‘Smart beta’ sounds like an oxymoron. How smart can it be to continue using the same strategy in such fickle markets? A portfolio manager calling on all his skills (‘alpha’) in analysing market environments (the source of ‘beta’) should be able to outperform an unchanged (...)
All famous investors from Benjamin Graham to Warren Buffet have, first and foremost, been fervent advocates of value investing. Value can be assessed in very diverse ways and value investing can also suffer from some drawbacks. Here are a few pointers for understanding value (...)
Equities and bonds strengthened worldwide, but the dollar weakened because of the Fed’s more dovish tone on future rate rises. Whilst now at 1%, there is the suggestion another two rate rises will happen in 2017, this is still below some of the market’s more fearful (...)
As shown by the correlation between the risk premium and productivity trend growth, the current 5.9% risk premium anticipates a return to productivity gains at 3%, which is the level we saw during the dot com boom at the end of the (...)
Populists disappointed as markets welcome Dutch election outcome
According to Lukas Daalder, CIO Robeco Investment Solutions & Léon Cornelissen, Chief Economist at RobecoHaving said that, we should not overstate the impact: the rate hike that the US Federal Reserve administered yesterday has been the more dominant factor in financial (...)