Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Sep 27th 2017

Somewhat incongruously, French President Emmanuel Macron yesterday delivered a grand new vision of a federalist European Union less than 48 hours after German voters had offered two fingers up to such solutions. Louis applauds Macron for focusing on the logic demanded by the single currency system, but wonders if he may be whistling in the wind as Berlin turns its head eastward.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Sep 25th 2017

Listening to Theresa May’s speech last week in Florence, Charles thought the British prime minister sounded like an unfaithful wife attempting to achieve an amicable separation from the husband she cuckolded. Her approach is mistaken. May’s interlocutors in Brussels cannot be mollified with promises of continued affection. They are ideologues, and they are out to punish the UK for daring to challenge their ideology.

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl

Sep 22nd 2017

This week has seen the Spanish government arrest Catalan public officials and take control of the region’s public finances in response to an independence plebiscite that it says is illegal. Cedric concedes that the row is messy and won’t be quickly resolved, but says that it is highly unlikely to result in a genuine political crisis that derails the Spanish economic recovery.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Sep 19th 2017

Over the years my research has focused on broad concepts which have been applied in many situations and lots of reports. These include ideas such as the disruptive power of platform companies, assets whose value comes from scarcity rather than efficiency, or the effect of firms running on Schumpeterian, Malthusian or Ricardian principles. Once in a while, however, I do get specific and make investment calls. Having had a little time this week, I...

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

Sep 15th 2017

After the Bank of England signaled its intent to raise interest rates yesterday, sterling jumped more than 1% against the US dollar and the international FTSE 100 index fell similarly. With the UK’s latest inflation reading rising to 2.9% and unemployment hitting a post-1975 low of 4.3%, it is increasingly hard to justify leaving the policy lending rate at 0.25%. One argument for deferring hikes is the UK’s lack of wage growth, but such thinking...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Sep 13th 2017

No chain is stronger than its weakest link, and the eurozone’s weakest link is Italy. Growth has picked up over the last two years, but as Charles demonstrates in this paper, the Italian economy is uncompetitive both within the eurozone and on the global stage. With the rise in the euro exacerbating the problem, and the prospect of ECB tapering threatening to push up Rome’s funding costs, Italy risks falling once again into a debt trap.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Sep 08th 2017

In yesterday’s monthly call Louis Gave presented his view on the global investment outlook for the rest of the year. He argued that the key story so far in 2017 has been the strong performance of Asian equities, which has added a second leg to a bull market led by US technology and consumer stocks. The question is whether this can last.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Sep 05th 2017

For the past several years, the brightest spot in global equity markets has been the US, and in particular tech and consumer stocks. This is changing, and we now have a "two-legged" equity bull market led both by US tech stocks and by a resurgent Asia. In our review of global investment conditions Louis explains why this is so, and argues none of the obvious land mines is likely to go off at any time soon.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Aug 31st 2017

We have a rule of thumb at Gavekal that when the S&P 500 equal-weighted outperforms the “S&P 500 index”, our equity clients are cheery since beating the benchmark is fairly easy. At such times, clients will typically take more risk. The reverse is, of course, true: outperformance by the S&P 500 makes for grumpy clients, tougher meetings, and less appetite for risk-taking. In the latter case, there is a tendency for investors to rush...

Gavekal Research

Tan Kai Xian

Aug 29th 2017

The US and Canadian economies share many similarities due to their geographical proximity, similar level of development and Anglo-Saxon traditions of common law and open political dialogue. So it is curious that each economy’s labor market dynamics are strikingly different. This observation has more than hypothetical significance as workers become hard to find at the right price in late-cycle America.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

Aug 17th 2017

Data released yesterday showed that the UK’s unemployment rate fell to 4.4% in the second quarter, its lowest since the second quarter of 1975 (when Britons voted by a 34pp margin in favor of membership of the precursor to the European Union). Yet despite the lowest unemployment in generations, wage growth in the UK remains for the most part missing in action. Workers’ total earnings rose by a muted 2.1% in 2Q. With CPI inflation running at a...

