Bassanese Bites-Uneasy calm
October 22, 2018--Week in Review
An "uneasy calm" is perhaps the best way to characterise global markets last week-with little in the way of major events and investors only left with their nerves to deal with. The release of the latest Fed minutes only affirmed its intent to keep raising rates-which supported the $US- while tensions between Italy and the EU also added to investor caution.
While oil prices eased due to a strong US inventory build, new doubts also emerged over whether Saudi Arabia is willing (and able) to boost supply in coming months to make up for the sanction-induced looming reduction in Iranian exports.
Although early days, America's earnings reporting season also remained encouraging-according to FactSet, of the 20% of S&P 500 companies that have so far reported, 80% have beaten expectations. Given investor nervousness, however, these results were dulled by growing talk of a possible post-tax cut slowdown in US earnings growth in 2019.
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Source: BetaShares
Vanguard hires head of new global ETF research center
October 22, 2018--Marco Corsi was named head of Vanguard Group's global exchange-traded funds research center, a spokesman said.
The position is new. Mr. Corsi develops ETF-related research, perspectives and content that will inform and educate institutional investors, retail intermediaries and self-directed investors.
Source: pionline.com
Raw materials use to double by 2060 with severe environmental consequences
October 22, 2018--The world's consumption of raw materials is set to nearly double by 2060 as the global economy expands and living standards rise, placing twice the pressure on the environment that we are seeing today, according to a new OECD report.
A preview of The Global Material Resources Outlook to 2060 released today sees global materials use rising to 167 Gigatonnes in 2060 from 90 Gigatonnes today as the world population soars to 10 billion people and average global income per capita rises to converge with the current OECD level of USD 40,000.
Without concrete actions to address these challenges, the projected increase in the extraction and processing of raw materials such as biomass, fossil fuels, metals and non-metallic minerals is likely to worsen pollution of air, water and soils, and contribute significantly to climate change. The increase comes despite a shift from manufacturing to service industries and continual improvements in manufacturing efficiency, which has lessened the amount of resources consumed for each unit of GDP. Without this, environmental pressures would be worse. The projection also takes account of flattening demand in China and other emerging economies as their infrastructure booms end.
Source: OECD
Fund fees forecast to fall by a fifth
October 21, 2018--Fees for passive funds in Europe are expected to fall from 23bp to 15bp by 2025, down by 35 per cent.
In the more mature US market where passive funds have already penetrated deeper into investors' portfolios, fees are predicted to fall from an average of 13bp to 11bp by 2025.
Source: FT.com
Money-laundering watchdog to set first cryptocurrency rules by June
October 19, 2018--The global watchdog for money laundering will set up its first rules on oversight of cryptocurrencies by June, a major step towards creating international standards for an asset currently subject to patchy regulations
The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) said on Friday jurisdictions worldwide will be required to license or regulate cryptocurrency exchanges and some firms providing encrypted wallets, to help stamp out the use of digital money for money laundering, terrorism financing or other crimes.
Source: Reuters
World Gold Council-Investment-Update: IMF report highlights gold's relevance
October 17, 2018--The IMF Global Financial Stability report, released on 10 October, highlighted an increase in the level of risk among multiple global metrics.
Following its publication, stocks in the US, Europe and Asia lost 4%, 3% and 4% respectively over three days. While the market has regained some of its early losses, we believe the report and the subsequent market pullback underline the relevance of holding gold in the near and long term.
Source: World Gold Council
Africa: Ties Between African Countries and China Are Complex. Understanding This Matters
October 15, 2018--The complex relationship between Africa and China has become even more complicated this year. Initially, 2018 was set to reaffirm the bond through the latest Forum on China-Africa Cooperation summit held in Beijing in September.
The summit delivered its usual pageant of African leaders, side deals, and the announcement of a USD$60 billion financing package. The year also saw the recurrence of misgivings about the relationship.
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Source: allafrica.com
Will Vanguard be at the forefront of the next market downturn?
Source: FT.com
ETF industry's growth streak in danger of ending
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Source: FT.com
How millennials and savings apps are making asset managers wake up and smell the coffee
Since then, the 30-year-old Canadian technology entrepreneur who runs WealthSimple has taken a keen interest in managing his personal portfolio of stocks, mutual funds and exchange traded funds.
He recognises, however, that for his generation this is a niche hobby.
Source: FT.com
October 14, 2018--Last week, as markets nosedived for a few days, Vanguard, the second biggest asset manager in the world (after BlackRock), urged its clients via a tweet: "You know the drill. In the face of market volatility, keep calm and stay the course."
October 14, 2018--Leading providers of exchange traded funds are on track for a disappointing year.
October 14, 2018--Michael Katchen first tasted investing at age 12 when he won a stockpicking contest.
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