Investing

European investors are heading into 2025 with a stark warning: tread carefully. Analysts at Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM) have painted a picture of fragile markets, wavering economies, and thin margins for mistakes.

Swap rates have fallen below European government bond yields for several weeks—a rare shift that is forcing institutional investors to reconsider their interest rate hedging strategies.

Wall Street’s relentless climb offers both a spectacular show and a precarious wager on the world’s most dynamic economy .While sceptics see a bubble ready to burst, optimists argue that growth is justified.

In 2024, valuations in private markets stabilised, and deal volumes picked up somewhat, making this year slightly better for private investors compared to 2023. However, it was far from spectacular, experts told Investment Officer in a retrospective. There remains a mismatch between what sellers expect for their stakes and what buyers are willing to pay—a lingering effect of significantly higher interest rates.

Quintet chief investment officer Daniele Antonucci shared where the private bank has increased and decreased its exposure, plus investment trend shifts among its European clientele.

The year 2025 can only be an exceptional one for equities if geopolitical stability materialises, a prospect that seems unlikely. Large asset managers are once again emphasising diversification to withstand the anticipated volatility.

Investing in wine, art, Lego, luxury handbags, whisky, or violins may seem to share a common thread—they are all driven by passion. But for professional investors, most of these categories fall short of being viable investments, regardless of enthusiasm.

When consensus dominates the market, unexpected surprises often lurk just around the corner. Could the U.S. economy prove weaker than anticipated, while Europe is stronger than expected? Is the threat of inflation a thing of the past, or could it re-emerge with greater intensity?

Heavy rainfall in Spain led to floods in October, causing over 10 billion euro in damages. This is yet another manifestation of the global water crisis, which poses an economic risk to investors. Risk management increasingly involves steering towards sustainability, primarily driven by economic incentives.

Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management has identified European small caps as a standout investment opportunity for 2025, labelling them “deeply undervalued”.