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave, Charles Gave

Aug 16th 2017

Global geopolitics is characterized by the “land-based” empire of China challenging the dominant “maritime” empire of the United States according to Louis and Charles. What they cannot figure out is the seemingly contradictory responses of Washington to this well telegraphed challenge. In this piece they examine pressing challenges to American power and explore the investment consequences, which may come home to roost far quicker than most...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Aug 08th 2017

Charles is proud of his data-driven approach to economic analysis and is not impressed with the methods applied by much of the modern economics profession. More to the point, he thinks that most modern economic remedies have negatively impacted the growth outlook and dulled investment performance.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Aug 04th 2017

The details of the Brexit talks between the British government and Brussels are far less important, argues Charles in this paper, than the blow Britain’s referendum vote has dealt to the technocratic principles which underpin the European Union’s power structure. The pillars of the temple are crumbling, and sooner or later the edifice must fall.

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

Jul 28th 2017

Judging by statements made by two of the most fervent Europhobes in Theresa May’s cabinet, Soft Brexit has emerged the victor over Hard Brexit. While this means the UK's exit will be postponed during a transition period, and possibly beyond, Anatole argues this comes with its own drawbacks and risks. Things are likely to get worse before they get better.

Gavekal Research

Dan Wang

Jul 25th 2017

Back in May, Louis warned that the regulatory knives were coming out for Big Tech. In the worst case scenario for the dominant technology giants that have done so much to drive the stock market to new highs, Louis argued that they could even face the same treatment that Standard Oil received at the hands of the US government in 1911. Investors were forcibly reminded of this tightening regulatory squeeze yesterday when Google parent Alphabet...

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

Jul 24th 2017

After the euro broke out of its three-year trading range last week, it is reasonable to assume that the European Central Bank would much rather see a big correction than a further move to the upside. But central bankers can’t always get what they want—and their powers to control the currency markets are much more limited than generally assumed by day traders and media headline writers.

Gavekal Research

Tan Kai Xian, Cedric Gemehl

Jul 19th 2017

Interest rate differentials between the US and eurozone are wide by historical standards. This is no surprise. The US has enjoyed uninterrupted growth (at least in year-on-year terms) since 2010, and today the Federal Reserve stands as the most hawkish big central bank in town. In contrast, the eurozone slumped back into recession in 2012, and the European Central Bank remains in full-blown easing mode. As a result, interest rate differentials...

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

Jul 17th 2017

Next month will mark the tenth anniversary of the Global Financial Crisis, and the developed world’s GDP per capita still lingers 20-25% below its pre-crisis long term trend. Were there no good economic policies to deal with the aftermath? Far from it, argues Anatole, but four features of post-crisis politics and ideology blocked constructive policy responses.

Gavekal Research

Tom Holland

Jul 12th 2017

Sometimes financial markets can look a lot like Wile E. Coyote. So intent was the old Looney Tunes character on chasing the Road Runner, that he somehow never realized when he had shot over the cliff’s edge. For a few moments he would continue in thin air, legs a blur, supported by momentum and incomprehension. Only when he looked down... In much the same way, financial markets often continue their trend after the underlying conditions change,...

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews, Cedric Gemehl

Jul 10th 2017

When a market fails to rally further on successive rounds of good news, investors can be forgiven for feeling a tad nervous about the outlook. It is little surprise, therefore, that many portfolio managers are expressing skepticism about the near-term sustainability of the bull market in eurozone equities. Since the election of Emmanuel Macron as French president two months ago, the macro headlines from the single currency area have been...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Jul 06th 2017

Sweden is a high-growth economy with competitive firms in everything from retailing to metal bashing to software. Yet, there is a time to be in Sweden—or at least overweight—and there are times to be out. Sweden and the US had two of the 20th century’s best performing equity markets and I will simplify this decision by measuring their relative attractiveness. Spoiler alert: this report has a positive recommendation.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Jul 04th 2017

Aside from health care, the other “Trump trade” that has worked wonders since November 9 has been defense stocks. After all, with the Dow Jones sector index up some 22% in the period, what’s not to like? On taking office, Donald Trump cranked up military spending, and during his state visit to Saudi Arabia in May secured weapon sales worth US$110bn. On Friday—just hours before Xi Jinping took the stage in Hong Kong to celebrate the 20th...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Jun 29th 2017

In recent days , central bankers in the US and Europe have been signaling how much they want to end unconventional monetary policies and revert to a more normal monetary model that does not put asset prices at the heart of the system. It is a laudable aim. But, warns Charles in this piece, central bankers have seldom managed to transition from one monetary regime to another without causing convulsions in the financial markets. This time, the...

