The first quarter of 2023 saw a reassessment of global economic conditions by investors and policymakers. Asynchronous cycles are now beginning to emerge as China continues to re-open while the West battles with inflation and market volatility.

Quintet Private Bank announced today its 2022 financial results, highlighting the ongoing growth of its core business over a 12-month period marked by the firm’s return to profitability.

The fast-moving financial markets saw the attention switch from fears of stickier-than-expected inflation to the banking troubles in the US and in Switzerland.

ESG characteristics are at the core of our investment philosophy. We believe that understanding material environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors improves the investment decision-making process and can lead to better returns.

Risks to financial stability stemming from the turmoil of US regional banks, such as Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), are back at the forefront and are reshuffling the monetary policy outcomes for the Federal Reserve (Fed).

How do you feel when someone asks you to do something like a girl? Offended? Humiliated? How is it that “like a girl” has an underlying meaning of weaker, lower quality and generally inferior than what a man would do?

Markets are concerned the disinflation narrative might be losing steam following hot inflation prints in the US and Europe, which sent government bond yields higher across the board.

Given the European Central Bank’s (ECB) hawkish tone in recent weeks, all eyes will be on the euro area preliminary inflation print for February in the hope that it shows signs of easing price pressures.

“When it comes to so-called market timing there are only two sorts of people: those who can’t do it, and those who know they can’t do it”, British investor Terry Smith famously said. Rather than timing the market, a better strategy is time in the market.

All eyes are on the US inflation data release this week, which is expected to have continued to slow down compared to January 2022 (headline and core). However, it remains to be seen if the recent disinflationary comment from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell holds true.

Following one of the worst years in recent memory for fixed income markets, high-quality government bonds are rebounding and now offer decent returns for relatively low levels of risk.

Despite the market optimism since the start of the year, we are maintaining our slight risk-off stance in the near-term with a preference for higher quality assets with more defensive characteristics.

The sustained fall in US inflation alongside the reopening of China’s economy and a warmer-than-normal European winter brought hopes of a more optimistic start to 2023 than initially feared by markets.

“Counterpoint” highlights dynamics that will drive the global economy, financial markets and key asset classes over a year marked by cyclical change

From food to financial investments, a small-scale sustainable approach can have a big impact. We talk to Grantley Hall’s Michelin-star chef Shaun Rankin, Phil Harris, executive director at Brown Shipley and AJ Singh, executive director at Quintet who is part of their sustainable investment team, to find out more.

Any self-respecting investment strategist derives a fair amount of titles for research reports from Western films. If it’s scenario analysis, then The Good, the Bad and the Ugly does a good job. If it’s fiscal and political uncertainty we’re talking about, as we’ve seen in the UK recently (leading to Liz Truss’s resignation and the shortest government in the country’s history), perhaps The Wild Bunch. And, of course, A Fistful of Dollars refers to currencies.

Luxembourg-headquartered independent wealth manager named one of Europe’s ‘Outstanding Private Banks’ , also recognized among world’s ‘Best Banks for Sustainability and ESG Leadership’

Markets are full of sayings that somehow have to do with water: “one tide lifts all boats” when liquidity comes in; or, vice versa, “when the tide goes out, you find out who’s swimming naked”. Or they have to do with animals: are you a “bull” or a “bear”? Investors ask hurriedly.

The success of monetary and fiscal stimulus in cushioning the pandemic blow is well known. But the resulting demand surge, pressing against constrained supply, has also produced an excess of inflation and rising interest rates – a drag on equities.

“Why do economists use decimal points in their forecasts? To show that they have a sense of humour” is a joke that resurfaces in the marketplace every time volatility picks up. There’s some truth in this. Things rarely move consistently in one direction. So incrementally tracking how they’re unfolding is useful.