Concerns over growth and debt are ravaging many nations in both Europe and the Near East as the sovereign debt crisis continues to wreck havoc on the region. While the issues threaten to take down all of the PIIGS member nations, some emerging markets right outside the euro zone have proved incredibly resilient despite these concerns. One especially strong economy in the region is in Turkey where growth is abundant and the wind appears to be at the country’s back for the foreseeable future. However, storm clouds are beginning to appear in the short term as some are growing increasingly worried that Turkey’s growth train is very close to flying off the tracks. [click to continue…]
Financial worries at home surrounding the debt-ceiling coupled with a downgrade of Ireland’s credit quality into junk territory overshadowed the start of corporate earnings seasons on Wall Street. Uncertainty and general pessimism pushed investors into the “safer” corner of the market and gold emerged strongest. The yellow precious metal hit record highs on Thursday as [...]
Wall Street started the week in red territory as European debt woes stole the headlines and put investors in a gloomy mood. Investors are very fearful that Italy’s financial health is seriously deteriorating, and if no grand solutions are conceived in a timely manner, then it might be too late to bail out the country [...]
Domestic equities were shaky last week to say the least, managing to rally on Thursday and immediately sell-off on Friday following a very dismal employment report. Gold emerged as the strongest asset class, while crude oil futures fluctuated wildly much like equity markets across the globe. Earnings season officially starts this week and we are [...]
With economic growth and job creation still slow to materialize in the Western world, interest rates remain at record low levels in many of the world’s key developed market regions. But in resource rich developed markets and commodity intensive emerging nations, inflation rates have begun to climb sharply higher in recent months. This has forced [...]
Interest in emerging markets has grown tremendously over the past few years, as the developing world has accounted for almost all of global GDP growth while the U.S., Western Europe, and other developed countries struggle to get back on track. Many investors have embraced ETFs as a means of overweighting the emerging markets, favoring the [...]
As the term ‘BRIC’ has entered the average American’s lexicon over the past two decades, many investors have seen the promise and peril of exposure to these rising superpowers. As more have invested and globalization has occurred, the correlation between these markets and industrialized nations has risen substantially; the once untapped markets see billions of [...]
The monthly ETF statistical bulletins have become somewhat predictable in recent months, as continued inflows into the ETF industry have been about as certain as death and taxes. So the latest figures from the NSX came as a bit of a shock; total ETF assets declined from about $835 million to $815 million during the [...]
Ten years ago, most investors would have been hard pressed to make a case for betting on the Turkish economy while keeping a straight face; the eastern European nation had a budget deficit equal to 16% of GDP and inflation as high as 72%. Moreover, the Turkish lira endured a dramatic depreciation and ultimate revaluation; [...]
With the developed markets of the world crippled by mounting debt, stagnant growth, and suddenly severe political risk, investors have undeniably begun allocating a larger portion of their portfolios to emerging markets. Boosted by ongoing urbanization, flexible and cheap manufacturing, and an abundance of natural resources, the developing economies have emerged as the leaders of [...]
With the fallout from last week’s conflict between the Israeli navy and a flotilla seeking to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip still raining down on the Middle East, the next escalation of tensions may not be far off. An Irish ship carrying pro-Palestinian activists and supplies was closing in on Gaza Friday afternoon, and [...]
