OPEC Monthly Oil Market Report June 2016
June 13, 2016--Oil market highlights
Crude Oil Price Movements
The OPEC Reference Basket averaged $43.21/b in May, representing a gain of $5.35 over the previous month. ICE Brent ended up $4.31 at $47.65/b, while Nymex WTI rose $5.67 to $46.80/b. The ICE Brent-Nymex WTI spread narrowed significantly to 85ยข/b in May from
$2.21/b the month before.
World Economy
World economic growth is forecast at 3.1% for this year, after estimated growth of 2.9% the year before, both unchanged from the previous month. OECD growth in 2016 remains at 1.9%, slightly below the 2.0% seen in 2015.
The forecast for the major emerging economies remains unchanged. China and India continue to expand this year at a considerable level of 6.5% and 7.5%, respectively. Brazil and Russia, however, are forecast to remain in recession this year, contracting by 3.4% and 1.1%, respectively.
Source: OPEC
'Godfather' attacks smart beta again
June 12, 2016--Rob Arnott, pioneer of the strategy, says the underlying ideas behind many are 'nonsense'
Source: FT.com
Bats Continues ETF Growth, Adding 13 Listings in May
June 10, 2016--Bats Global Markets, Inc. (Bats: BATS), a leading global operator of exchanges and services for financial markets, today reported May data and highlights, including material expansions to its U.S. listing business.
Source: Bats Global Markets
ETFGI reports Assets invested in ETFs/ETPs listed globally reached a new record high of 3.143 trillion US dollars at the end of May 2016
June 9, 2016--ETFGI the leading independent research and consultancy firm on trends in the global ETF/ETP ecosystem, today reported assets invested in ETFs/ETPs listed globally reached a new record high US$3.143 trillion at the end of May 2016, according to preliminary data from ETFGI's May 2016 global ETF and ETP industry insights report.
Record levels of assets invested in ETFs/ETPs were also reached at the end of May for ETFs/ETPs listed in the United States at US$2.229 trillion, and in Japan which reached US$147 billion.
Source: ETFGI
Traders oust iShares from ETF top spot
June 9, 2016--After topping the flow charts every year since 2012, the world's biggest ETF manager has been forced to settle for second place so far in 2016.
Source: Financial News
OECD Business and Finance Outlook 2016
June 9, 2016--It is seven years since the global crisis and despite easy monetary policy, financial regulatory reform, and G20 resolutions favouring structural measures, the world economy is not making a lot of progress.
Indeed, the responses to the crisis seem mainly to have stopped the banks from failing and then pushed the many faces of the crisis around between regions-currently taking the form of excess capacity in emerging markets.
Source: OECD
China Turns To Islamic Finance To Drive Economic Initiative
June 9, 2016--In 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping unveiled the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road initiative now known as One Belt One Road, (OBOR) in order to actively develop connectivity and economic cooperation with countries mainly between China and Eurasia.
The initiative aims to build a community of shared interests, destiny and responsibility with mutual political trust, economic integration and cultural inclusiveness.
Source: Zawya.com
World Gold Council-Working towards a common accounting framework for gold
June 8, 2016--This paper reviews the different approaches to gold accounting demonstrated by central banks and discusses the elements of a common approach for central banks.
Research for this paper included a review of the financial statements of 98 central banks and two international financial institutions that hold gold; BIS and IMF.
view the Working towards a common accounting framework for gold paper
Source: World Gold Council
Cost of Violence Infographic
June 8, 2016--How much does violence cost the world each year? $13.6 trillion in 2015.
Source: visionofhumanity.org
The 2016 Global Peace Index Report
June 8, 2016--The Global Peace Index Records a Historically Less Peaceful and More Unequal World
The 2016 GPI report provides a comprehensive update on the state of peace. It shows that amidst the global deterioration the world continues to spend enormous resources on creating and containing violence but very little on peace.
The key to reversing the decline in peace is through building Positive Peace-a holistic framework of the key attitudes, institutions and structures which build peace in the long term.
The UN's Sustainable Development Goal 16, which focuses on peace, justice and strong institutions is critical to focusing the international community on the goal of attaining a more peaceful world.
view the The Global Peace Index 2016 Report
view the 2016 Global Peace Index
Source: www.visionofhumanity.org