L’inflation réduit les marges de manœuvre de la banque centrale du Brésil
La nouvelle baisse prévue du taux Selic de 50 pb lors de la réunion de ce soir devrait être la dernière du cycle d'assouplissement
Le G7 demande une hausse de la production pétrolière
Les ministres des Finances du G7 ont appelé hier les pays producteurs de pétrole à augmenter leur production pour répondre à la demande, en laissant entendre qu’ils étaient prêts à puiser dans leurs réserves stratégiques au cas où la hausse des cours du brut menacerait la croissance mondiale. «Nous sommes prêts à appeler l’Agence internationale de l'énergie à prendre les mesures appropriées pour faire en sorte que le marché soit pleinement approvisionné», indique le communiqué commun. L’administration américaine a signalé qu’un recours aux réserves de pétrole stratégiques des Etats-Unis restait une option, tandis que le ministre français de l’Economie, Pierre Moscovici, a précisé qu’il s’entretiendrait avec son homologue mexicain «pour rappeler l’attachement de la France à l’importance d’avancer rapidement sur des mesures structurelles pour un meilleur fonctionnement des marchés de l'énergie à l’international».
Le patron de Deutsche Bank soutient le sud de l’Europe
Il est primordial de laisser aux pays du sud de l’Europe le temps nécessaire pour mettre en œuvre des réformes structurelles, a déclaré hier le président du directoire de Deutsche Bank, Anshu Jain. Et d’ajouter que les marchés financiers ne donnaient pas assez de marges de manœuvres à la zone euro pour redresser sa situation.
La Grèce a identifié 11,7 milliards d’euros de coupes budgétaires
Le gouvernement grec a recensé des mesures d’austérité représentant un montant global de 11,7 milliards d’euros, qui vont être soumises à l’approbation des dirigeants de la coalition gouvernementale. La majeure partie des 11,7 milliards de coupes identifiées dans les dépenses budgétaires devrait relever du ministère du Travail car elle concernera les retraites et la santé.
Richard Fisher relativise l’attente d’un QE3
Les responsables de la Fed continuent de réfléchir à l’orientation de la politique monétaire et n’ont pour l’heure pris aucune décision quant à un nouvel assouplissement, a déclaré hier le président de la Fed de Dallas Richard Fisher. «Pour ce qui concerne un nouvel assouplissement, rien n’a été décidé», a-t-il indiqué à Reuters, opposé à toute détente monétaire.
La France s'attaque au déficit extérieur
Le gouvernement présentera fin septembre un plan d’action pour renforcer la compétitivité des entreprises à l’exportation afin de résorber sur cinq ans le déficit commercial de la France hors énergie. Objectif: améliorer le solde commercial annuel de 25 milliards d’euros. Pour ce faire, il faut que «la croissance de nos exportations soit chaque année de 2% supérieure à celle de nos importations», a précisé la ministre du Commerce extérieur Nicole Bricq.
Knight Capital nomme trois nouveaux administrateurs
Le groupe de services financiers accueille trois nouveaux membres au sein de son conseil d’administration, dont le directeur général de TD Ameritrade Holding, trois semaines après avoir reçu de la part d’un consortium d’investisseurs une bouffée d’oxygène de 400 millions de dollars. Des erreurs techniques ont provoqué le 1er août des ordres erratiques se soldant par une perte de 440 millions de dollars.
La confiance du consommateur américain dégringole
De manière inattendue, la confiance du consommateur américain a atteint en août son niveau le plus bas en neuf mois, les ménages affichant un pessimisme accru concernant les perspectives économiques de court terme. L’indice établi par le Conference Board est tombé à 60,6, contre 65,4 (chiffre révisé) en juillet. Les économistes sondés par Reuters tablaient sur une hausse à 66.
Le FESF projette un emprunt à 10 ans
Le Fonds européen de stabilité financière (FESF), noté Aaa/AA+/AAA, a mandaté Citi, HSBC et JPMorgan en vue d’un nouvel emprunt à 10 ans, a indiqué hier Citigroup. L'émission, qui sera de 3 milliards d’euros, sera lancée et mise à prix prochainement, «éventuellement demain», en fonction des conditions du marché.
La collecte d’Amundi soutenue par les institutionnels
La société de gestion, détenue à 75% par le Crédit Agricole et à 25% par Société Générale, a collecté 13,4 milliards d’euros sur le segment institutionnels et corporates sur les six premiers mois de l’année, 5,3 milliards au titre de l'épargne salariale et 2,2 milliards sur le segment des distributeurs tiers. En revanche, la décollecte sur les réseaux bancaires s’est poursuivie pour atteindre 7,1 milliards sur le semestre, après 3,4 milliards de rachats au premier trimestre.
