White papers - all assets – Page 162
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White papers
Shifts & Narratives #12 - ESG is not a given, the battle for data has just begun
ESG (environmental, social, and governance) investing has been making news headlines recently. With the rising adoption of ESG worldwide, regulatory scrutiny has started to intensify. The focus of this attention has been the assessment of what is effectively the integration of ESG principles into the traditional investment process versus what can sometimes appear to be the mere labelling of investment products as ESG with minimal effort to incorporate ESG aspects – a marketing push put in place to address fast growing investor demand.
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White papers
Global Investment Views - December 2021
Halloween ‘ghosts’ of Fed tapering, the Evergrande crisis, and the earnings season did not scare the markets. The Fed telegraphed its message well: while keeping the option to adjust tapering depending on the state of the economy, it reiterated the “transitory” inflation narrative.
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White papers
Novo Nordisk Throws Its Weight Behind Patients With Obesity And Diabetes
The world’s obesity and sugar-high problems have healthcare budgets bursting at the seams.
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China’s zero-Covid policy – Timing, benefits, costs and impact
As more countries opt for ‘living with Covid’, China is sticking with a ‘zero Covid’ policy (ZCP) that has brought significant benefits, although not without costs. China may soon be approaching a turning point where the costs outweigh the benefits.
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EM inflation elevated but still relatively contained; local markets could offer relative value
The gap between emerging market (EM) inflation over developed market (DM) inflation has remained contained this time, in part due to weak economic conditions, muted domestic credit creation and proactive EM central banks. Tighter EM financial conditions should anchor longer term EM inflation expectations.
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White papers
Risk and opportunity in Asia credit: Chinese property, regulatory shifts, inflation
We believe at the point of Evergrande default, the contagion are, less financial and more real economy in nature. This is because the overall exposure of the financial system to Evergrande from a top-down perspective is much more manageable albeit there are risks around selected financial institutions with higher exposures to Evergrande.
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White papers
Don’t get lost on the road to Paris: How to avoid the unintended consequences of a net-zero portfolio.
Making pledges and setting targets is the only straightforward thing about decarbonisation. More and more, asset owners will need to demonstrate how their approach is enabling them to reach net zero while future-proofing returns within a specified timeframe. It’s a question of understanding the individual challenges presented by each asset class and factoring this insight into a nuanced and sophisticated decarbonisation approach.
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White papers
Investment viewpoint: COP26: 7 key takeaways for investors
The Glasgow Climate Pact instilled measured optimism for many in the private sector and government, but disappointed others, including NGOs. The agreement does not seek to keep global warming below 1.5°C, but its commitments to decarbonisation and nature ensure the global economy after COP26 will be significantly different from the one preceding the summit.
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White papers
Social bonds – A tool to effect positive social change
Social bonds have been the fastest growing segment of the market for thematic bonds. Numerous factors are driving their popularity, including their use to address gender inequality and to support pandemic relief.
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The role bonds play in a portfolio
Building a resilient and balanced portfolio should be a priority for many investors in today’s environment of heightened financial market uncertainty and volatility across a range of asset classes, including equities.
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White papers
UK Equities: Attractive Relative Valuations, Despite Relatively Unattractive Macro Signals
While UK equities have faced a number of headwinds in 2021, there are reasons to be optimistic about the year ahead, according to Ben Russon and Will Bradwell of our Franklin UK Equity team.
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White papers
Simple Equity Themes for Complex Times
Here’s why we think value and income can offer equity investors both a buffer against uncertainty and an attractive opportunity in an ongoing reflationary expansion.
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White papers
Shifts & Narratives #11 - Green sentiment: what impact on stock returns and firm’s behaviour?
As a large number of investors turn to green assets, this raises questions about investors’ impact on the economy, in particular through their influence on firms’ valuations and corporate behaviour. Understanding this effect is key for institutional investors, who not only care about the consequences of their investment but also struggle to understand how much of past performances have been driven by changing climate fundamentals and by changing environmental preferences of investors, i.e. “green sentiment”.
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White papers
Europe is poised to surprise
Over the past year, European equity markets have more than held their own relative to global equity markets. To the surprise of many, Europe has only marginally trailed the U.S. market while outperforming the broader MSCI World ex-U.S. Index. We believe Europe is poised for further positive surprise looking ahead.
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White papers
Beyond borders: Reflections on a historic COP meeting
COP26 was billed as ‘the most important meeting in history’. Steve Waygood had a front row seat and shares his thoughts on the climate conference.
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White papers
Lithium, Cobalt Lead Charge for Alternative Fuels
As the push towards alternative energy sources gains momentum amid growing concerns over the environment and demand from an expanding electric car industry, the spotlight has turned to battery metals such as lithium and cobalt that are used to store electricity, rallying their prices this year.
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White papers
Measuring the value of human capital
Human capital refers to skills, knowledge and experience possessed by an individual or population, viewed in terms of their value or cost to an organisation or country. Within our Environmental, Social and Governance frameworks, human capital is identified as one of the largest drivers of value.
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White papers
Is the U.K. the Newest Leading Indicator?
An upside surprise in U.K. inflation and improving employment trends reinforced markets pricing a 10–15 bps rate hike by the BoE in December, while energy prices eased following the announcements from China, which could provide downside pressure to market inflation expectations.
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White papers
Battling the superbugs
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is growing, although the risk too often goes unmanaged or ignored. Yet the ramifications for public health are huge.
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White papers
2022 Investment Outlook - Investing in the great transformation
As the global economy recovers from its pandemic scars and inflation makes its first comeback in decades, the world is preparing to face its greatest ever challenges: the energy transition to fight the inexorable climate crisis and the development of an inclusive growth model.