Brazil: Lula II — Firebrand or Pragmatist?

2 November 2022 Indeed, Brazil's election result was historic. Not only was former President Lula da Silva returned to power (by an unexpectedly narrow margin), but Jair Bolsonaro's defeat was the first by an incumbent since the country returned to democracy. Despite earlier threats to challenge the election outcome, President Bolsonaro and his supporters appear [...]

China: 2023 May Be Even Tougher than 2022

28 October 2022 At China's recently concluded 20th Communist Party Congress, Xi Jinping was re-elected to an unprecedented third term as Party leader. Xi now appears set to lead both the Party and government for the next five years, and likely even longer. With political power now secured, can the same be said about the [...]

India: Geopolitics, Climate, and Growth Risks

31 May 2022 In my March 2019 blog entitled "India: Long Growth Runway Still Lies Ahead", I suggested India may enjoy faster economic growth than all other large economies during the next decade, including China. The following Chart indicates the IMF now shares this appraisal, as India's long-term potential GDP exceeds all other countries (except [...]

European Markets: Intact or In Tatters?

12 May 2022 In my 2022 Strategy blog entitled "Avoiding Stagflation?" (published 1 December 2021), I suggested global financial market volatility was poised to rise, and equity and bond returns would be negative. On a relative basis, however, I made the case for an outperformance of European markets. Much has happened during the past six [...]