Macroeconomic Analysis

US crude oil production has not slowed down in 2016 as expected, so prices started to fall more than expected in 2016. The Brent-WTI spread widened in February.

Central banks met in Basel during the Bank of International Settlement’s annual meeting. They discussed how to control the impact of Brexit on the global economy.

Industrials, utilities, and telecommunications have much higher leverage, as these sectors have massive capital needs.

Malaysia’s trade surplus jumped to 9.9 billion Malaysian ringgit (MYR) (about $2.3 billion as of August 11, 2017) in June 2017—an 80% rise YoY.

We’re now into December. Based on last week’s closing prices, the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index has risen 20.2% in the year.

Canadian Pacific’s intermodal volumes Although Canadian Pacific’s (CP) intermodal volumes have been marching forward for the past few weeks, in the week ended January 28, 2017, CP reported a fall of 7.5% in overall intermodal traffic. Intermodal data indicates that the fall was due to a drop in its international intermodal business, where volumes fell […]

Euro rallies to a 23-month peak Last week, the euro (FXE) closed at 1.17, appreciating by 1.7% against the US dollar (UUP). The currency has appreciated by more than 10% against the US dollar this year, making it one of the strongest developed market currencies. Improving economic conditions and a stable political climate turned the […]

Strong investor interest in emerging market debt (EMLC) (HYEM) has continued despite adverse political and economic issues in some countries.

November West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures contracts fell 0.8% and settled at $49.94 per barrel on October 17, 2016.

The UK’s 2Q17 economic growth surprised the market with a rise of 0.3% as compared to a 0.2% rise in the first quarter of 2017.

Inflation represents a rise in the general price level in a country or region. The higher the inflation, the lower the quantum of a particular good that can be purchased.

The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (or GST) is expected to boost India’s medium-term economic growth above 8%, according to government data.

In the current global scenario, the possibility of further devaluation of the Chinese yuan is a major concern for global equity markets. The Chinese PMI data released on January 31, 2016, indicated a slowdown in the Chinese economy.

Canadian Pacific’s intermodal volumes Although Canadian Pacific’s (CP) intermodal volumes have been marching forward for the past few quarters, for the week ended January 14, 2017, CP reported a fall of 4.5% in overall intermodal traffic. The intermodal data indicates that the fall was led by a drop in its international intermodal business, where volumes […]

Looking at the performance of the major commodity-driven currencies on July 25, the Nigerian naira was the biggest casualty.

In a currency war, the “beggar-thy-neighbor” strategy is about increasing the demand for a nation’s exports at the expense of other countries’ export share.

In its March Short-Term Energy Outlook report, the EIA forecast that the US natural gas supply-demand balance could average around 2.9 Bcf per day in 2016.

The main drivers of China’s (FXI) (GXC) stock market are domestic investors who make the market volatile.

Oil and gas producers’ earnings such as Swift Energy, ConocoPhillips, and Continental Resources will depend on crude oil and natural gas prices.

If major Eurozone economic indicators improve in the coming months, we could expect those economies to regain some strength.

Europe-tracking ETFs gained significantly from February 19 to February 24, when the bailout extension to Greece was approved.

With increasing competition from L’Oréal, Shiseido, and Coty, Estée Lauder continues to expand its position in Western Europe and emerging markets.

Aluminum inventories with London Metal Exchange (or LME) registered warehouses have declined this year. Aluminum inventories have been on a decline for almost two years.

Stock selection, a cornerstone of the moat investment philosophy, has driven much of the recent success of the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus Index.

Copper prices stabilized on Monday, July 4, amid expectations of stimulus from central banks.

Economic activity in Brazil (EWZ) has been slow as it tries to emerge from its deep recession in 2016. But consumer and business confidence is improving.

China matters in the long run—and not just for investors in the country’s equity markets. Slack in the Chinese economy could affect the global economy (FAM) in a big way.

Rising correlation across asset classes is a sticky problem that investors face while investing in today’s markets.

The market leader in the fixed annuity industry is Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America with 13% market share, followed by New York Life with 8%.

Mining companies like First Majestic Silver (AG), Silver Wheaton (SLW), Pan American Silver (PASS), Coeur Mining (CDE), and Hecla Mining (HL) are primarily into silver exploration.

Crude oil (BNO) (PXI) (USL) (USO) (UCO) prices were up ~4% between December 7, 2016, and December 19, 2016.

Russia’s inflation rate has been trending upwards since the beginning of 2014 alongside the ruble’s decline. The ruble has declined by almost 40%.

November WTI (West Texas Intermediate) crude oil futures contracts rose 0.32% to $50.97 per barrel in electronic trade at 5:10 AM EST on October 12, 2016.

In this series, we’ll discuss recent copper industry indicators. We’ll see how copper prices have done in 2015. We’ll also discuss copper supply trends and demand.

The decrease in the UK and European carloads in October was primarily due to the fall in coal and coke, mineral and stone, and intermodal carloads.

Strong non-farm employment required to maintain any rate hike hopes Non-farm employment changes are one of the most important indicators the US Fed considers in deciding on monetary policy. May non-farm employment changes hit a multi-year low, which took away all probabilities of a June hike. Check out the following article for further detail on May’s […]

At the start of 2017, elections in many European countries brought some political uncertainty to the European markets.

With manufacturing and services both recording growth in October, France’s composite output flash index rose to 52.3 in October compared to 51.9 in September.

Food inflation can squeeze a restaurant’s operating margins, but a restaurant can adjust the menu pricing and pass the cost on to customers.

The Japan Services PMI (EWJ) (DXJ) stood at 53.3 in June 2017 compared to 53.0 in May 2017. It met the market expectation of 53.2.