Global Asset Allocation, Politics & Governance, Ecstrat

John-Paul Smith

Global Asset Allocation, Politics & Governance

Ecstrat

Ecstrat is a consultancy advising on asset allocation between global equity markets, with a focus on the intersection of governments, geopolitics, governance and markets.
 
Over the past few years and more especially since the Great Financial Crisis (GFC), investors have become more focused on short-term market movements and real-time returns and have consequently neglected the analysis of the underlying structural themes that underpin longer term performance.
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More specifically we believe that the evolution of governance-based relationships between investors, controlling shareholders, labour and the state is one of the primary determinants of both relative and absolute performance between individual equity markets.
 
We will endeavour to provide investors with some of the context surrounding governance-related issues which encompass many different disciplines including history, economics and political science, as well as the financial metrics which are the most obvious manifestation of the structural characteristics of each market.
 
We will pay particular attention to the shifts and potential inflection points for governance in individual markets as these are often the best lead indicators for both economic and market performance.

Cross Asset Strategy

The increasing frequency with which Beijing switches from enforcing greater financial discipline to implementing monetary and fiscal stimulus measures, wastes resources, impairs productivity and undermines confidence in the economy and financial system. The debate within the Chinese leadership over the conduct of economic policy which has entered the public domain albeit fleetingly, has added to the impression that the authorities are in reactive mode. Beijing’s failure to lay out clear incentives from the top down is also having an increasingly perverse effect on the implementation of policies at a local level.External factors are also increasingly putting the Chinese leadership on the defensive. Beijing’s strategy has been built around strong state control and direction of the economy, alongside a mercantilist trade policy. The breakdown in China’s relationship with the US means that for the first time, there is a price to be paid for adhering to these policies in terms of the sustainable rate of economic growth going forward. It’s fairly clear that the leadership has no coherent response to this shift, other than to batten down the hatches and hope for the best.The key indicators to watch are China’s FX reserves together with any anecdotal evidence of widespread distress in the corporate sector, especially a deterioration in working capital ratios among the industrial and material companies, whose health serves as a barometer for the broader economy. So far, both these indicators are relatively quiescent, but the news flow is likely to show a marked deterioration over the next couple of months. The A-share index might appear cheap, but the market remains one of the most expensive globally by median stock. We continue to believe that notwithstanding July’s rally, global investors should favour defensive interest rate plays over growth and cyclical assets.

The increasing frequency with which Beijing switches from enforcing greater financial discipline to implementing monetary and fiscal stimulus measures, wastes resources, impairs productivity and undermines confidence in the economy and financial system. The debate within the Chinese leadership over the conduct of economic policy which has entered the public domain albeit fleetingly, has added to the impression that the authorities are in reactive mode. Beijing’s failure to lay out clear incentives from the top down is also having an increasingly perverse effect on the implementation of policies at a local level.External factors are also increasingly putting the Chinese leadership on the defensive. Beijing’s strategy has been built around strong state control and direction of the economy, alongside a mercantilist trade policy. The breakdown in China’s relationship with the US means that for the first time, there is a price to be paid for adhering to these policies in terms of the sustainable rate of economic growth going forward. It’s fairly clear that the leadership has no coherent response to this shift, other than to batten down the hatches and hope for the best.The key indicators to watch are China’s FX reserves together with any anecdotal evidence of widespread distress in the corporate sector, especially a deterioration in working capital ratios among the industrial and material companies, whose health serves as a barometer for the broader economy. So far, both these indicators are relatively quiescent, but the news flow is likely to show a marked deterioration over the next couple of months. The A-share index might appear cheap, but the market remains one of the most expensive globally by median stock. We continue to believe that notwithstanding July’s rally, global investors should favour defensive interest rate plays over growth and cyclical assets.

Growing Risks of a Crisis of Confidence in Chinese Policy Settings

Founder, Riedel Research

David Riedel

Founder

Independent equity research on GEM Markets

Riedel Research

Riedel provides equity research and analysis to leading financial organizations. By becoming members of a region (Asia, Latin America, Emerging Europe or Global), organizations have access to an integrated set of services including:

Regular company coverage reports
Up-to-date investment decision advice (buy, hold, sell)
Monthly regional and global conference calls
Customized company reports and unlimited on-line access to the program's services.

