M&G Investments

Traditional fixed income risk assets, such as Emerging Markets (EM) and High Yield (HY), rallied over the past five trading days, shrugging off an escalation of the trade tensions between the US and China. The world’s No. 1 economy announced plans to set tariffs on an additional US$200bn worth of Chinese goods, adding to the $34bn that came into effect on Friday.

No political consensus lasts forever – at least not without reform. The pre-eminence of the liberal economic order prior to the global financial crisis might have tempted us to think that this time would be different.

Emotions can get the better of anyone. In financial markets, it happens all the time.

With World Cup fever captivating the globe and the tournament providing lots of surprises, Investment Director, Ritu Vohora, looks at the importance of having a strong attack and defence strategy when thinking about sector allocation.

As we have now reached the halfway point of 2018, it seems like a good occasion to take stock and see whether the year has lived up to consensus expectations so far. With more news surprises and volatility so far than in 2017, how do the market’s predictions for which asset classes would perform best look today?

As the M&G Global Dividend Fund reaches its 10-year anniversary, fund manager, Stuart Rhodes discusses what he set out to achieve at the funds launch, what have been his biggest challenges over this period and where he sees the risks and opportunities in the future.

We have already seen several corrections in credit markets so far this year, providing a good opportunity to analyse these episodes from a volatility perspective to see whether they have created good entry points into previously expensive markets.

I used to believe that the Eurozone was undemocratic. Now I’m not so sure.

Political turmoil in Italy and Spain, escalating trade tensions and, for good measure, unexpectedly strong US employment data – to say that markets had a turbulent few days would be an understatement. Taking a step back, here are three lessons I took away from last week.

Have central banks become “overmighty citizens”, with too much power and insufficient democratic input? If so, does it matter and what can we do about it? In an era of QE, and bailouts of commercial banks, wealth inequality has widened in most developed economies. Did society agree that this outcome was what it wanted when central bankers “saved the world” in the Great Financial Crisis? 

A key feature of the current equity bull market has been the inexorable rise of passive strategies. These have gathered significant assets under management at the expense of active managers. This note explores the cyclical nature of passive and active performance and highlights the potential for active managers to benefit from a turn in the tide, as valuation returns to prominence.

After a significant policy error at the end of last year, Argentina has once again found itself in trouble – and back in the headlines –  in recent months, suffering from dented credibility and a fast depreciating peso. This morning on BVTV, I look at whether current levels now offer a buying opportunity.

What’s behind the diverging outlook for US and European banks, and what does this mean for bond and equity investors?

The sixth in a series of videos looking at the change in investor behaviour over the years and how asset managers have responded, Global Head of Distribution, Jonathan (Joffy) Willcocks reinforces the importance of ESG principles when thinking about investments.

In this month’s update Ritu Vohora, Investment Director, reflects on the Q1 earnings season. It’s been exceptional so far, as least compared to expectations. Are we at ‘peak earnings’?

After a stellar 2017, eurozone economic data releases have disappointed recently. This week’s BVTV discusses the region’s prospects, focusing on the key learnings from the latest ECB meeting, why the US Treasury sell-off has so far failed to have a material impact on European rates, and implications for credit markets.

Jim Leaviss, Head of Retail Fixed Interest, recently updated an old chart from 2007 showing the relationship between a flattening yield curve and credit spread levels. Back then, this classic leading indicator of recessions correctly predicted a big sell-off in corporate bonds. The rest, as they say, is history.

In this 2 minute update, Alex Araujo, Fund Manager for M&G's Global Listed Infrastructure Fund discusses the impact of rising interest rates on listed infrastructure, as well as what type of infrastructure tends to do well in this environment and why.