Si le quota d'investissements étrangers autorisé par Pékin a été augmenté de 15,8 milliards de dollars en 2012, il ne pèse que 1% du marché actions

Analyste du secteur bien connu dans la City, Matt Truman doit annoncer aujourd’hui le lancement de True Capital. Ce fonds doit privilégier l’investissement dans des sociétés, cotées ou non, capables de briller dans des niches de marché. Les distributeurs en ligne ou le luxe notamment seront scrutés. Matt Truman ne manque déjà pas d’idées d’investissement.

Les indices VIX et CVIX, censés refléter la nervosité des investisseurs sur les marchés actions et des changes, traduisent le soutien des banques centrales

La zone de résistance autour des 2.800 points est le prochain objectif

Trois des cinq syndicats de salariés représentatifs et le patronat sont parvenus à un accord. Un projet de loi sera préparé sans délais

Isabelle Rome, responsable de la stratégie crédit de Dexia AM

Selon Ernst & Young, la gestion de fortune suisse ne craint pas de retraits massifs de capitaux en dépit des menaces sur le secret bancaire

Rome a placé 5 milliards d'euros d'obligations à horizon 2015 et 2017 avec des rendements en baisse. Les taux à 10 ans refluent autour de 4,11%

Les indices CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) et CVIX qui mesurent respectivement la volatilité sur les marchés d’actions et des changes sont retombés à leur plus bas niveaux depuis la mi-juin 2007. Le discours rassurant de la BCE depuis septembre a renforcé la confiance.

Le Trésor italien a émis vendredi pour 5 milliards d’euros d’obligations dont 3,5 milliards d’euros à échéance 2015 à moins de 2%. Les taux italiens à 10 ans reculent à environ 4,11%. L’appétit des investisseurs pour les pays de la périphérie de la zone euro se renforce.

La définition de l'indice sera affinée, le nombre de maturités de référence réduit et le contrôle de la qualité des contributions renforcé

François de Varenne, CEO de Scor Global Investments dans un entretien accordé à Option Finance numéro 1203 : Pour la France, nous avons ensuite diminué par cinq notre exposition avant sa dégradation S&P. Notre exposition à la dette souveraine a ainsi été, de manière volontaire et anticipée, très fortement réduite passant à 26% aujourd’hui contre 38% actuellement constitué de 81% d’obligations, dont 29% d’obligations corporate, seulement 26% de dettes souveraines, 10% de titres à court-terme, 10% de covered bonds et Agency MBS et 6% de produits structurés et titrisés (MBS,ABS...). Notre poche actions, que nous avons réduite volontairement d’environ 30% en juin 2011 juste avant la très forte chute des marchés de l'été, s'élève aujourd’hui à 4%. Nous possédons également 4% d’immobilier, essentiellement à travers des immeubles de bureaux détenus en direct. Nous privilégions sur ce segment des actifs localisés dans des zones géographiques de première catégorie, avec un bail sécurisé sur du moyen terme et un locataire de qualité. Comme nous craignons à moyen terme et un locataire de qualité. Comme nous craignons à moyen terme un retour de l’inflation, l’immobilier nous paraît un bon placement que nous comptons renforcer à l’avenir. Dans beaucoup de pays, les loyers sont en effet indexés directement ou indirectement sur l’inflation, cet actif constitue donc une très bonne protection contre ce risque. Nous avons des cash flows prévisionnels très importants sur notre portefeuille obligataire. Ainsi, sur un portefeuille d’investissement d’environ 13.5 milliards d’euros, nous allons récupérer 5.7 milliards de coupons ou de remboursement obligataires dans les 24 mois à venir. Dans un environnement hautement incertain, dominé surtout par des décisions politiques, nous sommes convaincus qu’une maîtrise et une disponibilité à court terme de nos cash flows peuvent nous permettre de protéger la valeur de nos actifs et de saisir des opportunités quand elles se présenteront. Nous continuons également à accentuer la granularité et la diversification de notre portefeuille, par zone géographique, par classes d’actifs mais également par typologie de stratégies et de pay-offs, afin de stabiliser au mieux notre rendement en cas de choc sur le marchés.

Le luxembourgeois LRI Invest (8 milliards d’euros d’encours sous gestion ou administration dans 230 fonds) a annoncé que Dirk van Dreumel, qui était responsable depuis 2012 du marché allemand à Francfort, vient d’être nommé directeur régional de la distribution pour l’Allemagne, l’Autriche et la Suisse. Sa mission consiste à développer sur les trois marchés germanophones le lancement et la gestion de fonds d’investissement pour le compte de tiers, notamment des banques, des gestionnaires de fortune et des institutions de prévoyance.