Riedel provides research coverage of companies across the full range of market capitalization. Experienced research professionals in each market develop company reports and analysis as well as earnings models and projections. Ratings are Buy, Hold and Sell with a focus on compelling investment ideas - both long and short. Downloadable, dynamic earnings models are built to facilitate sensitivity analysis.

Please feel free to contact us for complimentary access to our written research.  We want to show you that our unique research flow can add value and help develop a long-term, high value-add relationship.

Riedel's model focuses on providing clients with unique insights and consulting in addition to unlimited access to all produced research This model allows members to receive exponential benefits for their retainer fees.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

Hungary: Faster earnings growth should drive GDP higher in coming months. Mexico: Expected to raise rates 50bps next Thursday in the wake of inflation reported this week at 5.3% (the highest rate in 8 years).  This is a critical positive development for the Peso. Saudi Arabia: Has the most to lose from lower prices as this complicates attempts to diversify their economy.  Iran is less concerned as they are just coming off of sanctions and any revenue they get is better than before.  Iraq would…

Hungary: Faster earnings growth should drive GDP higher in coming months. Mexico: Expected to raise rates 50bps next Thursday in the wake of inflation reported this week at 5.3% (the highest rate in 8 years).  This is a critical positive development for the Peso. Saudi Arabia: Has the most to lose from lower prices as this complicates attempts to diversify their economy.  Iran is less concerned as they are just coming off of sanctions and any revenue they get is better than before.  Iraq would…

Who Wins and Who Loses from Oil Under $50? Hint: Invest in Asia

Energy Expert

Thierry Bros, PhD

Thierrybros.com

Interesting article in the Financial Time (FT) on stock exchanges fighting for Saudi Aramco IPO <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/41af604e-0315-11e7-ace0-1ce02ef0def9" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/content/41af604e-0315-11e7-ace0-1ce02ef0def9 </a>with the following conclusion "Saudi Aramco will initially list as much as 5% of the company and investors and analysts have questioned the size of Riyadh’s $2tn valuation. But even if it reaches just half that target it would still raise $50bn — twice as much as Alibaba’s record IPO in 2014."Back in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/saudi-aramco-value-tn-maybe-not" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:8177">Saudi Aramco Value: $tn? Maybe Not!</a> my…

Interesting article in the Financial Time (FT) on stock exchanges fighting for Saudi Aramco IPO https://www.ft.com/content/41af604e-0315-11e7-ace0-1ce02ef0def9 with the following conclusion "Saudi Aramco will initially list as much as 5% of the company and investors and analysts have questioned the size of Riyadh’s $2tn valuation. But even if it reaches just half that target it would still raise $50bn — twice as much as Alibaba’s record IPO in 2014."Back in Saudi Aramco Value: $tn? Maybe Not! my…

New York and London Battle for Saudi Aramco IPO

Investing in high growth Asian frontier economies., Asia Frontier Capital

Scott Osheroff

Investing in high growth Asian frontier economies.

Asia Frontier Capital

Asia Frontier Capital Ltd. is a pioneering fund management company based in Hong Kong that specializes in investing in high growth Asian frontier economies by managing the AFC Asia Frontier Fund , AFC Iraq Fund and the AFC Vietnam Fund.

The AFC Asia Frontier Fund invests in public equities of Asian frontier countries that are seeing increasing consumption due to favorable demographic trends, rising incomes and high GDP growth. The fund invests in listed equities of companies that have their principal business activities in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Iraq, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. The AFC Asia Frontier Fund is positioned to take advantage of the continuing economic shifts in these countries and offers high returns combined with significant diversification opportunities. This fund is directed by the founder and CEO of Asia Frontier Capital, Thomas Hugger, who has been investing in frontier markets across Asia and Africa for more than 20 years.

