It has seemed all week that, in quiet US holiday trading, the only thing moving markets was the ‘will they/won’t they’ speculation about the future role of OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman.

It was a mildly positive week for global markets, with the S&P/ASX 300 gaining 0.7%. International developed markets were down 0.4% in AUD terms as measured by the MSCI World ex-Australia index.

It was a mixed week in global financial markets as the market continued to assess the likelihood of a hard or soft landing next year and the implication for inflation and interest

The last week in markets, as is often the case, was totally dominated by the US economy and monetary policy. In this case it was an encouraging inflation print on Wednesday, followed by the US Fed’s decision to keep rates on hold the next day.

This week started with more optimism about the US economy and further stock market gains until a sharp pullback on Wednesday snapped the US market’s nine-session winning streak. Thursday then saw a recovery, putting the S&P 500 back on track for an eighth week of gains, after US inflation data showed a gradual economic cooling in line with Fed hopes.

After outsized gains in big tech stocks last year, global equities have stumbled over the past week amidst a tech selloff, challenging the notion of their invulnerability and potentially signaling a shift in market optimism tied to recent liquidity trends.

With 2021 bringing cryptocurrencies into the spotlight for both retail and institutional investors, is there a place for these currencies within client portfolio's?

Join InvestSense Director Jonathan Ramsay and Andrew Hunt of Hunt Economics as they discuss the markets ‘breadth’ problem and how strong liquidity should keep things afloat until February.

Join host Toby Potter of IMAP with Nick Kirrage of Schroders and Jonathan Ramsay of InvestSense as they discuss value as a style, and as a driver of conviction when investing.

With inflation appearing to be on the way up again, what are some of the possible scenario’s for 2022? Where does inflation go from the zero bound we’ve reached?

Join InvestSense Director, Jonathon Ramsey to reflect on the price action seen in markets in 2021 and what this might mean for 2022.

With valuation still being the lightening rod for when markets react to external forces, the most expensive things tend to move the most. What does this mean for global asset allocators, and what is InvestSense’s position?

Nathan Fradley explains how the ethosesg technology can help you assess and design an ethical portfolio that aligns to an investor’s personal values.

ETFs that invest in carbon credits are now available. Why should we assume that their price will go up over time? And does buying a carbon credit ETF actually contribute positively to emissions reduction? Will it actually generate the outcome investors are expecting? This article explores the issues around investing in carbon credits.

There are many direct assets and funds that contribute positively to climate action within the InvestSense Better World Portfolios. Meridian Energy is one of the stand-out direct assets in the portfolio with a climate energy focus.

In recent years professional investors have got increasingly used to the fact that good news is bad news for markets because higher interest rates are likely to be necessary, and of course vice-versa. However, last week the effect was stronger than ever and stocks rallied mid-week amidst reports of widespread lay-offs and expectations of a weak US jobs report.

The US market finally market caught a bid last week. Early in the week the market was down few percent after an earnings miss by ad dependent social media platform Snap (of Snapchat fame) combined with weak guidance raised more doubts about the economy and economic resilience of tech companies.

The seventh negative week in a row for the US sent it briefly into official bear market territory before it recovered slightly late on Friday. The world’s largest stocks (Apple, Microsoft Amazon and Google) are all down 25%.

Mark Lewin was a financial planner, but is now the Director of Back Office Heros. In his planning business he gained significant efficiencies by recommending and implementing managed accounts for his clients. He tells us how...