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Video: Into The Midterms

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Video: Into The Midterms

Will Denyer
7 Oct 2026
With less than four weeks to go before the US midterm elections, the Democratic Party is odds-on to win the House of Representatives and may take control of the Senate too. In this video interview, Gavekal chief US economist Will Denyer looks at what the expected electoral swing to the Democrats is likely to mean for the possibility of impeachment hearings, fiscal policy, tariffs, financial regulation and legislation on artificial intelligence.
India’s Hawkish Turn

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India’s Hawkish Turn

Udith Sikand, Tom Miller
7 Oct 2026
The Reserve Bank of India raised its benchmark repo rate by 25bp to 5.5%—the first rate hike since February 2023. The Indian economy is well placed to absorb the impact of what should prove to be a relatively shallow rate-hike cycle. But Udith and Tom argue that two main risks still threaten the otherwise upbeat economic outlook for the country.

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A Two-Track Property Stabilization

Xiaoxi Zhang
7 Oct 2026
An end to China’s long-running decline in housing prices now appears in sight, at least for one corner of the market: prices of both new and existing housing in the four Tier 1 cities have stabilized and even rebounded some in recent months. But Xiaoxi argues that many other cities substantially overbuilt housing during the boom, and are on a very different trajectory; their housing prices will probably not stabilize for quite a while to come.

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The Bolsonaro Swing

Louis-Vincent Gave
7 Oct 2026
Since it became clear that Flávio Bolsonaro is now a lock to win the Brazilian presidency in the second round of the election, Petrobras shares have jumped 10%, the EWZ Brazilian ETF is up 12.5%, the Brazilian real has jumped by 4.6% and Brazilian bond yields have fallen -133bp. This is a massive swing to the right that follows similar shifts in El Salvador, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Colombia. Louis looks at the results and highlights the main takeaways.

Gavekal Dragonomics

An Unbalanced Earnings Cycle
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Thomas Gatley
Subsidizing Mortgages
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Wei He, Dragonomics Team
Infrastructure Is Becoming Ineffective
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Wei He
Industrial Policy Delivers A Fiscal Payoff
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Tilly Zhang
The Export Wave Is Cresting
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Andrew Batson

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Reasons To Start Buying Bonds
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Anatole Kaletsky
The Problem For France
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Charles Gave
Quarterly Strategy Review: 3Q26
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Louis-Vincent Gave
What If US Treasuries Rebound?
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Louis-Vincent Gave
Geoeconomic Monitor: Europe Fights China Shock
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Cedric Gemehl, Tom Miller

Gavekal Technologies

Great Tech In Search Of Profits
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AJ Cortese, Laila Khawaja
GavekalTech On The Ground: 2026 China Tech Trip Takeaways
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Laila Khawaja
Chinese EV Makers’ European Offensive
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AJ Cortese
Webinar: The State Of China Tech
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Arthur Kroeber, Laila Khawaja, AJ Cortese
China’s Anti-Dumping Calculus
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Laila Khawaja

Gavekal-IS

Amathia
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Didier Darcet
When Asia Revalues…
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Didier Darcet
Where Does The Money Go?
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Didier Darcet
The Macroeconomics Of AI In Practice
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Didier Darcet
The Macroeconomics Of AI: Part II
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Didier Darcet

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Desperately Seeking An Anchor

Charles Gave, Louis-Vincent Gave
14 Sep 2026
Charles and Louis argue that a new monetary anchor is emerging in Asia, centered on the renminbi, just as Western currencies and bond markets are becoming less reliable stores of value. With most of the world’s excess savings generated in Asia, more capital will stay in the region rather than flow into Western assets, eroding structural support for the US dollar, euro and Western bond markets.

