As the likelihood of a new Italian coalition government continues to solidify, institutional investors are watching the country’s extremely volatile bond markets. The hard-left Five Star Movement and centre-left Democratic Party have joined forces to avoid snap elections, which would have strongly reinforced the power of Matteo Salvini, the leader of Italy’s far-right League party, says Stephane Dutu, director […]
South Africa’s economy has been sluggish in recent years, but upcoming changes could provide hope for institutional investors considering opportunities in the country. Its economy has been in a low-to-modest growth mode, said Falilou Fall, senior economist at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, during the Canadian Investment Review’s podcast “Pension Passport.” He highlighted […]
Looking at South Korea today, it’s hard to believe the country was one of the world’s poorest just a few decades ago. But since the 1960s, its economy has been growing quickly. “In fact, from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, it had one of the highest growth rates in the world, and at times in […]
On Aug. 13, after Argentina’s primary elections took a different direction than markets expected, the country’s stocks suffered one of the most dramatic crashes in global history. “It was a super unusual reaction,” says Jim Barrineau, head of emerging market debt at Schroders Investment Management Ltd. He notes the market crash was especially bizarre because […]
As active attempts to dismantle globalization are disrupting businesses already using tools to push growth and profitability forward, institutional investors need to remain vigilant after a decade of steady gains. Regardless of the asset class, cash flows over the last decade have been above average and even wildly abundant in some cases, says Robert Almeida, […]
As institutional investors continue to wait for Brexit, will anything change as Boris Johnson becomes prime minister? Mere months ago, the consensus was Britain would most likely manage some kind of deal to accompany Brexit, but Johnson’s harder stance on Europe changes the rules of engagement. “Already, you’re seeing the financial impact,” says Talbot Babineau, […]
Global protectionism appears to be here for the long game. While investors may not want to start playing defence just yet, it might be time to start practicing again. In it’s mid-year outlook, the BlackRock Investment Institute noted risk reduction, including elevating the levels of cash in a portfolio, would be a prudent measure given the […]
If the Canada-United States-Mexico trade agreement goes through it could have a significant impact on the cost of private drug plans. Currently on hold until members of Parliament return to Ottawa after the summer break, the agreement as written would extend the data protection term for biologic drugs to 10 years from the current eight. If […]
With political risk a constant in emerging markets, a quiet year for institutional investors playing in the space doesn’t really exist. “The noise can be triggered by geopolitical shifts, by social tensions or elections,” said Graham Stock emerging market senior sovereign strategist at BlueBay Asset Management, a division of RBC Global Asset Management, during a webinar on […]
With Brexit looming, European investor confidence dipped while North American confidence rose slightly in March compared to February, according to State Street Corp.’s latest global investor confidence survey. Globally, investor confidence rose 0.4 points to 71.3 in March. Confidence in North America rose to 68.3 from 66.2, while it declined in Europe by 7.8 points to […]