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Australian exchange could shorten settlement with blockchain
March 22, 2019--ASX will seek comment on quicker settlement of cash stocks-possibly the same day
The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) could shrink settlement times for cash equities through the use of blockchain, and will be seeking feedback from its clients on the idea.
Currently, cash stock trades are settled over two business days, or in industry parlance, T+2 (transaction date plus two). Using the distributed ledger technology (DLT) of blockchain, the ASX confirmed that period could be condensed; others speculated it could be as little as four hours.
Port in the storm? Hybrids performance during market sell-offs
March 20, 2019--In the face of market volatility, how do hybrids fare against equities? In this article, we highlight how hybrids have historically produced attractive risk-adjusted returns over time and demonstrated their resilience during equity market slumps.
Hybrid securities last year again demonstrated their ability to hold up well in the face of equity market volatility.
Hybrids: impressive risk-adjusted returns
The Investment Manager of our Active Hybrids Fund (ASX: HBRD) recently wrote a post discussing the strong performance of the hybrids market last year. Indeed, the index of hybrid securities against which the HBRD fund is benchmarked produced a gross return of 4.9% in 2019, compared to a grossed-up loss of 1.5% for the S&P/ASX 200 Equity Index.
BetaShares-Investment Trends Australian ETF Report
March 20, 2019--In the tenth annual BetaShares/Investment Trends ETF Report, we uncover reasons why the ETF industry continues to prosper, leading to a record number of investors across the Australian ETF market.
Key findings of the report
The insights collected from this round of research are based on responses from around 8,000 investors and 800 advisers:
The number of ETF investors in Australia grew by 22% in the 12 months to October 2018, reaching a record high of 385,000.
The number of investors holding ETFs through an SMSF rose to 120,000 from 105,000 the previous year, an increase of 14%. Diversification and access to overseas markets are the main drivers for this market.
Growth in non-SMSF investors was even stronger, with an increase of more than 24% from 213,000 investors in 2017 to 265,000 in 2018.
Survey Conducted by SZSE on 2018 Individual Investors
March 19, 2019--To fully understand the basic information of individual investors, track the changes in investor structure and behavioral characteristics, and improve investor education services and protection in a more pertinent and effective way, SZSE organized the 10th survey on individual investors since 2009.
The framework of the survey is similar to previous ones, mainly involving investor structure, educational level, risk preferences, concepts and behaviors, sentiment and expectation, etc. The survey also touches upon investors' opinions on 2019 risk factors in stock market and issues in the capital market.
The geographical distribution of securities accounts is taken into consideration, and stratified sampling is adopted. The respondents are aged 18 to 60, and have traded stocks in either SSE or SZSE in the past 12 months. A total of 24,074 respondents from 331 cities of different sizes nationwide have answered the questionnaires.
China's debt is still piling up-and the pile-up is getting faster
March 19, 2019--With looser monetary policy, China's policymakers hope to encourage banks to lend more to the private sector. This seems to imply a change from the deleveraging drive begun in mid-2017.
Although this should be good news for China's growth in the short term, such a continued accumulation of debt cannot but imply deflationary pressures and a lower potential growth further down the road.
If you think China's monetary policy became more lax in 2018, wait for 2019. Pushed by gloomier activity data, China’s policymakers have moved from an orthodox monetary policy to a much more heterodox one.
IMF Working paper-The Impact of Rapid Aging and Pension Reform on Savings and the Labor Supply: The
Case of China1
March 18, 2019--Summary:
We study, both empirically and quantitatively, the role of savings and the labor supply in self-insurance channels over the life cycle when one faces not only idiosyncratic income risks, but also changes in longevity risk and pension benefits.
We pick China as a case study since China has undergone a dramatic process of rapid aging and a tremendous reduction in social security benefits for the period 1995-2009. We find that both savings and the labor supply are quantitatively important self-insurance channels in responding to changes in longevity risk and pension benefits, and the responses via adjustment to savings and labor supply have significant macroeconomic implications. Applying the model to China, we find that the pension reform and rapid aging together contribute 55 percent of the increase in the household saving rate from 1995 to 2009, and they jointly capture about 64 percent of the drastic increase in the labor supply for the same period.
SET Well-Being Index set for launch on April 1
March 18, 2019--The Stock Exchange of Thailand plans next month to launch the SET Well-Being Index (SETWB), a new index consisting of listed securities in well-being-related sectors that are key contributors to Thai economic expansion, allowing investors to benefit from the growth potential of these promising sectors.
The SET sectors making up the index are: Agribusiness, Commerce, Fashion, Food and Beverage, Health Care Service, Tourism and Leisure, and Transportation and Logistics.
Australian ETF Review-BetaShares Australian ETF Review-February 2019
March 13, 2019--During February, the Australian ETF industry set a new record, with its largest every monthly funds under management increase. The industry ended the month at a record $44.8B, with market cap increasing by 5.4% (+$2.3B).
With markets rebounding, the industry growth this month came primarily from price increases, which accounted for ˜80% of the monthly result-the remaining ˜20% being due to net inflows of ˜$524m
International equities were once again the category with the greatest level of inflows, followed by Australian Bonds and Cash
From a performance perspective, given the tremendous rebound in their equity market, Chinese exposures performed most strongly
The Future of China's Bond Market
March 13, 2019--Summary:
China's bond market is destined to play an increasingly important role, both at home and abroad. And the inclusion of the country's bonds in global indexes will be a milestone for its financial market integration, bringing big opportunities as well as challenges for policymakers and investors alike.
This calls for a good understanding of China's bond market structure, its unique characteristics, and areas where reforms are needed. This volume comprehensively analyzes the different segments of China's bond market, from sovereign, policy bank, and credit bonds, to the rapidly growing local government bond market. It also covers bond futures, green bonds, and asset-backed securities, as well as China's offshore market, which has played a major role in onshore market development.
view the The Future of China's Bond Market
IMF Staff Concludes 2019 Article IV Mission to Korea
March 12, 2019--Korea is facing short-and medium-term headwinds to growth, which requires policy action.
Fiscal policy needs to become more expansionary through a substantial supplementary budget, and monetary policy should be clearly accommodative.
The government should continue to implement structural reforms to support growth, including by reducing regulations in the services sector.
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Tarhan Feyzioglu visited Seoul during February 27-March 12 to conduct discussions for the 2019 Article IV Consultation. Mr. Feyzioglu issued the following statement at the conclusion of its visit:
"Korea's economy has strong fundamentals. The country has a skilled labor force, strong manufacturing base, a stable financial system, low public debt, and ample foreign exchange reserves. Per-capita income recently exceeded thirty-thousand dollars. These achievements are a testament to Korea’s strong public institutions and generally prudent macroeconomic management.