Checking The Boxes

Our short take on the latest news

Fact
Surprise
Takeaway

US trade deficit widened to US$105.6bn in Aug, from US$92.8bn in Jul

Wider than US$102.1bn expected; imports (4.3% MoM) rose faster than exports (1.4%)

Strong imports reflect resilient demand for capital goods amid AI investment boom

Eurozone retail sales volumes rose 0.1% MoM in Aug, versus -0.6% in Jul

Weaker than expected 0.2%; YoY, retail sales rose 0.8% in Aug versus 0.4% in Jul

Household spending remains subdued amid higher energy costs and interest rates

German factory orders fell -10.6% MoM in Aug, versus 3.2% in Jul

Weaker than expected -1%; YoY, factory orders rose 2.7% in Aug, versus 14% in Jul

Volatile due to large defense orders; underlying trend points to tentative recovery

Japanese labor cash earnings rose 3.8% YoY in Aug, versus 4.3% in Jul

Stronger than expected 3.7%; real cash earnings rose 1.5% YoY in Aug, versus 2% in Jul

Positive underlying trend in base pay suggests further BoJ tightening is warranted

Test Your Knowledge
Of India’s 1.5bn population, how many subscribe to the National Pension System?
  1. 22mn
  2. 109mn
  3. 491mn
  4. 855mn
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Chart of the Week

Week 41, 2026
China’s infrastructure investment fell -5.4% YoY in the year through August, a decline that has been reflected in the order books of major state-owned infrastructure builders. The drop is driven by several factors, not least underwhelming returns on infrastructure projects and heightened central-government scrutiny of investment. Such factors are unlikely to change soon, and infrastructure spending could even become a persistent drag on growth.
Open Chart

Gavekal Research

Essential Reading: A Book For Every Week Of The Year

Gavekal is often asked for a recommended reading list. So, here it is: a book a week that everyone interested in the world of macro investing—whether hoary veteran or eager apprentice—can benefit from reading.

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Webinar: The State Of China Tech

Arthur Kroeber, Laila Khawaja, AJ Cortese
25 Sep 2026
As presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping prepare for their summit meeting in Washington, China’s fast-growing technology capabilities are a major topic. The big questions at the moment are how close Chinese artificial-intelligence labs are to matching the US frontier models, and whether the two sides can start negotiating rules on AI safety. But behind those lie even bigger questions: What is the balance of technological power between the US and China? And how far can the world's two big tech powers go in pulling apart the thick webs of interdependence that tie them together?

The Iran War And Fallout

The Non-Threatening Energy Crisis
This weekend’s media made for sobering reading. Between bombs flying in the Middle East, more refineries blowing up in Russia and US senators calling for petroleum export bans, it felt like enough negative news flow to send hearts racing. But most major global equity markets remain close to all-time highs. Louis examines the possible reasons for this counterintuitive configuration.
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No Good Outcomes For Energy Inflation
It is Wednesday. Warring parties in the Middle East are again exchanging fire, and energy prices are spiking. For investors, it may be tempting to shrug off the latest flare-up, but disregarding the latest escalation in the Persian Gulf would be rash. Developments in the region will matter greatly for the trajectory of inflation over the coming months, and therefore for financial markets.
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The Record High Diesel Prices
Because of soaring crack spreads, diesel prices everywhere around the world are making new all-time highs, at least in nominal terms. In real terms, the diesel price is still lower than the 2022 spike that followed the start of the Ukraine war. But Louis points out that with a real term diesel price above US$5/gallon, few good things happen.
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The Limits Of Economic Fury
The US administration is now switching its focus to a campaign of “economic fury” in an effort to achieve its strategic aims against Iran. It is not obvious that this latest phase of the conflict is any more likely to result in a quick and easy US victory than the kinetic war. However, the economic implications of a prolonged stand-off may be less ominous than they at first appear.
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US economy & markets

