Investing

Pension funds are increasingly shifting their focus from merely accumulating ESG-labelled assets to emphasising the quality and impact of these investments, a survey has concluded.

Macron’s election gamble points to Eurozone financial instability

Transcript of the interview with Esma Chair Verena Ross.

The SEC’s push for transparency in private markets was dealt a severe blow by a U.S. court ruling last week.

The stock markets have had a fantastic rally. And while I am all for rising prices, it has also been a bit boring at times. But with the latest set of macro figures, things are getting a bit more exciting again, with a likely good outcome as a result.

I have regularly been called a “permabear” over the past 12 months, if not longer. Because even though the US economy in particular was steaming ahead, the chances of a recession have never been zero, in my opinion. 

Caution is required when selecting stocks of European listed companies as the European Union works on a policy to promote strategic autonomy in response to a rapidly changing geopolitical environment. Part 2 in our special series on geopolitics and investing.

The European Central Bank’s (ECB) decision to cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2019 underscores a strategic but cautious approach to managing persistent inflation in the Eurozone. “The ECB did not pre-commit to a specific path for further interest rate cuts,” Ulrike Kastens, Europe economist at Europe’s third-biggest asset manager DWS, told investors.

While economic growth and growth expectations for the US are leveling off slightly, the European economy appears to be strengthening. A unique moment lies ahead: the European Central Bank (ECB) may pre-empt the Federal Reserve (Fed) with rate cuts.

US house prices have climbed over 6% in the past year, pushing the value of homes nearly 3% above their peak from June 2022. This increase came despite the Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes aimed at curbing rampant inflation. Clearly, the traditional models for predicting house prices are no longer reliable.

In an unstable investment environment with wars and crises looming worldwide, contradictory inflation data as well as insecurity regarding interest rate development, alternative investments have evolved into a diversifying and stabilising element of institutional portfolios – and will continue to do so.