10 May 2020 Every day one hears the grim news regarding the global economic outlook. Nevertheless, financial markets continue to rebound relentlessly. What's up? The markets are working through various phases in coming to grips with the Covid-19 emergency. In the first phase, investors panicked as the Coronavirus spread world-wide, lockdowns were intensified, and fears [...]
1 April 2020 The investor in the photgraph above can almost be forgiven for putting his head in his hands -- a lapse of proper hygiene. The first quater of 2020 tested the nerve of even the most hardened market professionals. Following the recent equity market bounce, the commencement of Q2 2020 and the US [...]
25 March 2020 In recent weeks, policymakers world-wide have repeatedly pledged "to do whatever it takes" to offset the economic damage wreaked by the Covid-19 outbreak. In general, the aim has been to provide needed medical resources, allocate compensation for sick leave, provide direct payments to workers losing their jobs, and to give support to [...]
20 March 2020 Initial data from China indicate the economic impact of the Coronavirus and efforts to prevent its spread will be significant. I will make some preliminary global economic projections, although they come with a greater degree of uncertainty than normal. Perhaps more importantly, I will set out some guideposts about how to assess [...]