Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #44 - Opportunities for a new wave of investment in the Gulf states
KKR researchers cite five reasons why the Middle East is the place to be for investors in the coming decade.
Michel Salden
I'm Michel Salden, an economist with more than 20 years of experience in active portfolio management at firms including ABP and Vontobel. I specialise in credit, currencies and commodities and now work at Tresor Capital as an investment manager.
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #43 - Private credit: Wall Street's wild west
According to JPMorgan boss Jamie Dimon, private credit represents the new frontier of financial risk. The losses at Tricolor and Jefferies illustrate the vulnerability of this fast-growing market, even as systemic banks post strong quarterly results.
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #42 - Xi Jinping is playing the king of diamonds, but is it a bluff?
How China has become a superpower in precious metals, and how Europe is once again on the losing end.
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #41 - From Tokyo to Silicon Valley: how politics and AI are reshaping markets once again
Japan got its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, who is focused on defence and AI. OpenAI and AMD struck a mega-deal for 6 GW of computing power, symbolising the AI supercycle. Analysts remain torn between growth and bubble, while the US labour market continues to cool.
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #40 - AI momentum versus inflation concerns and US shutdown
This week's topics: The third quarter showed strong stock market performance in Asia and the US, driven by tech and expectations of interest rate cuts, while Europe lagged behind and inflation picked up again in the Netherlands and Belgium. At the same time, political uncertainties are increasing risks,
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #39 - The US draws attention again, Milei balances and Asia flourishes
This week's topics: The US economy surprised with strong growth figures, causing capital flows to return to the US, while Fed rate cuts and a weaker dollar provide additional support. In Argentina, Milei's reform agenda is delivering impressive declines in inflation and growth, but he is
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #38 - US rate cuts and pressure on European pension funds
This week's topics: The US Federal Reserve has started cutting interest rates to support the economy, a step that historically bodes well for equity markets. Other central banks around the world are following suit, and indicators such as the 'credit impulse' point to greater liquidity, suggesting
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #37 - Reforms in France remain difficult and the US corrects
This week's topics: France is once again grappling with political instability: the third prime minister in a year must try to unite a divided Assemblée and a towering national debt, while French bonds have now become riskier than Italian ones. In the US, the labour market turns out
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #33 - Inflation falls, oil is cheap: what does this mean for the Fed?
This week's topics: The US appears to be heading towards interest rate cuts on the back of a falling oil price and productivity gains from AI, while China and Europe remain economically sluggish. Dutch households are leaving €516 billion idle in savings accounts, missing out on wealth growth
Economy & Markets
Economy & Markets #32 – A hectic week on the stock market
This week's topics: The markets are unsettled by Trump's unpredictable trade policy and mounting political pressure on the Fed, an uncertainty that is being reinforced by a weak US jobs report. At the same time, economic policy and corporate earnings are diverging ever further between the