Global shares fell in August amid worries over renewed weakness in the Chinese real estate sector. Economic data from China also continued to be worse than expected and emerging markets underperformed their developed peers. Government bond yields rose (meaning prices fell). Please note any past performance mentioned is not a…

In July inflation cooled while major economies such as the US seemed less likely to experience recession and labour markets remained tight. Central banks remained cautious about recent reductions in annual inflation with some continuing to hike official interest rates. The US Federal Reserve (Fed) and the European Central Bank…

Economic growth remained subdued at best in many major markets throughout May, as high inflation continued to affect households and businesses across the world and hit confidence. But significantly, some emerging markets such as India have bucked this trend and seen impressive rates of growth. UK The UK saw weak economic…

The ongoing debt-ceiling drama and a stronger-than-expected jobs report weighed on stocks Wednesday, with the S&P 500® Index and Nasdaq Composite indexes both dropping for first time in four days. The House of Representatives was preparing to vote late Wednesday on the debt-ceiling deal brokered by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy…

Despite banking instability and uncertain monetary policy expectations, the U.S. economy ended the quarter on a positive note. The S&P 500 Index rose 3.7% in March and 7.5% in the first quarter. The U.S. markets outperformed most major international markets. During the quarter, bond prices moved up, pushing Treasury yields…

Overview The beginning of 2023 has been eventful, even if we have not witnessed some of the more extreme moves of 2022. As we reported last month, January was characterised by a renewal of risk appetite as investors decided that their worst expectations for economic growth in the United States, Europe…

U.S.: The S&P 500 ended the week up 1.9%, stemming the losses seen in the previous three weeks. The materials sector saw the biggest gains followed by communication services. In contrast, consumer staples was the only sector to record losses. In economic news, a preliminary reading showed durable goods orders…

A Positive Start to the Year The global stock market (MSCI World Index) rose 6.5% in January, following a 16% decline in 2022 The bond market (Bloomberg Global Aggregate Index) rose 2% in January, following a 12% decline in 2022 Central banks are slowing their interest rate hikes and are…

Having served as Malta’s spokesperson to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and also as the Head of Communications for the National Euro Changeover Project, Melvyn Mangion has published several books. These are now available for sale on Amazon. One of the books is entitled Fit for Euro. Another book is…