The AFC Iraq Fund was launched on the 26th June 2015 and aims to achieve long-term capital appreciation for investors by capturing value and growth potential in the post conflict high-growth & resource rich Iraq market. The fund emphasises long term investment horizon to truly capture the opportunity in Iraq. The fund's investable universe consists of locally listed companies that have their principal business activities in Iraq as well as foreign listed companies that have the majority of the business in Iraq as a whole including the prosperous Kurdish Region of Iraq (KRI). The AFC Iraq Fund offers access to investments in post conflict recovery potential of Iraq, including the KRI, and/or stability in its territory. The AFC Iraq Fund is managed by Asia Frontier Capital (Iraq) Limited, Cayman Islands under the executive leadership team of Thomas Hugger (CEO & Fund Manager) and Ahmed Tabaqchali (CIO) who have more than 47 years of investment experience as well as an extensive background covering global, emerging, frontier and MENA markets.

The AFC Vietnam Fund invests exclusively in listed Vietnamese equities to capture value in growth companies with a focus on the small to medium size companies. This market segment offers a unique investment opportunity as the valuation gap between large- and small-cap stocks in Vietnam is presently much wider than in comparable neighboring markets and the valuations are significantly depressed versus their regional peers. The fund adopts a fundamental-quantitative approach and employs an in-house earnings model to identify attractive companies where we see high growth opportunities. In conjunction with targeting the maximum upside potential the portfolio has been structured to mitigate corporate government and liquidity risks. The fund invests in a diversified portfolio of 70-90 attractively valued companies to carefully control concentration risk.  This approach allows the fund to sell, or buy, positions without having a significant market impact. The fund is directed under the executive leadership of Thomas Hugger and Andreas Vogelsanger who have more than 50 years combined experience managing investments in frontier markets, Asia and around the world.

For more information about the fund, management team and investment strategy please contact us at info@asiafrontiercapital.com.

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos to visit portfolio companies and other companies on our shortlist. The photos in this article are all by AFC.

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos to visit portfolio companies and other companies on our shortlist. The photos in this article are all by AFC.

Asia Frontier Capital Travel Report: Laos

<div class="content-highlight">As International Oil Companies (IOC) have now published their FY2016 results, let's compare their level of oil and gas production to see which one is best positioned if our world has to move away from oil (and coal) to gas, the cleanest fossil fuel (and renewable).</div><div style="text-align: center;" class="content-caption">
<figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/021/237/original/2016%20HC%20production.JPG?1487582898" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="21237"></figure>Source: company data, thierrybros.com
</div><ul><li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/23749" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:23749:1">Gazprom PJSC (GAZP RX)</a>'s hydrocarbon production increased by 1% thanks to an 8% increase in oil. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/23749" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:23749:1">Gazprom PJSC (GAZP RX)</a> is the biggest listed hydrocarbon producer but more importantly, with gas…</li></ul>

As International Oil Companies (IOC) have now published their FY2016 results, let's compare their level of oil and gas production to see which one is best positioned if our world has to move away from oil (and coal) to gas, the cleanest fossil fuel (and renewable).
Source: company data, thierrybros.com

Gazprom PJSC (GAZP RX)'s hydrocarbon production increased by 1% thanks to an 8% increase in oil. Gazprom PJSC (GAZP RX) is the biggest listed hydrocarbon producer but more importantly, with gas…

Are International Oil Companies Adapting to Climate Change Challenges?

China

Wintime Energy  Co., Ltd. is in coal mining business.  The Company's main businesses are coal mining, investment in the power plant, developing new energy technology, trading business, and rental.

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Wintime Energy Co Ltd A (600157 CH)

Growing Risks of a Crisis of Confidence in Chinese Policy Settings

The increasing frequency with which Beijing switches from enforcing greater financial discipline to implementing monetary and fiscal stimulus...

John-Paul Smith

Who Wins and Who Loses from Oil Under $50? Hint: Invest in Asia

Hungary: Faster earnings growth should drive GDP higher in coming months.Mexico: Expected to raise rates 50bps next Thursday in the wake of...

David Riedel

New York and London Battle for Saudi Aramco IPO

Interesting article in the Financial Time (FT) on stock exchanges fighting for Saudi Aramco IPO...

Thierry Bros, PhD

Asia Frontier Capital Travel Report: Laos

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos...

Asia Frontier Capital

Are International Oil Companies Adapting to Climate Change Challenges?

As International Oil Companies (IOC) have now published their FY2016 results, let's compare their level of oil and gas production to see which one...

Thierry Bros, PhD

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