World Gold Council-Gold Demand Trends Q3 2018
October 31, 2018--Q3 demand steady; up 6.2t y-o-y
Gold demand was 964.3t in Q3, just 6.2t higher y-o-y. Robust central bank buying and a 13% rise in consumer demand offset large ETF outflows.
Bar and coin demand jumped 28% to 298.1t as retail investors took advantage of the lower gold price and sought protection against currency weakness and tumbling stock markets. Jewellery demand rose 6% in Q3 as lower prices caught consumers' attention. A growing number of central bank buyers saw demand in this sector rise 22% y-o-y to 148.4t, the highest level of quarterly net purchases since 2015. Technology registered its eighth consecutive quarter of y-o-y growth, up 1%. Sharp outflows in gold-backed ETFs offset growth across much of the gold market.
Source: World Gold Council (WGC)
Doing Business Report: New Record Set as 314 Reforms Introduced to Improve Business Climate Around the World
October 31, 2018--Governments around the world set a new record in bureaucracy busting efforts for the domestic private sector, implementing 314 business reforms over the past year, says the World Bank Group's Doing Business 2019: Training for Reform report, released today.
The reforms, carried out in 128 economies, benefit small and medium enterprises as well as entrepreneurs, enabling job creation and stimulating private investment. This year's reforms surpass the previous all-time high of 290 reforms two years ago.
view the World Bank Doing Business 2019: Training for Reform report
Source: World Bank
ETFGI Reports Assets Invested In Actively Managed ETFs And ETPs Reached A New High Of US$106 Billion At The End Of September 2018
October 30, 2019--ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm covering trends in the global ETF/ETP ecosystem, reported today that assets invested in actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally reached a new high of US$106 billion, following net inflows of US$2.96 billion and market moves during September.
August trends continued, with actively managed ETFs/ETPs in North America attracting net inflows, while actively managed ETFs/ETPs in Europe saw net outflows, according to ETFGI's September 2018 Global Active ETF and ETP industry landscape insights report, an annual paid-for research subscription service. (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.)
Highlights
Total Assets in actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally reached a record $106 Bn in September.
Net new assets gathered by actively managed ETFs/ETPs listed globally were $2.96 Bn in September.
44th consecutive months of net inflows into actively managed ETFs/ETPs listed globally.
Source: ETFGI
Growing Exponentially, Floating Solar Opens Up New Horizons for Renewable Energy: Report
October 30, 2018--Floating solar technologies are creating major new opportunities to scale up solar energy around the world, particularly in countries with high population density and competing uses for available land.
The use of floating solar-deployment of photovoltaic panels on the surface of bodies of waThe use of floating solar-deployment of photovoltaic panels on the surface of bodies of water-has grown more than a hundred-fold in less than four years, from a worldwide installed capacity of 10 megawatts at the end of 2014 to 1.1 gigawatts by September 2018, according to the first market report on floating solar, produced by the World Bank Group and the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS).
view World Bank Report-Where Sun Meets Water: Floating Solar Market Report-Executive Summary
Source: World Bank
Do not blame index funds and ETFs for market volatility
October 30, 2018--Scaremongering about crashes ignores the long-term success of diversified investment.
Markets are jittery. Volatility is increasing. Everyone seems to be expecting the market sell-off to sharpen.
They disagree on the reasons: rising interest rates, increasing trade tensions, burgeoning government debt, additional Brexit uncertainty. Some people also add the growth of funds that track market indices like the FTSE 100 and the S&P 500.
Source: FT.com
RBC growing ETF servicing business with fourth custody mandate of the year
October 29, 2018--RBC follows up on recent Coin Capital and Bristol Gate Capital Partners deals with ETF custody mandate from First Block Capital.
RBC Investor & Treasury Services (RBC) has been appointed custodian by First Block Capital for its new actively managed FBC Distributed Ledger Technology Adopters exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Source: globalcustodian.com
World Bank Infographic-Innovative Financing for Healthy Oceans
October 29, 2018--Healthy oceans provide jobs and food, sustain economic growth, regulate the climate, and support the well-being of coastal communities.
Source: World Bank
Oil price rises in 2019 to be modest as U.S. production constraints ease: World Bank
October 29, 2018--Trade tensions, ample supply in non-energy commodity markets have weighed on prices
Growing global trade tensions are weighing on non-energy commodity prices and are leading to downward revisions to 2019 price forecasts, the World Bank said.
Oil prices are forecast to average $74 a barrel over 2019, only marginally up from a projected average of $72 a barrel in 2018, while metals prices are expected to remain broadly stable in 2019, the World Bank said in its October Commodity Markets Outlook.
Source: World Bank
24 Fun Bitcoin Facts And Figures (That Will Make Your Head Spin)
October 24, 2018--A new cryptocurrency was born on 31st of October 2008, its name was "Bitcoin" and it has been surrounded by mystery, conspiracy theories, and confusion (not to mention a couple of disasters) ever since.
Here are 24 of the more unbelievable and interesting figures and fun facts about Bitcoin and closely related topics.
Infographic courtesy of ICOWatchlist.com
Source: icowatchlist.com
First Bridge Data-ETF Global Snapshot-October 2018
October 23, 2018-In our latest monthly report:
Global ETF assets grew by 1.07% in September 2018 to $5.31T.
JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, two banks that have been peripheral players as ETF
sponsors, have significantly accelerated their ETF asset gathering this year.
An institutional investor survey by trading firm Jane Street found increased
confidence in the liquidity of ETFs compared to three years ago.
There were 26 new ETF listings in the US in September 2018, with a majority of the
ETFs providing targeted exposure to factors like high quality, growth and value.
There were 108 new ETF listings outside the US in September 2018 including crosslistings.
38% of these listings were "smart beta" ETFs and 17% were active (nonindexed).
LIBOR rate replication, crude oil futures and US small cap healthcare were among
the best performing ETF categories this year through October 19, 2018. Indian small
cap, Turkish and Chinese small cap 'A' shares.
Source: First Bridge Data