Investment Officer Luxembourg

Europe’s economy is heading for recession. The war in Ukraine, an energy crisis, rising inflation and rising interest rates are increasingly starting to hamper economic growth. With cyclical sectors in particular are expected to be affected, as they are the most sensitive to the state of the economy. However, the impact of an economic slowdown can be different for each sector. In any case, the price performance of the various sectors this year shows no in any case, no unambiguous picture and there is also a large dispersion in returns.

Apex Group in January will bring all its different management company sub-brands under a single brand. Now that the major takeovers of Sanne and Maitland are closed, country head Pierre Weimerskirch told Investment Officer more acquisitions can be expected, although not directly in Luxembourg. “There are some markets where we are still not at the level where we want to be.”

Commodities will be the best-performing asset class next year, achieving returns of more than 40 per cent, analysts at Goldman Sachs said in their recently published Commodity Outlook for 2023, ‘An underinvested supercycle’. The first three months will be “bumpy”, but then scarcity will ensure rising prices. 

A fortnight ago, Dutch private bank InsingerGilissen sold a pack of high yield bonds to increase its holdings in investment grade bonds. The bank does not rule out that it will do so again in early 2023. “If you expect risks, there will be a storm in the high yield segment as well,” chief investment officer Gerwin Wijnia told InvestmentOfficer.nl.

The first of January marks a significant milestone in the European Union’s efforts to promote sustainable and responsible investing. The EU introduces the level 2 Regulatory Technical Standards for the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, known as SFDR. This requires sustainable investment funds to make a bigger effort to explain how they seek to achieve a positive impact.

Engaging with investors on sustainable investing requires answering two questions: How do sustainability factors impact returns? How do investment choices impact the world? “Good Practices in ESG Reporting” is the topic of this Benelux webinar hosted by Morningstar and Investment Officer.

Law firm Clifford Chance has appointed Simone Schmitt as counsel in its corporate practice in Luxembourg.  Schmitt joins the firm from  Linklaters, where she had been for more than seven years.

Schmitt is a qualified lawyer in Luxembourg and has extensive experience in advising multinational clients on acquisitions, restructurings and joint ventures. She is an expert in managing transactions for private equity players in Europe and the United States, the firm said.