Peter Fitzgerald

Beijing’s ideological battle to stamp out COVID-19 appears increasingly misguided as the rest of the world learns to live with the virus. But the impact of China’s approach will be felt far beyond its borders.

In this month’s instalment of our visual series on topical themes, we look at whether the global economy is heading towards stagflation.

Government bonds have not acted as safe haven assets recently. Sunil Krishnan explores whether this spells the end of the traditional 60/40 allocation in multi-asset portfolios.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to ESG receiving widespread flak. While much of the criticism is unjustified, the episode underlines how many issues related to ESG are complex and involve trade-offs. Investment approaches may need fine tuning, especially if the geopolitical landscape continues to change so rapidly.

With high levels of inflation persisting around the world, central banks must tighten policy without hurting consumer demand and economic growth. This will be more difficult for some central banks than others, says Sunil Krishnan.

In this month’s instalment of our visual series on topical themes, we look at how various asset classes are holding up in a turbulent year for financial markets.

Surging inflation is leading to fears the world economy could be heading towards recession. While there are diverging views on whether we are entering a new era of stagflation, the medium-term growth-inflation trade off looks set to worsen with big implication for asset prices, argue Michael Grady and Peter Fitzgerald.

In this month’s instalment of our visual series on topical themes, we look at the far-reaching human and economic consequences of the Ukraine-Russian war.

The world has become more volatile and unpredictable with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But while Vladimir Putin may have dealt globalisation another blow, China and the West will want to prevent the world splitting into two competing blocs.

From Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to surging inflation, risk has well and truly returned to markets in 2022. Sunil Krishnan offers useful insights for investors unaccustomed to such challenging times.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, following hot on the heels of the pandemic, could hasten the transition to a new, more volatile economic environment. That would have major ramifications for financial markets and investors, argues Michael Grady.

Emerging market assets have underperformed developed market peers over the past decade. While this has led to valuation gaps, selectivity will be critical, argues David Nowakowski.

After decades of low returns on research and development (R&D), the healthcare sector is producing a slew of innovations, from drugs to diagnostics. But with many coming from new entrants, will big pharmaceutical companies manage to keep up with the times?

As central banks continue to stretch what ‘transitory’ inflation means, Sunil Krishnan explores how price pressures are changing and the implications for multi-asset portfolios.

Trend rates of economic growth, which have been on the decline for decades in the world’s leading economies, look set to fall further. That will have big implications for governments, companies, households and investors, argues Stewart Robertson.

Diversification is a core tenet of multi-asset investing. Sunil Krishnan explores thematic ideas that may help diversify portfolios in the current market environment.