Global ETF News Older than One Year
DECPG Global Weekly
March 30, 2018--TAKING STOCK
U.S. 2017 fourth-quarter GDP growth was revised up; PCE inflation rose in February; consumer confidence fell in March
Euro Area economic sentiment declined in March
Japan's retail sales edged up in February; industrial production rebounded
The U.S. Treasury yield curve flattened as short-term yields rose
Monetary policy easing continued in Sub-Saharan Africa
U.S. 2017 fourth-quarter GDP growth was revised up; PCE inflation rose in February; consumer confidence fell in March. The final reading of U.S. real GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2017 came in at 2.9 percent (q/q, saar), above the first two readings of 2.6 percent and 2.5 percent, reflecting higher-than-previously estimated consumer spending (Figure 1). For 2017 as a whole, real GDP rose 2.3 percent, compared with 1.5 percent in 2016.
Source: World Bank
Request Network launches financial applications technology on Ethereum blockchain
March 30, 2018--Request Network, a Y-Combinator backed project, has officially launched a financial applications technology allowing anyone to easily request and send cryptocurrency payments for goods, services, or simply conduct money transfers between friends, family and businesses.
Request Network acts like a management hub to handle invoices, with everything stored on an immutable blockchain ledger to allow for formal accounting and auditing. This opens cryptocurrency invoicing and payments to be used more easily in a business setting.
Source: investmentnews.com
DECPG Global Monthly-March 2018
March 28, 2018--Monthly Highlights
Recent data point to continued strong global growth in 2018. In advanced economies, a rise in inflation remains incipient despite ongoing tightening in labor markets.
After recovering from a period of turbulence in early February, equity prices suffered renewed losses and heightened volatility in late March, amid fears of rising trade protectionism.
Oil prices fell in February, ending seven months of gains, but rose in late March reflecting renewed concerns of sanctions against Iran.
Special Focus: The Investment Cycle in EMDEs
After a prolonged slowdown that began in 2011, investment in EMDEs picked up in 2017 and is expected to accelerate in 2018-19.
While the turnaround is welcome, investment growth is still modest compared to its long-term average, and large investment gaps remain.
Several factors may constrain investment growth in EMDEs in the coming years, holding back potential growth.
Source: World Bank
Passive investing won't cut it with China A shares
March 26, 2018--Passive investment strategy risks owning highly valued and leveraged companies
With a trade war looming between the US and China, now may not be the best time to consider buying domestic Chinese A-shares. Yet that is what emerging markets funds are obliged to do.
Source: FT.com
The Global Financial Centres Index 23
March 26, 2018--THE RESULTS
There is an overall increase in confidence for the leading centres.
Signs of a bias towards stronger and more established centres are evident with the top 25 centres all rising in the ratings. Ratings fell for all of the lowest
50 centres.
London and New York remain at the top of the rankings and the gap between them in ratings closed to one point on a scale of 1,000. Hong Kong retains third place. London's rating rose less than the other four top centres. There is now less than 50 points between the top five centres. San Francisco and Boston moved into the top ten, replacing Beijing and Zurich.
Source: Z/Yen
ETF Securities Weekly Flows Analysis Precious metals favoured in a week of volatility
March 26, 2018--Gold and silver inflows dominated in a week of political volatility.
Profit-taking follows rise in oil prices.
Investors appeared to sell diversified commodity baskets as volatility intensified.
A rally in gold and silver prices piqued investor interest in precious metal ETPs. A 2.8% rise in gold prices and a 0.3% rally in silver prices last week aided inflows into precious metal ETPs. Silver saw a second consecutive week of inflows of US$8.3mn. Gold inflows of US$22.5mn reversed most of the prior week's outflows. Gold prices started rallying mid-week when the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) released it latest policy statement and projections. The market interpreted the Fed’s position as dovish, as the median forecast for end of year rates had not changed.
Source: ETF Securities
DECPG Global Weekly
March 23, 2018--TAKING STOCK
U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates; durable goods orders rose
Euro Area consumer confidence stabilized; composite PMI decelerated
Japan export growth slowed in February; economic sentiment improved
Brazil's central bank cut interest rates again
U.S. yields remain stable; global equity markets fell on possible new U.S. import tariff
U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates; durable goods orders rose. The U.S. Federal Reserve raised its benchmark federal fund rate by 25 basis points to a range of 1.5-1.75 percent, in line with market expectations. The interest rate hike, the sixth quarter-point increase since December 2015, came amid strong employment numbers and firming inflation. The Federal Reserve noted that the U.S. economy is on track to grow at a 2.7 percent (y/y) pace in 2018Q4 and 2.4 percent (y/y) in 2019Q4, an improvement from previous projections attributed to recent fiscal stimulus measures
Source: World Bank
Managing Debt Vulnerabilities in Low-Income and Developing Countries
March 22, 2018--Government debt in some of the world's poorest countries is rising to risky levels, a new IMF report shows. The report looks at economic developments and prospects among the world's low-income countries, which account for a fifth of the world's population but only four percent of global output.
The report focuses not only on the rise in government debt, but also on the shift in the composition of creditors. And, because of this shift, it also focuses on the importance of official creditors working together to find ways to ensure efficient coordination in the event of future debt restructurings.
Source: IMF
