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The Covid-19 crisis has recently worsened, particularly in Europe. In Asia, and above all in China, the situation looks much better. In the third quarter, the second-largest economy grew by 4.9 percent year on year. At the same time, Joe Biden was able to improve in the election polls over the last two months, even if his lead over Trump has recently declined slightly. One of the beneficiaries of this development were emerging market equities, which significantly outperformed developed market equities in the last four weeks, also driven by increased fund inflows. On the surface, not much has…

October has so far been much better than September; and the second half of October is even more positive for stock markets, at least historically speaking.

Volatility on the stock markets remains high. In September, the VIX volatility index for US equities remained above 25%. Looking ahead, the important developments are the US presidential election, vaccine news and the Q3 reporting season, which has already begun.

The volatility of equities has recently increased. The US Federal Reserve is maintaining its position and points out that fiscal policy should now provide impetus for the US economy. However, Democrats and Republicans cannot agree on a further stimulus package. A compromise before the US elections now seems increasingly unlikely. The so-called ‘superforecasters’ put the probability of a deal before the elections at less than 20%. In addition, they have moved their forecasts for a rapid vaccine approval and distribution slightly into the future. This, together with the increased COVID-19…

Compact outlook on capital markets, the economy, equities, bonds, commodities and currencies.

If a coronavirus vaccine is approved, a globally synchronised recovery will probably become the dominant theme for capital markets.

We consider the recent correction in the overheated and in part ambitiously valued US technology sector to be healthy. In addition to some profit-taking after the strong rally, the options market bore some responsibility for this. With their call bets on rising prices, US private investors forced market makers to hedge against further rising markets in the form of stock purchases, which intensified the upward pressure and led to increased volatility. When the reversal occurred, these hedges were reduced and the feedback loop had a strengthening effect on the downward movement. We believe the…

The recovery of the stock markets has taken a breather – the summer was lacklustre, as we expected. While in the last few

weeks there was initially a clear upward trend at first, there has recently been a significant setback.

“Towards gold throng all, to gold cling all, yes all” – after a rise of 20% in euros, this Goethe quote seems to be proving true again. Gold is one of the bestperforming assets this year. In view of the significant economic uncertainty causedby the coronavirus, this is hardly surprising. A look beneath the surface, however, reveals further reasons for this record run. Although stock markets have been recovering rapidly since mid-March, gold continued to surge. But how much more

can it rise? Is it still worth adding gold to your portfolio?

David Mortlock (45) and Christian Kühn (52) have been appointed 39th and 40th managing partners in the 430 years history of the bank. Mortlock is the first non-German to become a managing partner of Berenberg since its founding in 1590 and will also take a 5% stake in the bank.

Stock markets - above all the US megacaps and cyclicals - have continued to rise over the last two weeks. The Nasdaq, which we described as a "safe haven" at the beginning of February, has seen a return of almost 30% since the beginning of the

year. Their high cash flow generation, strong balance sheets and share buyback programs provide a supportive effect. In some tech segments, however, a great deal (of hope) has already been priced in, so we currently feel more comfortable with

European small caps and cyclical companies. The probability that a Coivd-19 vaccine will be approved in the…

Frankfurt. Germany's oldest bank achieved top marks in its first annual assessment of the Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) supported by the United Nations.

In the main category ESG Strategy & Governance, Berenberg achieved the highest score of A+. In the other six categories, Berenberg received the second highest grade A. This means that the house, with its very first rating in six out of seven categories, was rated better than the median for all PRI signatories and the participating investment managers.

A second wave of lockdowns could derail the economic upturn that started at an impressive speed in May.

The summer remains lacklustre. Over the past four weeks, not only have European stock markets stagnated. Below the surface, however, cyclicals and especially small caps have outperformed more defensive stocks. Positive economic surprises and hopes for a coronavirus vaccine also provided support, as did the continuing scepticism

and cautious positioning of many market participants. Speculative investors, for example, have reduced their equity positioning in futures over the past few weeks. Positions in corporate and emerging market bonds benefitted from a further

narrowing of risk premiums.…

So far, the trend towards sustainable investment has been focused primarily on equity markets. Many market participants have attributed greater importance to the analysis of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria in equities due to the higher perceived influence and potential share price impact.

The recovery rally on the stock markets has continued at a slower pace over the past four weeks. US equities in particular have gained ground.

The lackluster summer has already begun. While equity markets rose in the first three weeks of July, partly thanks to a better-than-expected Q2 reporting season, last week brought a correction - particularly in Europe. However, the major US technology stocks continued to rise thanks to good quarterly figures. Political uncertainty remains high, the positive economic surprises of recent months are likely to fade and a renewed lockdown due to a second wave of corona would be fatal for the global economy. Moreover, the August-September period is often weak for equities. Positive drivers would be…

Compact outlook on capital markets, the economy, equities, bonds, commodities and currencies. New every month.