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Ben Bernanke

September 17, 2013

Most global equity markets have recovered sharply in the last year, but that doesn’t mean family offices are piling in, as many of them still remain wary of risk. Campden reports.

Don't mention the B-word – Bernanke. When the chairman of the Federal Reserve suggested the Fed was starting to think about winding down its asset-purchasing programme investors started heading for the exits, and US equities – not to mention assets in emerging markets, which had benefitted from the global search for yield – nose-dived.

Investment of the quarter: Opportunities knock in equities

September 5, 2013

Equities ended the second quarter well off their highs, with Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke shouldering much of the blame. This could prove to be a buying opportunity if the world’s biggest economy shows it can strengthen without the use of stimulus.

Investment of the quarter: Hedge Funds…with a few caveats

May 27, 2013

Given all the fuss in the media about problems in southern Europe, you would have thought the entire region was about to go pop.

The invisible touch

May 13, 2013

The world has learned to love its central bankers, now their “Invisible Touch” is giving an unprecedented boost to market sentiment.

“She’s got something you just can’t trust
It’s something mysterious
And now it seems I’m falling, falling for her.”
- Genesis

The world has learned to love its central bankers, now their “Invisible Touch” is giving an unprecedented boost to market sentiment.

In a recent note, Tom Becket, chief investment officer at Psigma Investment Management said second-guessing their intentions had become key to asset allocation.

I’m so bearish, I’m bullish

January 15, 2013

In years gone by, central banks were supposed to be the guardians of monetary discipline – vigilant in protecting citizens against inflation and currency debasement. They were rarely known to smile.

Bankers used to quake every time the governor of the Bank of England twitched an eyebrow. Former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker developed a fearsome reputation for taming inflation in the early 1980s.

But the times are changing to suit economic circumstances, as anxious politicians bend central bankers to their will.

30 years of famine

November 22, 2012

We are creatures of habit. We find it reassuring when day follows night, spring follows winter and lunch follows breakfast. But that doesn’t stop us worrying about the future because anxiety is at the core of our instinct for self-preservation. By not thinking how things go wrong, we put ourselves at risk.

We are creatures of habit. We find it reassuring when day follows night, spring follows winter and lunch follows breakfast.

Social progress has made our life ever more predictable. Rather than worrying about where to get our next meal, we know our local supermarket’s open seven days a week. Instead of foraging for wood to burn, we switch on the central heating.

Over the last 30 years, we have also been reassured by economic growth, punctured by occasional setbacks of up to three years, following overreach.