Esma faces uphill battle to emerge as European SEC
In an interview with Investment Officer, Esma chair Verena Ross outlined her vision and the significant challenges ahead as the regulatory body aims to become Europe’s equivalent to the US SEC.
Shipping slows as fuel costs surge, credit strain spreads
Global shipping is slowing as surging fuel costs and mounting risks in the Persian Gulf begin to strain the industry’s finances, forcing companies to cut speeds, seek emergency credit and rethink whether voyages are still viable.
Shake-out in active management not over says M&G
The shake-out in active asset management is far from finished, even as some firms regain momentum in the battle for investor flows, according to Joseph Pinto, chief executive of M&G Investments.
Oil shock puts central banks ahead of difficult rate decisions
The war between the United States, Israel and Iran is casting a shadow over a crucial week for central banks. The US Federal Reserve meets on Wednesday, followed a day later by the European Central Bank.
Ten indicators that show where energy markets crack
Oil prices can swing by tens of dollars within hours, as happened this week amid the war surrounding Iran. Yet the headline oil price is only one signal from the commodity markets. A further ten indicators reveal where pressure in the energy system is truly building.
Juncker warns Europe could lose all seats in the G7
Former European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker warned that Europe risks losing its remaining seats in the Group of Seven as the continent’s economic weight continues to decline in a rapidly shifting global order.
The end of US exceptionalism? Not quite.
For more than a century, it has been “very unwise” for investors to position themselves against the United States, according to professor Paul Marsh of London Business School. The US is likely to remain dominant in terms of market size in the future, but its outperformance may well be coming to an end, he argues.
Today, US equities account for nearly two thirds of global market capitalization, and the world’s largest bond market sits in the same jurisdiction.
Negative Swiss rates back in focus as Franc surges
The sharp rise in the Swiss franc following U.S.–Israeli strikes on Iran has brought an issue back into focus that many believed had been settled: negative interest rates in Switzerland.
Iran’s oil shock puts the Teflon-market thesis to the test
Markets enter the week facing not simply another geopolitical headline, but the prospect of a structural energy repricing. After US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader and Tehran retaliated across the region, investors are bracing for a sharp adjustment in oil and gas markets when trading resumes. The issue is no longer whether risk premia rise, but how disruptive and persistent they may become. “The implications for energy markets and commodities, especially for crude oil and LNG flows, are asymmetric and could trigger severe market reactions very soon,” said Cyril Widdershoven, a senior advisor at Blue Water Strategies.
The Blue Owl saga has become a real-time test of semi-liquid funds
When a US private credit fund closed its exit window to investors, confidence immediately came under pressure. The question is no longer just what went wrong, but whether the mechanisms underpinning these semi-liquid funds are functioning precisely as intended.