Insights

The year ended as it began: with Donald Trump in the news, investors betting on interest rate cuts, and markets and gold at or near all-time highs. In December, the US Federal Reserve trimmed rates for the third…

Thanksgiving arrived just in time for US investors when the longest government shutdown on record concluded in November. After 43 days without funding — and without economic data — Congress brokered a fragile…

Investors expecting to be spooked in October left with a sugar rush instead. Despite mounting reasons for caution — stubborn inflation, patchy growth, and the second-longest US government shutdown on record —…

Governments are again living beyond their means. In the United States, spending exceeds revenue by some $2 trillion a year. One-fifth of federal income is now devoted to interest payments. South Africa faces a…

After years of selling pressure, South African equities are showing signs of revival. The JSE hit record highs in September, driven by mining stocks — after gold and platinum prices surged to all-time peaks. Yet the…

Only six months ago the rand seemed in freefall. In April, during the tariff-driven sell-off, it nearly breached R20 to the US dollar. By early October it was trading near R17, its strongest point in more than two…