Veronika Dul/iStock via Getty Images By Joseph V. Amato There will be multiple twists and turns over days, weeks and months, but a de-escalation in the Middle East conflict is more likely than not. March is typically the month when many of us follow college basketball and the “March Madness” of watching exciting men’s and women’s games. Not this year. As we enter the fifth week of the Gulf war, al...
Veronika Dul/iStock via Getty Images By Joseph V. Amato There will be multiple twists and turns over days, weeks and months, but a de-escalation in the Middle East conflict is more likely than not. March is typically the month when many of us follow college basketball and the “March Madness” of watching exciting men’s and women’s games. Not this year. As we enter the fifth week of the Gulf war, all eyes are on energy markets and geopolitical risks. What seems surprising is that risk markets have held up better than expected since the conflict ignited, causing a fissure in the geopolitical landscape of the Middle East and forcing the effective closure of the most important energy chokepoint in the world. At the time of writing, the MSCI ACWI index is down about 8% since the conflict began on February 28 and down about 5% year-to-date. The U.S. rates market has also moved about 50 basis points higher, while credit spreads have remained relatively contained during the war. Global markets appear, therefore, to be rationalizing developments across a wide range of outcomes and arriving at a measured conclusion: de-escalation is the most likely path forward. The Strait of Hormuz is simply too important geopolitically and economically for its effective closure to persist. At the same time, the lower oil intensity of the global economy today has helped drive a more measured market response to the war. A Local Chokepoint of Global Importance Despite the lower oil intensity, the commodity is still critical to world economic activity. Approximately 20 million barrels of oil per day (around 20% of global supply) transit through the Strait, with large volumes of helium, liquified natural gas (LNG), refined fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and fertilizers also needing to move through, highlighting the channel's centrality to global industrial supply chains. The duration of this shock and the extent of the energy shortages remain the key variables. Even if a ceasefire is declared in...
Cheng Li-wun. Photo: Zhu He/China News Service/IC photo Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of Taiwan’s main opposition Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, will lead a delegation to the Chinese mainland in early April at the invitation of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. Cheng will visit the province of Jiangsu and the municipalities...
Cheng Li-wun. Photo: Zhu He/China News Service/IC photo Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of Taiwan’s main opposition Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, will lead a delegation to the Chinese mainland in early April at the invitation of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. Cheng will visit the province of Jiangsu and the municipalities of Shanghai and Beijing from April 7 to 12, according to an announcement Monday by Song Tao, director of the Taiwan Work Office of the CPC Central Committee. As reported by the state-run Xinhua News Agency, Song noted that Cheng had repeatedly expressed a desire to visit the mainland since taking office, adding that both sides will communicate to make proper arrangements.
Guo Xudong A former Chinese securities regulator once dubbed the “Iron Lady” of IPO approvals is facing prosecution for alleged bribery and serious duty-related violations, as Beijing intensifies scrutiny of ties between regulators and the companies they oversee. Guo Xudong, a former official at the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), has been transferred for prosecution, the country’s ...
Guo Xudong A former Chinese securities regulator once dubbed the “Iron Lady” of IPO approvals is facing prosecution for alleged bribery and serious duty-related violations, as Beijing intensifies scrutiny of ties between regulators and the companies they oversee. Guo Xudong, a former official at the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), has been transferred for prosecution, the country’s top anti-graft agency said Friday.
Are you planning to retire around the age of 62? If so, you won't be alone. According to the 2024 MassMutual Retirement Happiness Study, both retirees and pre-retirees see the age of 63 as a perfect retirement age -- and the average actual retirement age is very close to that, at 62. (It's probably not coincidental that 62 is also the earliest age at which you can claim your Social Security benefi...
Are you planning to retire around the age of 62? If so, you won't be alone. According to the 2024 MassMutual Retirement Happiness Study, both retirees and pre-retirees see the age of 63 as a perfect retirement age -- and the average actual retirement age is very close to that, at 62. (It's probably not coincidental that 62 is also the earliest age at which you can claim your Social Security benefits.) But should you join this crowd and retire at or around 62? There are some good reasons to think twice before doing so. Here are some. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Wei Li, global chief investment strategist at BlackRock, discusses her neutral stance on the overall direction of equities and how the conflict in the Middle East is prompting a thematic approach. (Source: Bloomberg)
Wei Li, global chief investment strategist at BlackRock, discusses her neutral stance on the overall direction of equities and how the conflict in the Middle East is prompting a thematic approach. (Source: Bloomberg)