Global ETF News Older than One Year
Economic Forces, Not Tariffs, Drive Changes in Trade Balances
April 3, 2019--New IMF research finds that macroeconomic factors, not tariffs, explain most of the changes in trade balances between two countries.
Bilateral trade balances (the difference in the value of exports and imports between two countries) have come under scrutiny recently.
Some policymakers are concerned that their large and rising size are the result of uneven measures that distort international trade. But is a focus on bilateral trade balances the right one?
Source: IMF
IOSCO report on behavioural insights seeks to enhance retail investor protection
April 2, 2019--The Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions today published a report on behavioural insights that seeks to help its members improve the effectiveness of retail investor protection.
The report, The Application of Behavioural Insights to Retail Investor Protection, provides guidance to help regulators better understand the behaviour of retail investors in making financial investment decisions.
The report describes behavioural biases and how they affect retail financial markets. The examples given in the report show how emotions and psychological experiences can influence investment decisions; how a rule of thumb can lead to incorrect beliefs; and how a partial assessment of information can lead to a different decision than a complete assessment.
The report finds that individuals tend to make different decisions when interacting with an online interface as opposed to interacting with a human or relying on print materials.
view the IOSCO The Application of Behavioural Insights to Retail Investor Protection Final Report
Source: IOSCO
Bitcoin surges as cryptocurrency market suddenly springs to life
April 2, 2019--Bitcoin climbed suddenly on Tuesday to the highest level since November, leading a surge in virtual currencies and ending three months of calm in the $160 billion market.
Source: FIN24
WTO Global trade growth loses momentum as trade tensions persist
April 2, 2019--WTO economists expect merchandise trade volume growth to fall to 2.6% in 2019-down from 3.0% in 2018. Trade growth could then rebound to 3.0% in 2020; however, this is dependent on an easing of trade tensions.
World trade will continue to face strong headwinds in 2019 and 2020 after growing more slowly than expected in 2018 due to rising trade tensions and increased economic uncertainty.
Main points:
World merchandise trade volume is forecast to grow 2.6% in 2019, accompanied by GDP growth of 2.6%.
Trade growth should pick up to 3.0% in 2020 with GDP growth steady at 2.6%.
Trade growth in 2020 is expected to out-pace GDP growth due to faster GDP growth in developing economies.
Trade tensions still pose the greatest risk to the forecast, but a relaxation could provide some upside potential.
Weak import demand in Europe and Asia dampened global trade volume growth in 2018 due to the large share of these regions in world trade.
The value of merchandise trade was up 10% to US$ 19.48 trillion in 2018, partly due to higher energy prices.
Source: WTO
Biggest banks lead the switch to blockchain
April 2, 2019--The world's largest globally systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs) are swiftly integrating blockchain technology into their operations ahead of their smaller rivals according to data released by UBS.
The Swiss bank polled 82 individuals during Q1 of 2019 from banks that are either evaluating, piloting, or implementing blockchain. The most common use cases of blockchain are payments, trade finance, securities settlement as well as fraud detection and security.
Last month, Commerzbank and Deutsche Börse announced they had used distributed ledger technology (DLT) to execute a legally binding settlement of a repo transaction. In February, a report from IHS Markit suggested that blockchain technology could save investment firms US$12 billion in clearing and settlement fees.
Source: ctmfile.com
IMF-World Economic Outlook, Analytical Chapters, April 2019
April 3, 2019--Chapter 2: The Rise of Corporate Market Power and Its Macroeconomic Effects
This chapter investigates whether corporate market power has increased and, if so, what the macroeconomic implications are. The three main takeaways from a broad analysis of cross-country firm-level patterns are that (1) market power has increased moderately across advanced economies, as indicated by firms' price markups over marginal costs rising by close to 8 percent since 2000, but not in emerging market economies;
(2) the increase has been fairly widespread across advanced economies and industries, but within them, it has been concentrated among a small fraction of dynamic—more productive and innovative—firms; and (3) although the overall macroeconomic implications have been modest so far, further increases in the market power of these already-powerful firms could weaken investment, deter innovation, reduce labor income shares, and make it more difficult for monetary policy to stabilize output.
Chapter 3-The Price of Capital Goods: A Driver of Investment Under Threat?:
Over the past three decades, the price of machinery and equipment has fallen dramatically relative to other prices in advanced and emerging market and developing economies alike. Could rising trade tensions, a slowing pace of trade integration, and sluggish productivity growth threaten this potential driver of investment going forward? This chapter sets out to answer this question by documenting key patterns in the price of capital goods, its drivers, and its impact on real investment rates.
view the IMF WEO Analytical Chapter 3:The Price of Capital Goods: A Driver of Investment Under Threat? Chapter 4: Drivers of Bilateral Trade and Spillovers from Tariffs view the IMF WEO Analytical Chapter 4: Drivers of Bilateral Trade and Spillovers from Tariffs
Source: IMF
March 2019 FTSE Country Classification Interim Review
The interim review keeps investors fully informed on the status of markets currently on the Watch List (a published list of markets being considered for reclassificatio
Source: FTSE Russell
Central Banks Are Thinking Greener as Climate Change Hits Policy
At a time when students around the globe are urging governments, companies and citizens to protect the environment, awareness is growing among currency guardians that weather disruptions, carbon emissions and green finance will demand significant attention.
Source: Bloomberg
BetaShares-Super Tuesday
Bond yields continued to edge lower, with the US market now fully pricing a Fed rate cut by year-end!
Against this backdrop, one positive report last week was a better than expected improvement in Germany's key IFO business sentiment indicator in March. The final estimate of US Q4 annualised GDP growth was also reasonable, revealing a close-to-trend pace of 2.2%.
Source: BetaShares
Sizing the Impact Investing Market
Representing the most comprehensive study to date, the Sizing the Impact Investing Market report is the most rigorous analysis and estimate of the size of the impact investing market. Based on the collation of AUM data on more than 1,300 impact investors around the world, this research also underscores the diversity of the market, capturing data from many types of investors.
view the GIIN Sizing the Impact Investing Market report
Source: Global Impact Investing Network
The presence of large and rising bilateral trade balances has raised concerns that asymmetric obstacles to trade may distort the international trade system. This chapter examines the drivers of bilateral trade balances, distinguishing between the roles of macroeconomic factors, the international division of labor, and bilateral tariffs. It also examines how, through their impact on the ways production is organized within and across countries, tariffs affect productivity, output, and employment.
April 2, 2019--Every March, FTSE Russell conducts an interim review of country classification within the FTSE Global Equity Index Series (FTSE GEIS) and all indexes derived from FTSE GEIS.
April 2, 2019--Monetary authorities are studying how to handle changes
Financial risks and economic trouble could emerge, they worry.
April 1, 2019--Week in Review
Global equities recovered somewhat last week, perhaps encouraged by the fact that while most global growth indicators have softened in recent months, they're overall still consistent with at least moderate growth (i.e. no recession) and low inflation. Central banks are also not deaf, with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand becoming the latest to turn dovish-indicating the next move in rates would now likely be down.
April 1, 2019--The Global Impact Investing Network's Sizing the Impact Investing Market report, provides an in-depth analysis of the current size and composition of the impact investing market. The GIIN estimates the current size of the global impact investing market to be $502 billion.
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