Angela Merkel pourrait évoquer à Pékin le taux de change du yuan
La chancelière allemande pourrait soulever lors de sa visite en Chine cette semaine la question délicate de l’adoption d’un taux de change flexible pour le yuan, a rapporté Reuters de source allemande. Angela Merkel cherchera aussi à convaincre la Chine que la zone euro est une destination sûre pour les investisseurs chinois, malgré les pertes subies par ces derniers lors de la restructuration de la dette grecque, a ajouté l’officiel sous le sceau de l’anonymat.
Hausse du crédit en juillet dans la zone euro
Tout en restant faibles, les crédits aux entreprises et aux ménages dans la zone euro ont progressé de 0,1% en rythme annuel en juillet après un déclin le mois précédent. La masse monétaire M3 a quant à elle avancé de 3,8%, plus que les 3,2% prévus.
Baisse des investissements industriels en France
Les entreprises du secteur de l’industrie manufacturière ont baissé d’un point leurs prévisions d’investissement pour cette année et tablent désormais sur une hausse de 5%, selon l’enquête trimestrielle publiée hier par l’Insee. Les chefs d’entreprise du secteur prévoyaient en avril d’augmenter leurs investissements de 6% en 2012, un chiffre déjà revu à la baisse d’un point par rapport à celle de janvier.
Mario Draghi n'ira pas à Jackson Hole
Le président de la BCE ne se rendra pas à la conférence de Jackson Hole, a annoncé hier l’institution monétaire, évoquant une charge de travail trop lourde. La réunion de cette année était particulièrement attendue alors que les observateurs attendent de savoir si la BCE et la Fed prendront ou non des mesures musclées afin de relancer la croissance aux Etats-Unis et apaiser les tensions en zone euro.
29/08/2012
Strong gains in bond ETP assets
In a special survey published on 28 August, BlackRock reports that as of the end of July, bond ETP products represented global assets of USD309bn, 18% of a total of USD1.723bn, compared with USD258bn and 17% as of the end of 2011.In the first seven months of 2012, net subscriptions to bond ETPs totalled USD44.4bn, compared with USD50bn for all of 2011, and only USD22.9bn in January-July 2011, which represents 35% of net inflows to all ETPs, compared with 29% in 2011. The BlackRock Institute states that active bond ETP attracted a net total of USD1.1bn in 2010, and then USD1.9bn in 2011, and USD2.4bn in the first seven months of this year.In terms of actors, the leader in terms of assets and net subscriptions is iShares, with 140 bond ETPs and assets of USD184bn, and a market share of 59%. Net subscriptions in January-July 2012 totalled USD21bn, compared with USD28.3bn in all of 2011.Vanguard finishes a distant second, with 16 bond ETPs, USD39bn and a 13% market share, with net inflows in the first seven months of the year totalling USD8.3bn, compared with USD10.3bn in all of last year. State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) is third, with USD28bn in assets and USD5.5bn in net subscriptions, compared with USD5.7bn in all of 2011.These are followed by db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank) with USD9bn in assets and net outflows of USD1.8bn since the beginning of the year. PowerShares/Deutsche Bank, Pimco (Allianz) and Lyxor (Société Générale) follow in a tiw for fourth place with USD7bn in assets each. But the first two of these have seen respective net inflows of USD2.1n and USD2.8bn in January-July, while the second drew only USD0.3bn.
29/08/2012
Hedge fund assets up 3.2% in first half
As of the end of June, total assets in single hedge funds and funds of hedge funds came to USD2.317trn, 3.2% higher than the USD2.245trn recorded at the end of 2011 (see Newsmanagers of 2 May), according to statistics from PerTrac.The total number of funds, for its part, increased 4.61% to 14.013, with a 7.46% increase to 10,754 funds for single hedge funds. Three quarters of the increase in the number of single hedge funds is due to small funds and start-ups with less than USD25m in assets. That suggests that asset allocators are increasingly interested in alternative investments, and are showing an increasing tendency to invest directly in hedge funds.Investors have preferred large funds, with the result that the “billion dollar club” of single hedge funds with over USD1bn in assets increased to USD1.146trn as of 30 June, compared with USD1.080trn as of the end of 2011. As of the end of June, that represented 60.6% of volume in single hedge funds. For funds of hedge funds, 48.7% of assets of USD425bn as of the end of June (-4.92% compared with the end of December) were controlled by 3.24% of managers with AUM over USD1bn.PerTrac states that assets in single hedge funds in first half increased 5.23% to USD1.892trn.
29/08/2012
Hedge fund advertisng: first SEC vote to be held on Wednesday
The Wall Street Journal reports that the SEC will be voting a first time on Wednesday this week to repeal a ban on advertising by private investment companies. The US regulator was slated to take a similar vote in June to comply with the JOBS act (Jumpstart Our Business Startups). A second vote by the SEC will be necessary in autumn. Hedge fund directors are beginning to approach advertising professionals to determine whether they can envisage any novel advertising methods. They will certainly not be buying TV advertising spots or renaming stadiums, as their more visible compatriots in the banking world do.
