The Foord Flex Income Fund Turns One

Foord’s fixed interest product suite has now reached its one-year anniversary. The funds have gained good traction with retail and institutional investors alike. Portfolio manager Farzana Bayat takes a closer look at the Foord Flex Income Fund — the flagship of the fixed interest product range.

Fezeka Programme for Gender Diversity in Asset Management

The Fezeka Graduate Programme is a graduate readiness programme for black women looking to enter the asset management industry. Foord has partnered with a select group of investment firms to deliver this exciting initiative. Director Brendan Africa takes a closer look at the programme.

Thematic Investing — Navigating the Investment Landscape

In the dynamic world of investing, identifying and capitalising on emerging themes can be key to long-term investment success. While change often creates near-term noise, Linda Eedes writes that it also creates opportunities for patient, forward-thinking investors.

The Foord Asia Ex-Japan Fund Explained

Asia offers a diverse matrix of fast-growing, emerging-market investment opportunities — although not without risk. In 2021, Foord Singapore launched the Foord Asia ex-Japan Fund to offer investors bespoke access to this dynamic market. Portfolio manager JC Xue delves into the fund’s genesis, strategy and performance.

Will the Dollar Remain the Global Reserve Currency?

De-dollarisation has become a trending geopolitical topic after the perceived weaponisation of the greenback as a tool to sanction Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Portfolio manager Rashaad Tayob suggests that the threat of de-dollarisation is an underappreciated risk, given the speed at which geopolitical shifts are materialising.

MARKETS IN A NUTSHELL — FOR SEPTEMBER 2023

In our monthly podcast, ‘Markets in a nutshell’, Linda Eedes discusses what’s happened in global markets and economies over the past month, how we see things playing out and how Foord is positioned as a result.

MARKETS IN A NUTSHELL — FOR SEPTEMBER 2023

As autumn descended on the Northern Hemisphere, it brought with it a chill on Wall Street. Global equity and bond markets both sold off sharply — September was the worst month for the US S&P500 Index this year. US stocks have now fallen more than 7% since their July peaks. As with the rally earlier this year, the selloff was valuation and not earnings driven — a stark reminder that thematic rallies are vulnerable to rapid reversals.

MARKETS IN A NUTSHELL — AUGUST 2023

After July’s rallies, global equity and bond markets took a U-turn in August. Developed economies find themselves in a tug-of-war between growth and inflation. In the US, upbeat economic data and hawkish comments from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole Symposium have put expectations of early Fed rate cuts for next year in question.

MARKETS IN A NUTSHELL PODCAST — AUGUST 2023

In our monthly podcast, ‘Markets in a nutshell’, Linda Eedes discusses what’s happened in global and South African markets and economies over the past month, how we see things playing out and how Foord is positioned as a result.

The Threat of Fiscal Dominance in the US and Implications for Investors

After a double whammy of negative returns for both equity and bond investors in 2022, many investors anticipating a US recession this year thought 2023 may turn out to be the Year of the Bond. But in stark contrast, the US stock market has rallied strongly, and US bond investors are staring at losses over the year to date. Long-dated yields having surged, with the 10-year yield moving to its highest level since 2007 and the 30-year yield to its highest level since 2011, with bond prices falling in turn. The reason most widely quoted for this is the US economy’s surprising resilience in the face of Fed rate hikes of more than 5 percentage points over the past 18 months. But behind the higher-for-longer story, there is another probable cause for sagging US long bonds: a surge of long-dated Treasury issuance needed to plug federal deficits, and the continued deterioration of the US debt trajectory.