Market Commentary and Investment Insights
Insights for a holistic approach to wealth management including investment strategy and market commentary, thinking about your future and topical insights to help you navigate some of life’s challenges.
Q2 2022 Investor Newsletter
Battery and Lithium TechnologyLithium Supply Crunch To meet projected EV production battery capacity will have to increase output from 455 GWh to 2,450 GWh by 2029. Tesla plan to increase lithium-ion production with its massive Terafactory which would produce 1TWh annually. There is currently a slight oversupply of lithium and therefore miners...
Five Months into the Year
Every year is different from what you expect, and that is particularly true in financial markets. It is easier to say over the first five months of 2022 which investment areas have lost you money, especially if you also factor in the enhanced inflationary backdrop. There will always be someelement of volatility in financial market investment, but...
Challenges and Opportunities in May
Whilst the spring weather continues to warm, plenty of financial sector issues continue to worry global investors across both equity and bond markets. Meanwhile heightened inflation levels continued to impact bank account balances, and the war in Ukraine has led to many tragedies along with heightened geopolitical, commodity and supply concerns. ...
Citizen of the World
Events in Eastern Europe over the last week have correctly dominated TV, radio, newspaper and online news. It also meant that almost all equity or bond investors made losses during February, many for the second consecutive month unless, like the U.K. equity market - there was a high proportional exposure to commodity sector shares. The world is...
Welcome to February!
There is a famous quote by the legendary Belgian professional cyclist Eddy Merckx that he "raced from 1 February to 31 October every year, competed for everything ". Unfortunately for financial markets there is never a defined season, and, whilst 2021 ended positively, January 2022 will go down into the history books as being a little bit more...
In the Month Before Christmas
The key for writing any monthly report is not to do it too early, especially during the end of November which saw the word Omicron become much better known than just by followers of the Greek alphabet. Whilst progress against COVID-19 challenges have helped almost all developedmarket stock markets generate attractive returns year-to-date, many...
Remember, Remember the Importance of November
October was generally a positive month for global equity markets, helping to push many developed market indices to new 2021 highs. Whilst COVID-19 challenges remained material and new concerns about gas prices, petrol availability and general delivery concerns became more apparent during the month, so far the average third-quarter corporate...
The End of Summer, but not the Year
Hopefully you enjoyed a good summer break. August was another positive month for many financial markets, with one pan-European (including the U.K.) index achieving a seventh consecutive advance. Whilst 2021 started with material concerns about COVID-19 challenges, limited vaccination numbers and widespread lockdowns, progress has been made on all...
Summer Surprises
For most investors focused on the U.K., Europe and/or the United States, July was far from an unattractive month in all but a minority of equity sectors. This pleasingly allowed a further building of year-to-date returns. Meanwhile bond market yields generally tightened further. Although fixed income markets remain on average dull performers in...
The Green Life
How to navigate the world of sustainability – and have some fun along the way Green life, green home, sustainable funds, buying local, the “buy nothing” movement, plastic-free living, eco-fashion, electric vehicles. We’ve all seen the headlines, but it can be a bit overwhelming. What exactly does “green” mean? And how do we incorporate it in our...