Columbia Threadneedle Investments

6 December 2024
UK equities: don't believe the doom mongers
UK equities: don't believe the doom mongers

While Labour’s first Budget was a surprise in terms of the scale of the fiscal loosening, there remain grounds for cautious optimism about UK equities.

6 November 2024
Britain's big Budget – will it work?
Britain's big Budget – will it work?

The sheer scale of the fiscal changes in the recent budget were surprising, and confirmed growing fears around tax rises. But might UK businesses respond by boosting productivity?

25 October 2024
European utilities: prepared for the spending storm
European utilities: prepared for the spending storm

Despite huge growth in demand, costs squeezes and supply constraints around raw materials and capacity are limiting expected returns in renewables development

6 September 2024
What are central banks telling us about interest rates?
What are central banks telling us about interest rates?

After Jackson Hole, markets are pricing in big rate cuts for the US. What are the risks of disappointment?

23 August 2024
Seizing value in emerging market debt
Seizing value in emerging market debt

Strong growth outlooks are counterbalanced by fiscal headwinds and above-target inflation, requiring a nuanced approach to capture value in emerging market debt.

21 August 2024
Markets are pricing in bigger rate cuts, are they right?
Markets are pricing in bigger rate cuts, are they right?

Markets have moved to price-in more rate cuts for the US, UK and eurozone. Despite the commonality of the moves, the three economies are not moving in parallel.

29 July 2024
How would markets fare under President Trump?
How would markets fare under President Trump?

Financial markets will still see Donald Trump as the likely victor in the US presidential race, despite Joe Biden’s withdrawal. What might this mean for markets?

16 July 2024
Where to next for UK Interest rates?
Where to next for UK Interest rates?

Market odds for the Bank of England to cut rates in August are better than 50:50. We are less optimistic.

 

12 July 2024
CIO outlook: Is higher volatility on the horizon?
CIO outlook: Is higher volatility on the horizon?

Interest rates won’t come down as quickly as some had hoped, says our CIO, William Davies, but further gains for equities are still possible this year.

12 July 2024
Life under Labour
Life under Labour

Life under Labour: what is the macro background for the new Government, their likely budget plans and the impact on the economy?

6 June 2024
New opportunities as recession fears recede
New opportunities as recession fears recede

While discounts in the investment trusts universe make headlines (the average sector discount has widened slightly over the first quarter to nearly 16%), as managers we get on with the day job of seeking out investments that have the prospects to grow and provide positive returns for the 16,000+ shareholders holding a stake in the CT Global Managed Portfolio Trust.

3 June 2024
Water in crisis – searching for solutions
Water in crisis – searching for solutions

The world is facing a water crisis. Around the globe we either have too little (drought), too much (flooding) or too toxic water.

31 May 2024
Is the US set to underperform Europe and the UK?
Is the US set to underperform Europe and the UK?

I think the pessimism over the failure of US inflation to keep falling should reverse over the next few months. That should halt the steady decline in the scale of expected interest rate cuts across Europe, UK and US. Current expectations are 75 basis points (bp) off in Europe but only 50bp in the UK and even less in the US. That’s a dramatic change compared with the optimism we saw at the start of the year.

31 May 2024
The race for rate cuts
The race for rate cuts

Rate cuts have preoccupied financial markets since the start of this year. Inching towards June and the first central bank is yet to blink. The US Federal Reserve had, until very recently, been expected to take the lead. A series of stronger US CPI readings in the first quarter, largely revolving around the stickiness of core services inflation, seems to have put paid to those expectations. The April CPI figure wasn’t as bad as feared but ‘shelter inflation’, known more universally as housing rental costs is still persistently high. Now Europe has pushed forward as the more likely first contender, with June cuts being pencilled in.

3 May 2024
Decarbonising Steel
Decarbonising Steel

Decarbonising Steel: redefining the value chain and the role of iron ore miners

5 April 2024
Green machines: the future of transport
Green machines: the future of transport

The transportation sector has a significant impact on global emissions, but technology innovations, policy changes and shifting behaviours can reduce this. How are the different modes progressing?

4 April 2024
The Good, the Bad and the UK Stock Market
The Good, the Bad and the UK Stock Market

After an exceptional 2022, the UK reverted to recent type with a big underperformance in 2023. With money continuing to disappear from the market, two potential catalysts for change have emerged

4 April 2024
The first cut is the easiest
The first cut is the easiest

With real rates rising as inflation falls, we explain why central banks should consider cutting interest rates soon.

22 March 2024
Celebrating a decade of social impact bond investments
Celebrating a decade of social impact bond investments

The CT UK Social Bond Fund has pioneered impact investing for fixed income, through investments that deliver positive social outcomes and a financial return consistent with the risk profile of the broad UK investment grade credit market. We talk to portfolio manager Tammie Tang.

22 March 2024
Retaining a focus on fundamentals
Retaining a focus on fundamentals

Political noise is a distraction in any market environment but in an election year the clamour is heightened. So, in February we had one of our holdings, Nat West Bank, reporting its biggest annual profit since the 2007 financial crisis but in the days that followed seeing its share price fall on speculation of a possible windfall tax on the banking sector. As an investor, sometimes it feels like you can’t win.