Le groupe Credit Suisse a annoncé le 10 janvier le recrutement de Claudio de Sanctis en qualité de managing director, responsable des activités de private banking en Asie du Sud-Est.Claudio de Sanctis, qui prendra ses fonctions le 1er avril 2013, sera basé à Singapour. Il sera rattaché à Francesco de Ferrari, responsable des activités de private banking pour la région Asie-Pacifique. Claudio de Sanctis travaillait précédemment en tant que managing director, responsable des marchés ibériques et nordiques chez UBS Wealth Management Europe.

Les banques suisses ont relativement bien surmonté les effets de la crise financière mondiale ainsi que celle de la dette, rapporte L’Agefi suisse. Les trois quarts des établissements notent même s’en trouver renforcés comme l’indique le Baromètre 2013 des Banques présenté le 10 janvier par le cabinet Ernst & Young, sur la base d’une enquête représentative du marché suisse mais sans les deux grandes banques. Reste que le métier soumis aux plus fortes pressions est actuellement celui des banques de gestion privée. Quelque 60% des établissements de toutes catégories interrogés contre 35% en 2011 désignent en effet le private banking comme le secteur confronté aux plus gros défis et à la concurrence la plus disputée.

The Luxembourg-based firm LRI Invest (EUR8bn in assets under management or administration in 230 funds) has announced that Dirk von Dreumel, who since 2012 had been head of the German market in Frankfurt (see Newsmanagers of 24 January 2012), has been appointed regional CEO for distribution in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. His mission will be do develop the launch and management of funds for third parties on these three German-speaking markets, to serve banks, wealth managers and retirement planning institutions.

Investment fund assets worldwide increased by 2.5 percent to EUR 21.95 trillion in the third quarter of 2012, according to statistics from the European fund and asset management association (EFAMA). In U.S. dollar terms, worldwide investment fund assets increased 5.3 percent during the quarter to USD 28.38 trillion. This difference reflects the depreciation of the US dollar vis-à-vis the euro during the quarter. Total worldwide net inflows into investment funds amounted to EUR 167 billion during the third quarter, up from EUR 99 billion in the previous quarter. This increase was achieved thanks to stronger net inflows into balanced and bond funds. Long-term funds (all funds excluding money market funds) registered increased net inflows during the quarter of EUR 175 billion, up from EUR 141 billion in the second quarter. Bond funds continued to enjoy strong net inflows (EUR 146 billion), up from EUR 121 billion in the second quarter. Balanced/mixed funds registered a large increase in net sales to EUR 38 billion, compared to EUR 2 billion in the previous quarter. Equity funds however recorded the fifth consecutive quarter of net outflows (EUR 43 billion, up from EUR 14 billion in the previous quarter). Money market funds registered net outflows of EUR 9 billion, down compared to the second quarter (EUR 42 billion). The United States registered net inflows of EUR 29 billion during the quarter, marking a turnaround compared to the second quarter when net outflows amounted to EUR 53 billion. On the other hand, Europe registered net outflows of EUR 31 billion, up from EUR 1 billion in the previous quarter. At the end of the third quarter, assets of equity funds represented 37 percent and bond funds represented 24 percent of all investment fund assets worldwide. The asset share of money market funds was 16 percent and the asset share of balanced/mixed funds was 11 percent.

The British asset management firm Schroders has announced the launch of three funds in Germany and Austria specialised in emerging market debt. The funds were launched in France in October last year (see Newsmanagers of 3 October 2012). They are the Schroder Emerging Market Sovereign Bond, which invests in government bonds, Schroder Emerging Market Corporate Bond, which is focused on corporate bonds, and the Schroder Emerging Market Bond. The latter fund has a combination of JPM indices as its benchmark, reflecting the hybrid character of the fund.

A group of copper users may appeal a decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve the first investment product in the United States to invest in copper, the Financial Times reports. The move would delay the launch of the ETF by JPMorgan. Copper users claim that the SEC had insufficient evidence to conclude that the launch of the product would not affect supplies of the metal.

The Herbalife company, which has been accused by William Ackman of Pershing Square of being a giant pyramid scheme, has received the powerful support of another activist funds with USD10bn in assets, Third Point by Dan Loeb, Les Echos reports. In a letter to investors dated 9 January, which Les Echos has obtained, Loeb gives a 3-page justificatino for his investment in 8.2% of capital in the business, purchased when the stock price fell 40% in four days in late December. Loeb finds the presentation by his colleague “long” but “lacking anything new,” and claims that it provided “no proof that the group has crossed a line which would lead regulators to close down the firm.” Herbalife should thus be able to respond to its detractor and to convince Wall Street. Third Point claims that shares in the firm are worth USD55 to USD68 each, compared with slightly over USD40 at the start of trading yesterday.

