - A sudden rise in inflation is a key risk for any unprepared portfolio. Potentially, higher inflation could mean central banks tighten monetary policy in order to abide by their mandates. 

30/04/2020 - Over the past few years Responsible Investing, often known as (Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), has surged in popularity, with more investors wishing to influence positive change with their money. The wider investment industry came to understand that more responsible companies are likely to still be trading in the long-term. However, for every trend there are critics.

28/04/2020 - Following on from our review at the end of March, we make a qualitative assessment of the 7 conditions we believe are necessary to stabilise equity markets.

24/04/2020 - Daniel Casali provides a round-up of key market activity during the week of 20th April.

24/04/2020 - Passive funds are a critical part of any modern portfolio, and an increasingly dominant feature across global capital markets. We consider how best to use passive funds in our client portfolios.

17/04/20 - The US corporate bond market offers an opportunity for income seeking investors. Investment grade and high yield corporate bonds currently trade at yields of 2.1%, and 7.4% respectively, which compares to a S&P 500 equity trailing dividend yield (DY) of 2.2%.

16/04/20 - At the beginning of 2020 the attraction of having some gold exposure in portfolios seemed strong as central banks were once again ‘loosening’ policy and there was evidence of fiscal stimulus emerging too.

17/04/2020 - Daniel Casali provides a round-up of key market activity during the week of 13th April.

09/04/2020 - The global economy is on track to deliver its lowest real GDP growth rate since the end of the Second World War.

09/04/2020 - Daniel Casali provides a round-up of key market activity during the week of 6th April.

07/04/2020 - As the ramifications of the global lockdown response to COVID-19 develop, dividend income is being slashed. We explore what this means for our clients, especially those who need a regular investment income, and consider how long and severe this income drought might be.

06/04/2020 - In recent weeks nearly every asset class has seen remarkable and unexpected price movements. Structured products are often used in modern investment portfolios to reduce risk and or diversify returns, but prices have been as volatile and disconcerting as many other assets. In this article we answer five questions to explain how products are formed, why these are used and the factors that determine pricing.

03/04/2020 - Daniel Casali provides a round-up of key market activity during the week of 30^th March.  

03/04/2020 - The metals & mining sector has been amongst the worst hit sectors amid the recent market volatility relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. This has always been a high beta sector exposed to global consumption, and it has once again proven thus.

02/04/2020 - While global equity markets have bounced from lows over the last two weeks oil prices have not followed suit, instead continuing their fall to levels last seen in November 2002.

27/03/2020 - It’s hard to believe that just over a month ago global equities were trading at all-time highs. 

26/03/2020 - At Smith & Williamson we pride ourselves on the efficiency and skills of our dealing team, who processed over £9bn of trades last year, and saved clients millions of pounds by achieving excellent prices. But in recent weeks our team, with over 150 years’ combined experience trading, including during the 1987 crash, 9/11 and the Global Financial Crisis, have seen unprecedented and difficult conditions.

26/03/2020 - Real estate has historically delivered strong and consistent returns to investors. For example, the MSCI UK Monthly Property Index has shown annualised returns of 8.6% in the 10 years to February 2020 (MSCI).