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

Jun 26th 2017

The European Union authorities bowed to the inevitable yesterday. They agreed to let Rome spend as much as €17bn in Italian taxpayers’ cash to prevent losses among the senior bondholders and depositors in two Italian regional banks that the European Central Bank declared on Friday to be failing.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

Jun 20th 2017

Last week the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged, but three out of eight policymakers voted for a hike. In the past any weakness in UK consumption has been met with a soothing monetary response. The fact that the consumer looks increasingly forlorn, yet the BoE is hanging tough suggests the game has changed.

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

Jun 12th 2017

After the Conservative government of UK prime minister Theresa May lost its parliamentary majority in last week's general election, Anatole argues that the "hard Brexit" strategy formerly pursued by May no longer looks politically viable. That means a Norwegian-style soft Brexit is more likely, which makes sterling assets look relatively attractive.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

Jun 06th 2017

Rugby players fall into one of two categories: the forwards, who typically go where the ball is (and in the process put their heads in places most sane people wouldn’t put their feet), and the backs, who try to go where the ball will be, which enables them to look good and keep their kit clean, but earns them the scorn of the forwards. Peter FitzSimons, the first Aussie to play for a French club (Brive), once remarked: “Come the revolution, the...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

May 24th 2017

So I hear that happy days have returned to Europe’s single currency area as shown by improved purchasing manager readings. With German firms especially upbeat and a reassuring new fellow occupying the Élysée Palace, I understand that Berlin will soon roll over and allow a juicy fiscal expansion in return for France making its job market less rigid. I tend to be skeptical about such road-to-Damascus conversions.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews, Simon Pritchard

May 19th 2017

Yesterday saw the release of robust UK retail sales data for April that reversed a weakening trend and pointed to still strong consumers. So it was notable that on a day that confirmed British economic resilience despite attendant uncertainties, Prime Minister Theresa May effectively renounced free market policies that long have been core tenants of the Conservative Party credo.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

May 16th 2017

Back in 1947, war was over but a ruined European economy needed full-scale reconstruction: the Marshall Plan. As I look at the way China is wooing its neighbors through its Belt and Road strategy and other economic and financial linkages, the approach looks like a remarkably effective “copy-and-paste” operation.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

May 15th 2017

The consensus is for a tortuous few years of negotiations between the UK and the European Union over the terms of Brexit and any subsequent free trade agreement. Following up on today’s Daily, Nick argues in this video interview that a deal may be easier than most people think. Moreover, the template for an FTA may already be in place.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

May 08th 2017

The French presidential election did not play out as Charles had expected. With Emmanuel Macron having achieved a decisive victory, he concedes that the En Marche! Party is likely to carry the momentum into next month’s parliamentary elections. What this means for investors is that France is likely to be politically stable in the coming few years and will not be the focal point of eurozone ructions.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

May 05th 2017

For the last decade, pretty much every politician who counted in France has spoken of the European Union in scathing terms. That is likely to change on Sunday if the pro-integrationist Emmanuel Macron confirms poll forecasts and scores a resounding win in the French presidential election. His upbeat belief in federal solutions to Europe’s structural problems will not just change the discourse, but according to Nick could renew the Franco-German...

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

May 03rd 2017

The pound has rallied strongly since Theresa May announced an early UK general election on April 18 and may soon break through US$1.30, opening the way for a rise back to levels not seen since last summer. This move has mostly been driven by politics in France, rather than Britain, but this may be about to change.

Gavekal Research

Louis Gave

May 02nd 2017

Charles likes to say that good money management often involves taking a few key decisions and sitting on them for a decade. In 1982, for example, the avoidance of energy and material stocks ensured almost 10 years of outperformance. In 1990, avoiding Japan paid off for two decades. In 2000, sidestepping TMT and underweighting the US dollar worked for almost a decade. In 2006, avoiding financials also paid off for a decade, as did underweighting...

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews

Apr 26th 2017

With fears of a political upset laid to rest, the European reflation trade is in full swing. The flash eurozone composite PMI hit a six-year high last week, French manufacturing confidence is at its highest since June 2011, and the European Central Bank’s bank lending survey published yesterday showed that banks are continuing to relax credit standards as demand for borrowing grows. With employment growth lifting domestic demand and external...

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl

Apr 24th 2017

For once the opinion pollsters got things right. Although the candidates of France’s traditionally dominant left and right wing parties were both eliminated in yesterday’s first round presidential election, the political center held. Independent Europhile centrist Emmanuel Macron emerged with the largest share—23.9%—of the vote, for a second round face-off against nationalist Euroskeptic Marine Le Pen, who captured 21.4%.