Are US Long Bonds A Buy? (Part IV)
US bonds face an unappealing near-term backdrop of persistent inflation, Fed tightening and heavy public and private-sector issuance. Yet unlike in 2022, valuations now favor bonds over equities, while rising real yields are approaching levels that could start to constrain capital spending and growth. For Will, this argues against going overweight bonds, but makes a neutral position increasingly attractive as a hedge against a sudden change in the investment environment.
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Another Blow For Bonds?
The 10-year US treasury yield broke through the 5% level to hit 5.11%, its highest since the outbreak of the credit crunch in July 2007. With inflation pressure persistent and the Federal Reserve on a tightening track, yields could rise further in the near term. In addition, there are growing signs that the US labor market may be set to tighten, pushing both wage growth and inflation higher.
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Where The US Is (Still) Exceptional
Compared with European stocks, US stocks are no longer exceptional. Over the past four years, there has been no sustained trend in the relative performance of the two. That said, at the sector level, US consumer discretionary and staples stocks have continued to outperform their European counterparts.
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Dario Cannot Pace The AI Frontier, But Real Yields Might
The AI investment boom came under renewed threat Saturday when Anthropic’s chief executive argued that his company and others should “slow the pace” of model development to ensure safe deployment. At the same time, there is growing grassroots pressure to regulate the pace of data center deployment. Long-term bond yields have also climbed quickly. These are all potential threats to the AI capex boom. But how likely is each to seriously throttle investment?
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China chartbook

Gavekal Dragonomics

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Macro Update: Pushed And Pulled

Wei He, Dragonomics Team
3 Aug 2026
China’s economy is being pushed and pulled by two external shocks: the supply shock from the Iran war and the demand shock from the AI capex boom. Both are creating lots of volatility in trade flows, prices and profits, although the underlying trend of the domestic economy has not yet changed much. Neither are China’s policymakers showing much sign of significantly changing course. In our latest quarterly chartbook, Wei and the Dragonomics team diagnose the current situation and the policy outlook.

India chartbook

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India Corporate Update: Waiting For Capex

Rohan Daswani, Udith Sikand
28 Aug 2026
India remains one of the world’s strongest growth stories, supported by resilient domestic demand, improving corporate balance sheets and strong credit growth. Yet as the boost from public infrastructure investment fades, the big question is whether these strengths can finally translate into a sustained revival in private investment. Rohan and Udith assess the prospects for that transition and the implication for Indian equities, where performance is increasingly diverging across sectors.

Latest video

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Video: Into The Midterms

Will Denyer
7 Oct 2026
With less than four weeks to go before the US midterm elections, the Democratic Party is odds-on to win the House of Representatives and may take control of the Senate too. In this video interview, Gavekal chief US economist Will Denyer looks at what the expected electoral swing to the Democrats is likely to mean for the possibility of impeachment hearings, fiscal policy, tariffs, financial regulation and legislation on artificial intelligence.

Strategy Chartbook

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Quarterly Strategy Review: 3Q26

Louis-Vincent Gave
5 Oct 2026
After the third quarter saw a brutal sell-off in major government bond markets, with yields breaking out to a generational high, Louis takes stock. In this Quarterly Strategy Review, he examines the forces driving the sell-off and asks the key questions facing investors everywhere.

Emerging markets

EMs Are The New DMs
Emerging-market bonds have dramatically outperformed their developed-market peers since 2020, helped by greater policy credibility, deeper domestic financial markets and reduced reliance on foreign investors. With DM bond yields now hitting multi-year highs, policymakers may increasingly look to the EM playbook, including softer forms of financial repression, to stabilize their markets, says Udith. From the US to Japan, signs of this shift are already emerging, suggesting that EMs may have a thing or two to teach DMs.
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Video: Are EMs Back?
It’s been a good quarter for the broad emerging markets complex. The MSCI EM index has returned almost 7% in US dollar terms, while US equities are down by some -3.5%. So should investors jump on the EM train? Udith points out that there is a wide divergence in the performance of individual emerging markets, and the threat of tariffs hangs heavy over EM corporate earnings. Investors need to be selective.
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Video: Southeast Asia Under Trump 2.0
Global investors are rightly focused on the potential losers from the United States pursuing an aggressively protectionist trade policy agenda, but there may be winners as well. Tom went in search of such economies last week. Today he explains how such “swing states” are likely to perform in an intensified period of great power rivalry between the US and China.
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China Turbocharges EM Investment
As the rich world pulls up the protectionist drawbridge, investors risk missing a bigger story in emerging markets. Here, Chinese outbound investment is rebounding after the fallow Covid years, and is driving a new wave of industrialization that promises to lower the cost of the green-energy transition.
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Europe's economy

