Change diets, not the planet

In the first of a new monthly series, we take a visual approach to illustrate topical data themes in economies, markets and beyond. This month we look at the correlation between stock market performance and vaccinations, the illiquidity premium in real assets, and whether there are still more men called Dave running funds than female managers.

Deciding when to tighten the purse strings and hike taxes is complex at any time, even more so when the economic fallout from COVID-19 remains unclear. Getting deficits under control will need to happen eventually, but it would be a brave government to pursue that goal in the short term.

Massive intervention by central banks and governments in recent years has left investors struggling to value financial assets.

China’s economic rise threatens US supremacy and the global economic and financial order built up since 1945.

More countries are contemplating their visions for a lower carbon world. Norway has excluded fossil fuels entirely for heating buildings, while others are taking a more nuanced approach. So, what are the options for those with environment at the heart of their agenda?

The inexorable rise in asset prices caused by the seemingly never-ending era of monetary easing is calling into question long-held investment beliefs, as members of our multi-asset & macro and equities teams explain.

Big challenges bring us the opportunity to think differently. Our investment teams reveal what they have learnt from COVID-19, and how they are preparing to face whatever ‘normal’ emerges in a post-pandemic world.

In a two-part feature, we look at what asset managers need to focus their engagement efforts on to make a difference on anti-black racism, and why the industry needs to get its own house in order.

Globalisation’s image problem may have been further tarnished by the pandemic, but can political leaders use the crisis to reform it for the better and resist the urge to abandon it altogether?

Global politics are in flux as policymakers scramble to manage the pandemic and revive economies. Can Europe come together and carve a place for itself on the international stage, or will it end up a passive player buffeted by greater forces?

As the world starts to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, the US’s position as global hegemon will be under mortal threat from a resurgent China that looks to have escaped the virus relatively unscathed.

The UK is the latest country to accelerate plans to develop hydrogen as part of its push to reach net zero. But it is not the first time hydrogen has attracted attention – it has been trumpeted by the scientific community as a possible wonder fuel for around a century. So, what’s changed now?