Market quiet on the Middle Eastern front The Middle East is dominating world news again, as the awful moment has come when Israel and Iran have engaged in open and direct conflict, albeit at great distance. That the warfare is across considerable distances makes it...

What the return of volatility tells us The past week has seen quite large price movements in asset markets even though, overall, equities are relatively stable. The UK’s main market index, the UK Large-Cap index, is higher and among the better index performers...

Bumpy start to the quarter Following on from two very strong quarters for investors in risk assets, the start of the second quarter has seen a sudden change of mood, and the first distinct bout of equity volatility this year. Indeed, last Thursday, the American...

Everyone is an optimist now For the UK and Europe, last Thursday was the last working day of the first quarter. We will bring you a more detailed round up of asset market performance for March (and the quarter) in the next Cambridge Weekly. Asset price volatility...

Stick to the plan The northern hemisphere has now entered the brighter half of the year, the days getting longer, lighter and warmer. Financial markets are also brightening. The past week has been good across the global board for equities and bonds. The most obvious...

At least currency markets noticed the budget Last week saw global markets showing gains again. The UK Index of larger listed companies is a little lower but the US S&P 500 hit another all-time high, driven by renewed interest in megacaps. Bond prices rose and...

The Cambridge Weekly – 12th February 2024 Are US stocks bubbling up? Last week the US large-cap equity market shook off the rest of the world and marched to yet another new milestone. The S&P 500 traded above 5,000 for the first time on Thursday night. It also...

Central banks challenge Goldilocks assumptions The first month of the year is behind us and, despite what many expected, returns were positive for most investors (see January’s returns review in a separate article below). Following the initial hangover from last...

The Cambridge Weekly – 29th January 2024 Positive growth sentiment returns After the bumpy ‘hangover’ start and the volatile two weeks that followed, it looks like investors are finding their feet again, slowly turning January into a far more positive month than many...

Data versus Davos Last week, global capital markets resumed their volatile path of last year, as the positive sentiment, driven by expectations of an imminent and significant onset of rate cuts, began to wane somewhat. The combination of a distinct slowing in the...

A bumpy upwards path ahead Every hangover comes to an end, and the equity market’s malaise lasted no longer than usual. After refusing to get out of bed the previous week, last week the markets decided to go to work. Europe recovered the previous week’s losses while...