Download PDF Introduction Convertible bonds are a unique way of raising capital which allows investors to convert the security into a predefined number of shares of common stock given by the conversion ratio. Convertible bonds have a long history, dating back to the 19th century when American railway firms were Read more…
Download PDF Introduction Weather conditions play a fundamental role in the dynamics of the world economy, with estimates revealing that nearly 30% of economic activities and an overwhelming 70% of businesses encounter susceptibility to weather-related fluctuations. This substantial impact underlines the critical necessity to hedge the risk associated with weather. Read more…
Download PDF USA This week started quietly for the US markets, with all major equity indices falling slightly while investors were cautiously looking ahead to Thursday’s PCE print, which came out at 2.4%, the smallest annual increase in nearly three years. On Friday, the ISM data revealed a contraction in Read more…
Download PDF A Match made in Heaven In this article, we aim to integrate the momentum and carry factors to devise a strategy that enhances risk-adjusted returns. The underlying concept is straightforward. We seek to avoid positions with negative carry. Even with a momentum signal prompting us to go long Read more…
Download PDF Introduction With the AI trend currently dominating markets highlighted by NVIDIA’s earnings announcement this week, Palantir has gained a fresh breath of momentum over the last year. It has yet to reach its all-time high which was during the meme-stock frenzy in January of 2021 fuelled by redditors, Read more…
Download PDF USA In a strong week for the broad U.S. stock market, equity indexes generally trended upward, except for the small-cap Russell 2000 Index, which was down 0.8% for the week. Both the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite Index reached new intraday highs, with the latter experiencing Read more…
Download PDF Introduction China’s economy has embraced growth prospects for as long as we can remember, but it now faces a myriad of systemic obstacles. From inherent problems tied to its aging population and lack of independent institutions, to today’s property and financial crisis, China is now at an important Read more…
Download PDF Introduction Interest rate derivatives (IRD) represent the largest segment of the OTC derivative market. As of June 2023, the global OTC derivatives notional outstanding amounted to $714.7tn as reported by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The biggest share of this market is represented by IRD and FX Read more…
Download PDF USA This week in the US, which was headlined by the upcoming CPI print, the markets showed mixed results. The Dow Jones managed to only grow by 0.2%, while the S&P 500 could not outgrow Monday’s opening numbers overall decreasing by 0.1%. NASDAQ experienced even a larger decline Read more…
Download PDF Introduction In 2023, the global economy has exceeded expectations, with projected global GDP growth set to beat consensus forecasts from a year ago. Core inflation has seen a significant drop, plummeting from 6% in 2022 to 3% across economies recovering from the post-COVID price surges. Notably, the US Read more…
Download PDF Introduction In a high interest rate environment, firms have to face new challenges to their capital structure and adapt to higher financing costs. Highly leveraged firms now confront more than substantial interest expenses and difficulties in refinancing. More borrowers now turn to private credit due to its additional Read more…
Download PDF Commodity futures have become a widespread vehicle amongst investors and traders as they can be used for strategic and tactical asset allocation. The strategic appeal of commodity indices comes from the equity-like return, their key diversification role, and their inflation-hedging properties. The term structure of commodities usually refers Read more…
Download PDF USA This week’s US trading session has been relatively quiet considering the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday and an earlier market close on Friday. Nonetheless, there were a few relevant economic indicators starting with the Fed’s minutes released on Tuesday which showed that the FED’s members unanimously believe monetary Read more…
Download PDF US Equity Performance As we approach the end of the year, the narrative on the US stock market has greatly changed since September/October and especially since the beginning of the year as major macroeconomic uncertainty has now shifted to what the cutting cycle will look like due to Read more…
Download PDF Introduction One of the main drivers of foreign exchange rates is the change in current and expected interest rates, influenced by central banks’ forward guidance and economic releases. In this article, we explore a paper by Nicolas Georges (2014) and implement a systematic FX strategy on G10 currencies, Read more…