Investing

Disrupted supply chains, volatile market conditions, and lagging investments have made investing in the water theme challenging. In recent years, European investors have withdrawn billions from water funds.

As active ETFs grow beyond niche status, some of the last traditionally active managers, including Columbia Threadneedle and M&G, are entering the European market with strategies that blend research conviction and daily oversight.

Since President Trump began his second term, the US government has increasingly taken stakes in companies considered strategically important for national security. Investors are worried about what this means for market efficiency, but in the short term they are profiting from rising stock prices.

“Automation must not strip the soul out of asset management: artificial intelligence should support compliance, not replace human expertise,” said Luke Varley, general counsel at Park Square Capital LLP, during last week’s Alfi conference Synergies for Asset Management in London.

The world’s number one US growth manager, according to Citywire’s manager rankings, says fundamentals still rule, even as bubble talk grows louder. He’d rather put his trust in God.

Not only this year are bonds from emerging markets an attractive alternative to the volatile debt of developed economies. European asset managers are seeing a structural shift in the financial policies of these countries. Amundi has even recently merged its emerging markets and developed markets teams.

After years of underperformance, investors are once again paying attention to commodities. They are using gold to hedge against higher inflation but also recognize the growth potential tied to the energy transition.

Pimco chief executive Emmanuel Roman warned that the asset-management industry’s obsession with attracting cash risks diluting performance and investor trust.

In October, the US failed to deliver one of its most closely watched economic reports: the monthly jobs data. The blackout has deepened doubts over whether the world’s largest economy can still produce reliable data, even once the releases resume.

Assets in European thematic ETFs have climbed to a record 52 billion euro, the highest level since the post-Covid “everything bubble.” While a record number of thematic funds closed in 2024, the category is making a comeback this year, led by the themes of defense and AI.