Tag Archives: Featured

Stock Markets EM FX ended last week on a firm note, but weakness resumed Monday. Higher than expected Turkish inflation hurt the lira, which in turn dragged down BRL, ARS, ZAR, and RUB. We expect EM to remain under pressure this week when the US returns from holiday Tuesday.  Stock Markets Emerging Markets, August 29 - Click to enlarge Korea Korea reports August CPI Tuesday, which is expected to rise 1.4% y/y...

This week, we are back to our ongoing series on capital destruction. Let’s consider the simple transaction of issuing a bond. Party X sells a bond to Party Y. We will first offer something entirely uncontroversial. If the interest rate rises after Y buys the bond, then Y takes a loss. Or if the interest rate falls, then Y makes a capital gain. This is simply saying that the bond price moves inverse to the interest...

Neuchâtel, 3 September 2018 (FSO) – Turnover in the retail sector rose by 0.3% in nominal terms in July 2018 compared with the previous year. Seasonally adjusted, nominal turnover fell by 0.9% compared with the previous month. These are provisional findings from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO). Real turnover in the retail sector also adjusted for sales days and holidays fell by 0.3% in July 2018 compared with the...

„Die Devisenreserve der SNB sind keine Zeitbombe, die uns einmal um die Ohren fliegt, sondern eine Art Volksvermögen“. Das behauptet die SNB-freundliche NZZ am Sonntag. Das Blatt bedient ein SNB-Klischee nach dem anderen und hat den Ernst der Lage unserer Schweizerischen Nationalbank (SNB) offensichtlich nicht begriffen. - Click to enlarge Die SNB habe „Geld aus dem Nichts geschaffen“ – einen „gigantischen...

The cantonal banks are 24 Swiss government-owned commercial banks. (Keystone) Swiss finance minister Ueli Maurer says state-guaranteed cantonal banks are an obstacle in ongoing negotiations with the European Union. “This point still needs to be clarified before a framework agreement can be accepted,” the minister is quoted as saying in an interview published on Saturday. The European Union does not permit the kind of...

The first week of a new month features the US jobs data. It is the most important economic report of a new month. It sets the broad tone for much of the economic data over the next several weeks, including consumption, industrial production, and construction spending. However, there are two reasons why it may not pack the punch it has in the past. First, the bar to dissuade the market against a 25 bp rate hike on...

Summary China stepped up efforts to attract more foreign inflows to the onshore bond market. Russia has softened its unpopular pension reform proposal. The African National Congress withdrew an existing land expropriation bill. Moody’s downgraded twenty Turkish financial institutions. Turkey central bank Deputy Governor Erkan Kilimci has reportedly resigned. Moody’s moved the outlook on Egypt’s B3 rating from stable to...

In recent weeks, global financial markets have been increasingly spooked by an intensifying crisis in emerging market currencies including those of Turkey and Argentina. Add to this the ongoing currency crisis in Venezuela and the currency problems of Iran. While all of these countries have economy specific reasons that explain at least some of their currency weakness, there are some common themes such as a stronger US...

When multinationals google “the best Swiss canton” in future, the results may show markedly different results. (Keystone) Proposed changes to Switzerland’s tax rules could have a dramatic effect on which cantons remain attractive locations for multinational companies in future. As a result, factors such as the cost of premises or concentration of high tech facilities, will play a greater role, according to UBS bank....

End of the runway: financial problems have forced SkyWork to wind down. (© KEYSTONE / PETER KLAUNZER) The last SkyWork flight landed in Bern Airport on Wednesday night, as ongoing financial difficulties forced the company to declare itself bankrupt. Some 11,000 passengers are affected. The company, founded in 1983, cited the failure of negotiations with a potential partner to pull the company from recurring funding...