The principle target of Saudi Arabia’s high oil output policy, which has led to a global oversupply of oil, has been the US shale industry. The resultant fall in oil prices has seen the number of shale rigs halved this…
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Continued strong economic data from the US and the US interest rate rise suggests that the prospects for the US$ are very good. The backdrop of a strong US$ has historically been a challenging one for gold. Without the fear…
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Latin America was a poor performer in Q3. The combination of weak Chinese data and inaction over US interest rates unsettled markets. Falling GDP provided a negative backdrop for Latin America, but the credit downgrade of Brazil to BBB+ was…
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Since 2008, Vietnamese productivity has improved more rapidly than for any of its other Asian neighbours. Over this period modern factories and abundant cheap labour has led to dramatic productivity gains. With the wage rate a quarter of that of…
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India’s economy is moving in the right direction and Indian equities should remain relatively resilient compared to other regional economies. This is particularly true as emerging markets come under pressure from the US interest rate rise. India is also less…
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Recently, the Japanese economy has struggled due to weaker industrial production and a fall in exports to both the US and China. The economy officially fell back into recession after it shrank by 0.8% in Q3. However, it is thought…
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In 2010, Ireland almost went bust after the state was forced to prop up a bankrupt banking sector. Now two years after exiting an IMF and EU bailout package, it has become the Eurozone’s star performer. Along with a rejuvenated…
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Like all other markets, Europe was impacted by the China crisis in August and September particularly as Germany is a major exporter to China. German car manufacturer Volkswagen was a major distraction to markets as it has been involved in…
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Investment Bank UBS has recently confirmed that the ratio of property prices to wages and property prices to rent has reached an all-time high and that London property has become more de-coupled from household earnings than anywhere else in the…
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