The Libor interest rate manipulation scandal has led to more lawsuits, including actions against the banks Barclays and UBS by eight Californian cities, and other public institutions have also filed suit, according to reports by the news agency Bloomberg published on 9 January. There is also a class action lawsuit by owners of real estate properties in New York against 12 banks, including UBS. The agency has counted 30 other lawsuits in the United States filed by homeowners and others, who say they have been disadvantaged by the manipulation. UBS in late December pleaded guilty and must pay a fine of CHF1.4bn to various financial regulatory authorities. Barclays got off with a fine of USD450m.

The US asset management firm ProShares (USD21bn in 139 ETF funds, mostly inverse or leveraged ETFs) has filed a license application to the SEC for an infrastructure ETF, the ProShares Global Direct Infrastructure ETF, which would replicate the NMX 30 Infrastructure Global Index from the Zurich-basedd firm LPX GmbH, which covers the 30 largest publicly-traded companies in the sector worldwide, Index Universe reports.So far, ProShares has not announced the acronym or TER for the product.

OFI InfraVia on 10 January announced that InfraVia, its first infrastructure fund, has finalised its acquisition of a 55% stake in the capital of the ADTiM company, which had been owned by ETDE, Axione and Eiffage. The remaining 45% are controlled by the Caisse des dépôts (30%) and eTde/axione (15%). The Crédit Agricole group also financed the acquisition via a line of senior debt. ADTiM is the concessionary firm which has held a contract since 2008 to complete, operate and develop a high/very high broadband telecommunications network for the Drôme and Ardèche provinces under a contract from the public utilities. Axione, an affiliate of Bouygues Construction, retains responsibility for the operation of network developments.

On Thursday, 10 January, four former top directors of UBS testified before a British Parliamentary commitee about the Libor scandal. Le Temps reports that they were forced to admit responsibility, but that they have the single line of defence that they didn’t know about it. The four men were in control of the bank from 2005 to 2010, when nearly 50 traders manipulated the Libor inter-bank lending rate to improve their profits: Marcel Rohner, CEO from 2007 to 2009, Huw Jenkins, who was director of the investment bank until 2007, and his two successors, Jerker Johansson and Alex Wilmot-Sitwell.

Jupiter Asset Management has cancelled plans to convert its European Income fund to a global fund, as it did not receive permission from shareholders, FundWeb reports.

As of 31 December, assets under management by Rathbones Brothers Plc totalled GBP17.98bn, which represents an increase of 13.4% over GBP15.85bn as of the end of 2011, a trading update on 10 January announces.Assets at Rathbone Investment Management increased 13.2% over the year to GBP14.76bn, while net subscriptions increased by 6.2%, compared with 7.5% in 2011. Assets as of the end of December included GBP486m in assets acquired during the year. Underlying net organic growth of assets at Rathbone Investement Management fell to 3% in 2012, compared with 5.4% the previous year.Assets at Rathbone Unit Trust Management Limited as of the end of December were up 16.5% for the year, to GBP1.27bn. Net subscriptions totalled GBP66m for 2012, compared with GBP97m in 2011.

The managers Bill Stormont and Paul Casson have left Henderson Global Investors, Citywire Global reports. The announcement was made at the beginning of a conference call with Tim Stevenson.

In the space of two days, the German firm Deka Immobilien will have announced EUR565m in investments in the London office real estate market.On 10 January, the central asset management firm for the German savings banks announced that it has acquired the Palestra office building (27,600 square metres) for EUR275m. The property, like 5 Aldermanbury Square, whose acquisition for EUR290m was announced the previous day, will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund Deka-ImmobilienEuropa. This time, the vendors are Royal London Asset Management and Blackfriars Investment.The Palestra building is wholly leased for 20 years to Transport for London, which is headquartered there.

Julien Moutier is joining Groupama Asset Management as a manager/analyst. He joins the directional multi-management teams of the investment solutions department, and will report to Henri Chabadel. Since 2007, Moutier had been a senior multi-manager at FundQuest (an affiliate of BNP IP), with a particular focus on fixed income and absolute return strategies. The firm recently reorganized, abandoning fund management to become a consulting structure. Moutier is a graduate of IESEG. He has also been a professor at SFAF(Société Française des Analystes Financiers) since 2005.

Northern Trust has announced that it has been selected by Bridgewater Associates to provide middle- and back-office services for USD140bn in assets in its hedge funds (USD75bn for pure alpha strategies,a nd USD65bn for all-weather funds). The services include various administrative processes, transaction processing, real-time reporting, cah management, accounting and collateral management.The contract will allow Northern Trust (USD4.8trn in assets under custody and USD749.7bn in assets under management as of 30 September) to create 100 jobs in Chicago and Stamford, Connecticut.