Reasons To Start Buying Bonds
After four and a half years of steadfast bearishness on bonds, Anatole argues that after the latest sell-off, the relentless rise in US yields may be coming to an end—at least for the next year or two. This is not because fundamentals have improved. Rather it is because the bond market no longer trades on fundamentals, but on short term expectations of Federal Reserve policy, and the Fed has a mandate to preserve US government solvency. In this report, he explains why it now makes sense to start buying bonds again.
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How Wide Can French Spreads Get?
Over the last three weeks of September, the sovereign yield spread between 10-year French OATs and 10-year German bunds widened 40bp, hitting 127bp on Wednesday. That is a gap last seen in June 2012, just weeks before Mario Draghi’s “whatever it takes” speech. Inevitably, therefore, France’s current bond market stresses have evoked memories of the euro crisis, and left investors wondering: just how wide could French spreads get this time around?
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Burnham Starts Transforming Britain
Burnham’s speech to the Labour Party conference announced a cutback in pension spending that was unthinkable under Starmer. More importantly, it showed an openness to possible U-turns in fiscal policy, EU relations and electoral reform. While the initial market reaction to Burnham’s speech was indifference or skepticism, there are three reasons why this really could be a turning point in Britain’s financial fortunes.
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The Nordic Model Under Deglobalization
The Nordic economies may look vulnerable to the same industrial pressures weighing on Germany, but much of their adjustment took place during the 2010s, when manufacturers shifted production abroad while retaining a specialized core at home. With domestic demand now recovering, August says the Nordics appear better placed than Germany to navigate a less global world and a potential new China shock
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Equities

Where The US Is (Still) Exceptional
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Profit Maxing And Social Anti-Fragility
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The (Better) Case For European Banks
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Should Equity Investors Be Reassured By Record Corporate Profits?
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Important Recent Developments
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A Buy Recommendation
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Fixed income

How Wide Can French Spreads Get?
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The Biggest Hot Potato In History
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Video: The Challenge For Fixed Income Investors
Are US Long Bonds A Buy? (Part III)
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Video: The Bond Market’s Big Question
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Video: Breakdown Or Buying Opportunity For US Bonds?
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From the archives: oldies but goodies

Deficit Deniers Of The World Unite
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Deficit Deniers Of The World Unite

Anatole Kaletsky
In our politically correct age the pressure to bow down before certain popularly accepted and apparently proven “truths” can be overwhelming. In the aftermath of the US elections, two such nostrums are unnecessarily vexing investors—the urgency of deficit reduction and fear of higher taxes. I believe that both of these obsessions will soon be forgotten.
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Are We Entering into Revolutionary Times?
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Are We Entering into Revolutionary Times?

Louis-Vincent Gave
The role of a society’s elite is to rise to the challenges of the times, and find solutions fitting to those times, even if this involves a radical break with the past. But the modus operandi for most leaders is to try and maintain the status quo. But if the problems are large enough, this does not work, and the same challenges reappear until either a solution is found, the elite is replaced by a new elite, or the country, system or civilization disappears.
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The High Cost Of Free Money
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The High Cost Of Free Money

Charles Gave
Perhaps the most famous economic law is the one that there is no such thing as a free lunch. By keeping US short rates at abnormally low levels beyond the financial crisis and as growth bounces back beyond the dreams of the wildest optimists, the Fed increasingly seems to be trying to ‘feed the US economy for nothing’. This is worrying, for extended periods of cheap money typically come back with a hefty price tag.
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