The new year brought little in the way of new order as on 3rd January President Trump launched US strikes in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of Nicolás Maduro and the abrupt disruption of the Bolivarian leadership. At the time this was huge news, albeit not very impactful on
Following one of the sharpest two-day falls on record triggered by President Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff shock in early April, which left the S&P 500 index down by over 15% from the beginning of 2025, few would have predicted that by year end the bull market that began in October
On the surface, returns from most asset classes and markets appear to reflect a becalmed and uneventful month: global equities returned 0.3% (MSCI World index), and global government bonds 0.1%. However, this masks considerable intra-month volatility; the S&P 500 index suffered its biggest setback since April’s ‘Liberation Day’, with a
Heightened geopolitical tensions, policy shifts and economic fragility globally are likely to keep investors cautious, support safe-haven assets, and create selective opportunities in strategic sectors such as manufacturing, raw materials and exports. Download PDF