Insights

Global growth is becoming increasingly less synchronized, with the Eurozone, Japan and UK showing some moderation in growth, whilst the US remains relatively robust.

The Japanese equity market declined in May, with the TOPIX (w/dividends) dropping 1.67% on-month and the Nikkei 225 (w/dividends) falling 1.18%.

Japan’s corporate governance reforms have progressed slowly but surely and the recent revision of the code will add momentum for the unwinding of cross-shareholdings.

Japanese profit margins continued roughly flat in the 1Q, but at a high plateau due to improved corporate governance over the past years. With global economic growth pushing up the top line, profits should continue to rise significantly in the quarters ahead.

John Vail, Chief Global Strategist for Nikko Asset Management, contributes a regular column to Forbes.com

The much anticipated MSCI A Share inclusion happened on 31 May 2018 and will pave the way for further internationalisation of China’s stock markets.

We believe that long-term oriented institutional investors could find investing into private infrastructure via actively managed funds an attractive investment proposition.

After depreciating for over 18 months, the US dollar has managed to make a comeback, recouping its 5% YTD loss in a matter of weeks. Coupled with 10 year US Treasury (UST) yields hovering around 3%, this has put pressure on Emerging Markets (EM).

Although Italy possesses a useful and not insignificant visible trade surplus, the country is nevertheless continuing to suffer from persistent and we might suggest remarkably large capital account deficits as its domestic savers by and large continue to shun the local asset markets

It has often been the conversations I have had with the people along the way which I have found most helpful when it has come to making investment decisions. This article aims to tell some of their stories and how apparently chance encounters can help generate investment ideas.

The MSCI AC Asia ex Japan (AxJ) Index gained 0.7% in USD terms. Trade jitters receded following China’s commitment at the Bo’ao Forum to further open up the economy to foreign businesses.

US Treasuries (USTs) experienced a sharp sell-off in April as yields rose about 10 to 24 basis points (bps) across the curve. Trade war fears between US and China receded, with Chinese President Xi Jinping's commitment to further open up the economy to foreign businesses.

Recent events have shed some light on a likely China-U.S. agreement fairly soon. Key to such was Trump’s order for ZTE’s sanctions to be lightened so that it can remain in business.

John Vail, Chief Global Strategist for Nikko Asset Management, contributes a regular column to Forbes.com

The Japanese equity market rose in April, with the TOPIX (w/dividends) climbing 3.55% on-month and the Nikkei 225 (w/dividends) rising 4.73%.

In a somewhat unscientific way, we could suggest that risk markets have lost their ability to shrug off bad news and even economic disappointment (despite all of the hoopla, 2017 did not in fact live up to consensus expectations) and instead seem now to view any adverse news as a reason to sell.

The broad-based synchronized growth story continued to soften through March, as consumers pared back purchases in the face of rising prices.

Chinese companies are now a force to be reckoned with on their home turf – a market which used to be dominated by foreign brands. This report looks at how the change has come about and where Chinese brands are headed.

As much as we would prefer to discuss market fundamentals over the trials and tribulations of the current US Administration, it has been largely unavoidable in this first quarter of 2018.

Beijing conference takeaway: It is clear that while China is set for lower economic growth this year, this decrease represents a welcome central government focus on creating a cleaner, more efficient economy.

The market narrative changed abruptly over the quarter, from observing the “melt up” in January with exceptionally low volatility, to a massive spike in volatility in early February with markets remaining on edge ever since.

The MSCI AC Asia ex Japan (AxJ) Index declined 1.5% in USD terms, amid significant volatility across global markets. Concerns about a global trade war and a sell-off in the US tech sector weighed heavily on sentiment.