Gold’s crown is a little tainted by its recent price retracement, which has taken the yellow metal roughly back to where it was a year ago. Instead, Bitcoin has smashed the ball out of the park. Why is there such a difference between these two? At an elementary level, both assets play to the concern…
Not that long ago a fund manager could provide a mesmerising presentation slide on how it uses “big data.” Examples might be using Google Earth to discern real-time movement in shopping centres, building activity based on shadowing over the day and seasons as structures grew in size, right down to the mundane of what was…
While nearly all the fussing on equity valuation and bubbles is centred on the US, Europe, Japan and the emerging markets (EMs) have provided decent returns year-to-date, after a prolonged period of relative underperformance, but stumbled in the face of rising Treasury rates. These regions are largely absent from the hype that is currently associated…
Let’s get real The financial chatter box is overflowing on bond movements and the potential impact on valuation of risk assets. Inevitably the long-duration equities are front of mind. Most are focused on the FAGAM (Facebook, Amazon, Google, Apple, Microsoft) or other similar stocks where the valuation is considered to reflect long-term thematic growth. On…
High iron ore prices are unlikely to have escaped the attention of Australian investors given the inevitable BHP or RIO holdings. Commodities, in general, have left many other traded goods in their dust over the past twelve months. Lumber, pulp, rubber and chemicals have been joined by gas prices to take the IHS Markit Material…
The persistent era of disruptive services has its counterpart in companies considered ripe for extinction. History, however, suggests one should not be quite so fast in judging. The advent of affordable motor vehicles (and of course, other factors such as urbanisation) resulted in the waning of mail-order catalogues and the rise in the department stores,…
The attack on short sold stocks in the past week has caused a frenzy of comments on the participation of so-called retail investors. Where this will end up is anyone’s guess, but what is increasingly clear is that equity markets are no longer at the behest of traditional investors. Nasdaq has weighed into the argument…
In an imaginary world, being a hedge fund investor called Seth Klarman with a fund called Baupost would be fun, based purely on unusual names, but also on the longevity of his loyal followers. In the past week, this ‘renowned’ (there are a few after all) investor noted that the concept of risk has vanished…
It is no longer hype to talk up the growth in private lending. While some metrics on its size are questionable, typically including nearly everything that is not in the public domain as well as lending that is well out of the ambit of the private credit funds, the overarching theme remains intact. The traditional…
For entertainment value, and sometimes returns, little can match an activist short seller. Infamous Muddy Waters is the best example. It claims 19% per annum returns over the past five years, notwithstanding a decent bull market, 2.5% management cost, and 30% performance fees. Its web site provides a colourful synopsis of its short positions littered…
