Market Watch

The Bank of Japan took market by surprise with a shift to their monetary policy. What does this mean for the Yen? Tony Nash, CEO of Complete Intelligence gives us his views whilst weighing in on the Fed fund rate after the slew of recent economic data. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China released a slew of economic data; GDP, retail sales, industrial production, new loans and unemployment. What do these macro data points tell us about the state of the economy currently and in 2023? Carlos Casanova, Senior Economist at UBP helps us unpack this. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Treasury Department warned that the U.S. will reach the debt limit on January 19 and will need extraordinary measures from Congress to avoid a default. How concerned should financial markets be with this upcoming event? Joe Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist at the US Trust-BOA Private Wealth Management tells us. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Global equity markets and also in the US are off to a great start in 2023. This was partly driven by the more modest US CPI print for December. But should investors exercise caution especially when earnings season has kicked off. A key a concern would be declining profit margins which may lead to compression of valuation multiples. For insights, we speak to Kingsley Jones, Chief Investment Officer...

December's CPI figure was better than expected but will this be enough to convince the Federal Reserve to be less hawkish. Tim Mulholland, President, of TJM Limited in Chicago  tell us his answer whilst giving us his ideas if you are a China bull. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Markets have been rallying despite the Fed cautioning against unwarranted easing in financial conditions.  Vishnu Varathan, Head of Economics & Strategy at Mizuho Bank tells us if it is a good idea to bet against the Federal Reserve and his expectations of the all important CPI figure. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Nasdaq index has fallen more than 30% in 2022 but is up YTD in 2023. Is it time to relook at some of the larger and more established tech names like Apple and Amazon? Also, with China's reopening, what sectors should investors be focused on? For insights, we speak to Jack Kouzi, Director for Strategy, VFS Group. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Share price gains for the Malaysian automotive sector have been decent in 2022 with most stocks showing gains led by Bermaz Auto which was up 35%. This is on the back of strong TIV sales for 11M22 which rose 45% yoy to 642,306 units underpinned by healthy backlog orders received prior to the sales and service tax (SST) holiday expiry on 30 June 2022. However, with a looming global recession and hi...

The market is currently pricing in a rate cut in the US for 2023 which may be too optimistic given the Fed has remained steadfast in its fight against inflation. However, the silver lining is China reopening which has happened faster than expected may help lift global growth. What does all this mean for global economies? For insights, we speak to Joe Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist, US Trust-BOA...

The Hong Kong and Chinese equity markets have been the outperformers among Asian markets on a year to date basis no thanks to China ending their covid zero strategy. We ask Tan Teng Boo CEO of Capital Dynamics Group what are the best proxies buys for this theme and his views on other Asian markets. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

America's employers added a solid 223,000 jobs in December. Although it was a decent gain, it was the lowest monthly increase in two years. Does this mean the job market has begun to cool off and what does this mean for terminal Feds Fund Rate? Also, what does a China reopening mean for the Australian dollar and its currency? For insights, we speak to Clifford Bennett, Chief Economist, ACY Securit...

Gloves were the darling sector in 2020, where every company involved in its manufacturing saw its share prices jump by multiple times, no thanks to the pandemic that created a global shortage. Fast forward two years later, the sector is plagued by overcapacity, falling average selling prices with even the larger players in the red. What then does the future hold for the glove sector and is it time...

US markets are off to a rocky start as the Fed remains firm in its commitment to bring down inflation to 2%. This is in spite of the Fed Funds Futures pricing a rate cut this year. Should investors now be positioning for value stocks given the long standing underperformance and only switch to growth once a Fed pivot is clearer? For insights we speak to Walter Todd, President and Chief Investment O...

The performance for M-REITs have been rather resilient for 2022 even in a rising interest rate environment, where Bank Negara Malaysia has raised the Overnight Policy Rate by 100 bps. Jessica Low, Senior Analyst at MIDF Amanah Investment Bank tells us her outlook for 2023 and what are her top picks. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The minutes from December’s FOMC meeting have been released. Tony Nash, CEO of Complete Intelligence gives us his insights on what this means for the pace of rate hikes in the US. He also gives us his views on oil price as the black gold has fallen by 9% in the last two trading days. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The transportation sector ended mixed for 2022 on Bursa Malaysia, with only Malaysia Airports chalking up gains of 10%. Meanwhile, developed markets such as the US and EU seem likely to face recession this year. While China’s reopening is positive, there are also concerns on bottlenecks, with rising Covid-19 cases and testing requirements. How should investors position for exposure to the transpor...

China reopening will certainly lift commodities demand such as lithium and iron ore which may be positive for Australia and commodity related stocks. Given funds are still generally underweight China equities, should investors start nibbling and what sectors and stocks should they be focusing on? For insights, we speak to Kingsley Jones, Chief Investment Officer, Jevons Global. Image credit: Shutt...

2022 was generally unkind to equity markets, especially developed markets like the US which had its worst performance since 2008. This caused a selldown globally and of course Malaysia was not spared. But as we head into 2023, Malaysia looks more stable politically and with a China reopening, will there be catalysts that would cause a rerating of the market? For answers we speak to Alexander Chia,...

2022 was unkind to equity markets, especially the US which had its worst performance since 2008. But will 2023 see a positive rerating of markets? Joe Quinlan, Chief Market Strategist, US Trust-BOA Private Wealth Management tells us whilst giving us his top ideas for the year. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Although the US has had their worst performance since 2008, is there more downside risk? We ask Tim Mulholland, President of TJM Limited in Chicago this pertinent question as we look ahead to 2023. We ask if we should consider safe haven assets and what they are? Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With China reopening its borders fully, what are the implications to its economy and to Hong Kong? These are questions we pose to Carlos Casanova, Senior Economist, UBP. We also ask if the era of King Dollar is over. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The expected Santa rally for US equities did not materialise for a second consecutive year due to largely fears of a possible hard landing. In comparison, China and HK equities appear to have performed better in 4Q driven by the slew of relaxation of Covid-19 policies. Where are markets heading in 2023 and when will it bottom? For answers we speak to Jack Kouzi, Director for Strategy, VFS Group. I...

How aggressive will the Fed be in 2023 in light of an impending recession and will Asian Central Banks be able to decouple or will it have to resort to being price takers? China has further eased its Covid-19 restrictions by scrapping quarantine for inbound travellers. But will this be met by higher infections and has this been somewhat priced in by markets. For answers, we speak to Vishnu Varatha...

The FBM KLCI Index has been range bound over the past few weeks and is unable to break the psychological barrier of 1500. This is in spite of a new government in place and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim winning the confidence vote in parliament. What does 2023 hold for the Malaysian equity market and what sectors and stocks will be in focus? For answers, we speak to Tushar Mohata, Head of...

Peter Lim, Chief Research Officer, Trident Analytics shares his thoughts on how markets will perform in 2023 after a challenging and volatile year for markets in 2022. Image credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.