Tech, trees and tailwinds

In our regular update on real assets we assess real estate positioning in the late stages of the cycle, check interest in real assets in a period of Brexit-related uncertainty and illustrate the spreads achievable across private assets of varying credit quality.

New technologies, including electric and autonomous vehicles, big data, blockchain and artificial intelligence, will have significant consequences for the transport sector and beyond.

The cyclicality of real estate creates opportunities for well-informed investors. However, determining where a market is in the cycle can be difficult, so we have developed a tool that can help investors overcome this challenge.

Cities will face severe challenges over the coming decades, including digital disruption, population management and climate change. How they adapt to these pressures will determine the winning – and losing – cities of the future.

As we approach ‘peak oil’, what does this mean for the fossil fuel industry and alternative sources of energy?

In this Q&A, architect and MIT lecturer Carlo Ratti discusses the forces that are shaping the future of cities, from new urban technologies to the impact of climate change.

The logistics industry is in a state of flux due to rapidly-developing technologies and the increasing demands of consumers. A strategy which focuses on the demand and supply fundamentals of local markets is required to cut through this uncertainty.

In our latest real assets update, we check recent trends in UK property and infrastructure equity in a period of Brexit-related uncertainty.

With the grocery market undergoing significant changes, the successful supermarkets of the future are likely to be smaller and focussed on providing a rich shopping experience, writes Jonathan Bayfield.

In this article Mark Versey, CIO Real Assets, explains why he combined the real estate and alternative income divisions at Aviva Investors to create a real assets business.

Investors will favour real asset classes offering growth potential in an environment of increasing bond yields, argues real asset analyst Vivienne Bolla.

Pension schemes will confront a different set of challenges as they mature, not least around cashflows. How these problems are managed now will affect the financial health of the schemes far into the future.