Money managers cut bullish exposure to commodities by 10% during the week ended October 20, which was two days before the ECB’s dovish statement strengthened the dollar and further eroded support. Big differences have emerged, however, with the energy complex being sold while bullish bets on precious metals continue to rise

27 Oct 2015

I AM neither intelligent enough to understand the behaviour of “Mr Market” — the manic-depressive dreamt up by investment guru Benjamin Graham — nor foolish enough to believe I do. But he has surely been in a depressive phase. Behind this seems to be concern about China. Is Mr Market right to be anxious?

27 Aug

From Tuesday, the PBOC said that the decline in the reference rate was a one-off adjustment because the Yuan effective exchange rate had become unduly strong. After Wednesday’s cut, the PBOC said that the currency will not continuously devalueand that the move of the Yuan reference rate is normal. The central bank added that there is no economic basis for the Yuan’s constant devaluation

12 Aug 2015

 7:$ in 2010 to 12.50:$ today (that’s nearly 80% in less than four years), these numbers aren’t particular intimidating, given what we know of a Dollar on steroids. Previous cycles saw outsized Dollar rises. This one will be no different, only more gradual, is the betting, given the global fundamentals and central banks behaving. Or Are we looking at another 80% down by mid-2018 (Rand 22.50:$)?

China’s securities market regulator has opened an investigation into suspected market manipulation, in the latest in Beijing’s increasingly desperate attempts to head off a potential stock market crash that could damage an already slowing economy. The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has set up a team to look at “clues of illegal manipulation across markets” 

3 July

The main Shanghai stock index soared 2.2% to 5131.88, its highest close in seven years. It has more than doubled in the past year amid expectations of further foreign buying, lower interest rates and government stimulus, as well as support for higher stock prices in government-published media

In a certain sense the graph also warns about the dramatic effects of how rapidly things collapse. Global consulting firm A.T. Kearney released a report on how senior management around the globe rate various countries in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI). SA was highly ranked at no. 11 in 2012, no. 15 in 2013 and no. 13 in 2014. This year we have simply vanished off the list. Kaput!

4 May 2015

Tencent’s shares have rocketed 52 per cent from the beginning of this year, bringing its valuation close to those of US peer Facebook Inc’s $230 billion and Chinese arch rival Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s $210 billion

14 April 2015

In a March 13 research note, however, beverage analyst Nik Modi of RBC Capital Markets, offered five reasons ABI won’t make a bid for SABMiller anytime soon. None of the obstacles we enumerate below is insurmountable,” he wrote, “but together we believe they add up to a pretty convincing argument as to why such a deal is improbable

China’s investment in African resources remains at a relatively early stage and is likely to increase further over the next decade, despite the economic slowdown.

SA institutions, developers and listed-property players continue to expand their real estate footprints into the rest of Africa, creating more opportunities for investors to share in dollar-based returns.                                                                                       

 Barclays Africa Group is intensifying its expansion into the rest of the continent with applications for licences in several countries, reports Business Day