The Strategist

China's Ministry of Commerce denied trade negotiations with the US, despite recent indications from US representatives of potential easing in tensions, which was a key driver on Wall Street earlier in the week. However, stocks in the Asian-Pacific region mostly rose at the end of the week...

Market sentiment improved with solid gains on Wall Street after US Treasury Secretary sees potential for a trade deal with China and US President Donald Trump retracted his remarks about dismissing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Trump stated he had "no intention" of firing Powell. Asian...

Equity indices in New York jumped on Tuesday after the previous session saw significant drops in major indices following President Trump's call for preemptive interest rate cuts and his criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Meanwhile, Trump reassured markets that he has no intention to fire...

On the New York stock exchange stock indices slumped on Monday in response to US President Trump’s renewed criticism of Fed Chair Powell, reigniting the debate about the Fed's independence. Meanwhile, China’s central bank held lending rates unchanged on Monday, following the ECB’s latest...

The head of the US central bank, Jerome Powell, warned that US tariffs could prolong inflation. On Wall Street, equity indices were under pressure, driven by a negative sentiment in technology stocks, and despite better-than-expected US retail sales data. In Asian stock markets, however, saw...

Economic growth in the world’s second-largest economy was stronger than anticipated in the first quarter of this year. Stock indices in the Asian-Pacific region traded mostly lower today, led by a drop in Hong Kong, following a downturn on Wall Street on Tuesday. Today, investors awaited more...

Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose on Tuesday following a tech-driven rally on Wall Street. President Trump’s comments on possible temporary tariff relief provided some support, but uncertainty remains over future trade policies. As the corporate earnings season has just kicked off, the New York...

US stocks closed on Friday with some gains, after a volatile week amid the trade war and US consumer confidence marking the fourth consecutive month of decline. Meanwhile, US President Trump exempted smartphones, computers, and other tech products from imposed tariffs on Chinese imports. This...

Investors were relieved by US President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day tariff reprieve on most countries, while the trade war with China further escalated. Yesterday, US tariffs on China were once more increased to 145%. Stock prices on Wall Street again came under selling pressure and...

US stock markets surged on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on some tariffs, leading to a massive rally on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its largest gain since March 2020, while the S&P 500 recorded its biggest one-day increase since 2008.

Central bank chair is a tough job at the best of times. Jerome Powell’s Fed will be remembered as the Fed that left rates at record lows for too long when inflation raged, and subsequently tried to engineer a post-Covid soft landing (quite successfully for most of the normalisation phase). This...

After four of the "Magnificent Seven" - Tesla, Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Apple - presented their quarterly figures last week, it is a good time for an initial assessment of the Q4 2024 reporting season. The preliminary conclusion is that the usual game is working again this quarter: after...

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) recently raised its policy rate for the first time since last summer, resuming a gradual withdrawal of its long-standing monetary stimulus. Although the announcement was accompanied by relatively dovish guidance, we interpret the central bank’s stance as leaning more...

As the world watches the transition of power in the United States and worries about import tariffs, Europe faces its own political changes. Germany heads to the polls on 23 February after its coalition government collapsed in November 2024. This election could be crucial for the country's economy.

Just before Christmas, Google caused a stir when the company unveiled a quantum computer with the new "Willow" chip and demonstrated its superiority over conventional computers. In less than five minutes, it performed a calculation that would take one of the fastest supercomputers ten...

The third quarter earnings season is winding down. Here's a summary of the key takeaways.

In a week, the citizens of the USA will once again decide who will lead the country for the next four years. After President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal as the Democratic candidate in July, Kamala Harris brought new momentum to the race for the White House. With her, a woman could hold...

Polls on the US election continue to show a close race. What consequences would a Trump or Harris victory have for the global economy? Donald Trump's proposed tariff policy aims to strengthen American manufacturing by imposing high import tariffs, particularly on Chinese goods, which could...

In the second half of 2024, key economic trends emerged, shaping the global economic outlook. Disinflation returned on both sides of the Atlantic, the US labour market cooled further with slower job creation and falling wage inflation, and central banks began gradually easing their previously...

French bonds are once again in the spotlight and, for the first time since 2007, are perceived by the market as riskier than Spanish government bonds - despite Spain having a credit rating three notches lower. Simultaneously, the interest rate spread over German bonds has widened from around 50...