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl

Apr 21st 2017

Going into Sunday’s first round vote in France’s presidential election, it is widely assumed that yesterday’s tragic events on the Champs Élysées will boost nationalist-populist candidate Marine Le Pen. What is clear is that the race has tightened: centrist outsider Emmanuel Macron is polling at 24%, Le Pen at 22.5%, Republican François Fillon at 19% and firebrand socialist Jean-Luc Mélenchon at 18.5%. Here are some final thoughts for navigating...

Gavekal Research

Tom Holland

Apr 19th 2017

The spring sun was shining on UK prime minister Theresa May yesterday when she stood in Downing Street to announce a cut-and-run general election for June 8. The sun was shining too on sterling, which rallied 2% against the US dollar and 1.3% against the euro on the news. The market clearly expects that a greatly increased parliamentary majority for May’s Conservative government following the vote will boost the chances of a softer Brexit deal...

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl

Apr 18th 2017

For the next three weeks at least, the upcoming two-round French presidential election will continue to dictate short term sentiment among investors in the eurozone. Following a late surge in the opinion polls from far left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, two of the four leading contenders are now professed Euroskeptics. That knowledge has colored investor attitudes, keeping the spreads between French and German sovereigns elevated—the 10-year...

Gavekal Research

Udith Sikand

Apr 13th 2017

In recent years emerging market central banks have taken to intervening to support their currencies against depreciation pressure using non-deliverable forward contracts settled in local currency, a technique that helps preserve the headline value of their foreign exchange reserves. Although the strategy bought time in Brazil and Mexico for more fundamental policy changes to take effect, non-deliverables are no magic bullet.

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Apr 11th 2017

In this interview Charles assesses the political situation ahead of France’s two-round presidential election, which kicks off later this month. Topping everyone’s list of questions is whether National Front leader Marine Le Pen will defy the opinion polls to win a surprise victory, and what a Le Pen presidency would mean for France and the European Union.

Gavekal Research

Will Denyer, Charles Gave, Tom Miller, Anatole Kaletsky

Apr 05th 2017

In Gavekal’s seminar in London last week Will Denyer, Charles Gave, Tom Miller and Anatole Kaletsky presented their macroeconomic outlooks and offered investors asset allocation advice.

Gavekal Research

Nick Andrews, Cedric Gemehl

Apr 03rd 2017

The macroeconomic stars are aligning for the eurozone. The region’s cyclical recovery is extending itself across economies and sectors alike. Inflation remains modest, reducing the chances of an early monetary tightening. Eurozone equities are relatively cheap in an expensive world. And the euro is fundamentally undervalued against the US dollar. However, the big risk for investors remains the possibility that nationalist euroskeptic Marine Le...

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl, Joyce Poon

Mar 31st 2017

Russia has been a consensus overweight among emerging market managers since early 2016. They have been handsomely rewarded. Over the last 12 months, ruble-denominated Russian finance ministry bonds, known as OFZs, have returned 37% in US dollar terms. Small wonder then that over the same time period non-resident holdings of OFZs have increased from 21% of outstanding issuance to 27%. After such an impressive outperformance, it is natural to ask...

Gavekal Research

Cedric Gemehl, Nick Andrews

Mar 23rd 2017

As investors fret about the trajectory of US growth and the sustainability of the Trump reflation trade, Europe is getting drawn in. Sovereign yields fell pretty much across the board yesterday on worries that the eurozone’s gathering cyclical upturn could be disrupted. In this case, the thinking is that monetary stimulus by the European Central Bank gets extended. To our mind, such worries are overdone as—absent an external shock—Europe’s pick-...

Gavekal Research

Charles Gave

Mar 20th 2017

With Theresa May’s government set to begin the formal exit process from the European Union, Charles reckons now is the right time to step back and see just how the UK economy has fared in the nine months since that fateful referendum. In this concise chartbook, he tours Britain’s economic and market landscape and finds that value is to be had across multiple asset classes.

Gavekal Research

Anatole Kaletsky

Mar 15th 2017

Today’s Dutch election may not seem very important in itself, since it is almost inconceivable that the anti-immigration Freedom Party of Geert Wilders will win enough votes to enter the next Dutch government. Nevertheless, the result—which is likely to be clear by around 0400 GMT Thursday—will have a big market impact. That’s because the Freedom Party’s performance will rightly be seen as a leading indicator of political events during the...