Economic and market insight
Review of the week
Review of the week: Independence Day lockdown
People are extremely adaptable as prolonged lockdowns have shown. Yet chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth ponders how changes to the way we live will shake out in the coming months and years.
6 mins
Review of the week: Money showers
After the pandemic response, outstanding UK government debt is now as big as the whole economy. But that’s not necessarily an alarm bell, says chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth, as long as it’s spent on the right things.
6 mins
Review of the week: KA-boom
Stock markets are soaring higher as the developed world starts to relax lockdowns. Yet the virus is spreading rapidly in the emerging world, notes chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth, and there’s still a chance of a second wave in the West.
6 mins
Review of the week: Injustice burns
America seems chaotic from the top down. Yet, if you look hard at the bottom – main street – you can get a better idea of how the US is faring, argues chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth.
6 mins
Review of the week: A matter of perception
While we’re all theorising about whether looking at a castle is the best form of optometry, really important issues are going unaddressed. Chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth stays focused on what matters.
7 mins
Review of the week: The most important resource
7 mins
Review of the week: Influencing behaviour
The government has unveiled its lockdown exit plan to mixed reception. Our chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth thinks attention is best paid elsewhere.
7 mins
Victory is coming
This Friday we remember the victory of an older generation. They won peace and reshaped the world, becoming a timeless example for humanity, argues our chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth.
7 mins
Review of the week: Too much oil
Crazy phenomena like negative oil prices will keep popping up over the coming months, warns our chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth. Investors will ignore most of it, but when they do panic, stocks could return to their March lows.
7 mins
Review of the week: Peak sadness
Stocks have shot higher even as people are laid off in droves and the virus continues to spread. Investors aren’t cheering misery, our chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth explains, they are trying to predict the future.
6 mins
Review of the week: The Bramble Bush
With the virus outbreak still in full swing, some Western nations are already mulling a relaxation of lockdown. In the US, that has led to a showdown between the layers of government. These are tough decisions to make, notes our chief investment officer Julian Chillingworth.
6 mins
The Naked Coin
The implosion of one the largest crypto exchanges will be a massive shock to many holders of digital assets. Head of multi-asset investments David Coombs remembers a reality check of his own from 10 years ago.
5 mins
Can ‘quality’ stocks deliver recession resilience at a reasonable price?
Slowing economic growth, high inflation and rising interest rates are weighing heavily on global equity markets. Favouring different equity ‘styles’ is one way to try to protect portfolios. Head of equities Sanjiv Tumkur explains that stocks with strong ‘quality’ characteristics tend to outperform in economic slowdowns. So what defines a ‘quality’ company?
3 mins
Mopping up the greenwash
Working the doom-scrolling nightshift sends Rahab Paracha deep into the metaphorical forest on the problem of ‘greenwashing’. Our sustainable multi-asset investment specialist looks at the regulator’s proposed new rules to stamp the practice out among fund managers.
5 mins
The Abominable Bond Men
The UK government has shattered against a new generation of bond vigilantes. Halloween came early this year, notes multi-asset fund manager Will McIntosh-Whyte.
4 mins
Schrödinger's assets
Property funds are stinging investors once again because of a run of redemptions. Senior multi-asset investment specialist Craig Brown notes their net asset values are in a happy superposition right up till the point they get measured.
5 mins
Being green is in fashion
Fashion companies are falling over themselves to show they are improving their questionable sustainability credentials. Yet some of their marketing has got ahead of realities of the shop floor, notes sustainable multi-asset investment specialist Rahab Paracha.
5 mins
How to lose friends and alienate people
The UK government has given a textbook example of how not to deliver a message. Our multi-asset portfolios fund manager David Coombs picks over the wreckage and finds coherence, but poor execution.
5 mins
How many possible futures are you prepared for?
The world has fundamentally changed, argues Rathbone Income Fund co-manager Carl Stick. Higher interest rates and higher inflation mean that cash earned today rather than tomorrow has become much more valuable.
4 mins
Treat yourself
London has been extremely busy in a sun-drenched summer, yet a difficult winter looms. Sustainable multi-asset investment specialist Rahab Paracha asks whether luxury brands are a counterintuitive way to invest defensively in a recession.
4 mins
Reasons to be cheerful
With a tough winter approaching, our head of multi-asset investments David Coombs has dusted off the barbell. All the exercise has made him chirpier than usual.
4 mins
Tomorrow Never Knows
After a hard day’s night investing clients’ cash, our head of multi-asset investments David Coombs has neglected his own savings. Yet given the Bank of England’s tough stance, are there now savings rates worth shouting about?
3 mins
My Generation (Z)
If you have to ask what’s going on, you’re too old. Lucky for you, our sustainable multi-asset investment specialist Rahab Paracha is (almost) young enough to get down with the kids.
5 mins