The Mints are falling apart: It’s time to reassess our view of emerging markets January 26, 2014 TO PARAPHRASE Antony in Julius Caesar, I come to bury the Mints idea, not to praise it. True, as with its Brics ancestor, former Goldman Sachs Asset Management head Jim O’Neill has hit upon something vitally important by identifying Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey as future economic giants. With the Brics, it was that the [...]
Don’t underestimate Turkey’s turmoil: Not all emerging markets will succeed January 8, 2014 TURKEY’S often-fickle political system may not make its current domestic turmoil seem particularly important. But the country’s troubles hold lessons for the likely success – or failure – of other emerging markets in 2014 and beyond. More and more, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan looks like a man who has outlasted his usefulness. If [...]
Miller gets lift from emerging market sales November 21, 2013 SABMILLER, the world’s second-largest brewer, said yesterday that emerging markets would continue to drive sales and earnings while European and North American consumers drink less beer. Other companies including Unilever and Diageo have reported a slowdown in emerging markets such as China and Brazil but SABMiller said it was upbeat on the outlook for Latin [...]
Pru puts faith in emerging markets boom November 14, 2013 PRUDENTIAL chief executive Tidjane Thiam yesterday said retiring US baby boomers and a burgeoning Asian middle class would fuel the company’s aggressive growth plans over the next five years. Thiam, who took over as Pru chief executive in 2009, sounded a bullish note on future growth prospects after posting double-digit profit increases in new business [...]
Diageo hurt by weak emerging markets growth October 17, 2013 DIAGEO posted a lower than expected rise in first quarter sales yesterday as strong growth in the US was dampened by a slowdown in emerging markets such as Africa and Russia. The world’s largest drinks company, which owns brands including Guinness and Smirnoff, said organic sales rose by three per cent in the three months [...]
CNBC Comment: Stability isn’t saving emerging markets October 14, 2013 INVESTORS have remained remarkably sanguine, despite being just a couple of days from the 17 October date when the US Treasury says it will run out of money if the debt ceiling isn’t raised. Yes, volatility has spiked, and very short-dated credit has seen yields higher. But whatever last minute extension is crafted, everyone expects [...]
Investment Comment: Emerging markets: A risky bargain October 8, 2013 Despite cheap valuations, investors must exercise extreme caution EMERGING market equities have underperformed developed markets for three years in a row. This year has been particularly volatile for the former, with concerns over the deceleration of the Chinese economy and the growing realisation that a wind-down in quantitative easing (QE) by the US Federal Reserve [...]