29/08/2012
Carmignac to build presence on British retail market
Carmignac Gestion has has added eight funds to the IMA sectors as part of its push into the UK retail space, Investment Week reports. The objective for the French asset management firm is to build its presence on the British retail market. Legg Mason has recently made a similar move to list funds. Pimco is also reportedly preparing to do similarly, Investment Week adds.
29/08/2012
BlackRock recruits a head for Asia
Kevin Hardy will be leaving Northern Trust, where he had spent 9 years, to join BlackRock as head of the Asia Pacific Index Equity team, according to reports in AsianInvestor. In this position he will replace Jane Leung, who was appointed as head of iShares for Asia-Pacific in May.
29/08/2012
UBS poaches a former Alliance Bernstein employee
UBS has recruited Erik Carrell for its asset management division in Stockholm, where he will be responsible for third-party distribution, according to the Swedish website Fondbranschen. He had previously been at Alliance Bernstein.
29/08/2012
Accelerando recruits a head for Germany and Benelux
The third-party marketer (TPM) and fund distribution consultant Accelerando Associates has announced the recruitment of Janek Baranowski as head of TPM activities for Germany and Benelux, Investment Europe reports. Baranowski, who has 25 years of experience in financial services, previously worked at Fundmatrix, ABN Amro, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank.
29/08/2012
Paulson denies massive outflows from funds
In a conference call held on Tuesday with Bank of America for financial advisers and their clients, John Paulson admitted that his flagship fund, Paulson Advantage, has posted disappointing results, but assured his interlocutors that Paulson & Co has not seen an exodus of investors.Currently, assets at Paulson & Co have fallen to USD19.5bn, compared with USD36bn as of the beginning of 2011. Paulson Advantage lost 36% in 2011, and has lost 13% since the beginning of this year. The Paulson Advantage Plus, for it part, lost half of its assets in 2011, and another 18% since the beginning of 2012.However, the Merger and Recovery funds have posted respective performances this year of 3.6% and 3.9%, beating their benchmarks.
29/08/2012
Fidelity promotes Abigail Johnson
Fidelity Investments has promoted Abigail Johnson to the postion of president of Fidelity Financial Services, making her the heir apparent at the US asset management firm still headed by her father, Edward “Ned” Johnson, 82, the Financial Times reports. Fidelity Financial Services includes the key activities of the firm: asset management, institutional and retail brokerage, and administration of pension plans and benefits.
29/08/2012
Pershing Square Capital Manager puts pressure on General Growth
The hedge fund manager William Ackman, head of Pershing Square Capital Management, is putting pressure on the shopping centre manager General Growth Properties, and has twice called for the firm to be put up for sale in letters. Ackman suggests that the second-largest firm in shopping centres in the United States should not allow the asset management firm Brookfield Asset Management take control of the firm, in which Brookfield already controls a 42% stake. Ackman goes so far as to say that the leading shopping centre player, Simon Property Group, would be an excellent acquisition candidate. Brookfield Asset Management, which in 2010 helped to prevent bankruptcy at General Growth, has since claimed that it does not want to increase its stake in the firm. Pershing Square owns 10.5% of capital in General Growth.
29/08/2012
Hedge funds prefer Harvard and Columbia
What are the most sought-after MBAs for hedge fund managers who recruited in 2012? According to the most recent survey by HFObserver, it is a tie between the two most sought-after degrees, from the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University and from Harvard Business School. These are followed by the MBAs from the Stern School of Business (New York University) and the Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania). The survye reviews over 800 full-time recruitments (excluding administrative positions) at alternative management companies (hedge funds, funds of hedge funds, alternative units of sovereign funds, trusts, private equity firms). HFObserver finds that 31% of professionals recruited by hedge funds in 2012 had an MBA. Among investment professionals, the percentage with an MBA is 33%.
29/08/2012
Carmignac recruits a European equities analyst
Carmignac Gestion has announced the arrival of Merkus Kulessa as an analyst in its European equity team. Kulessa, a German national, assumed his new position on August 1, 2012, and reports to Laurent Ducoin.Before joining the French asset management firm, Kulessa worked as an analyst in the mergers & acquisitions department at KPMG AG in Frankfurt, and prior to that, at Société Générale and Wachovia Securities in London.
29/08/2012
Moody's sets long-term issuer rating for Julius Baer at A1
Moody’s Investors Service assigned on August 28 a first-time long-term issuer rating of A1 to Bank Julius Baer & Co. AG, Zurich (BJB). The rating is on review for downgrade following Moody’s 15 August 2012 action on the bank’s deposit ratings. The A1 issuer rating on BJB is at the same level as the bank’s long-term bank deposit rating and is therefore under review for downgrade, explains Moody’s. On 15 August 2012, Moody’s downgraded BJB’s long-term bank deposit rating to A1 from Aa3 and placed it on review for further downgrade, following the announcement by the Julius Baer Group that it was acquiring Merrill Lynch’s international wealth-management business outside the US from Bank of America.
29/08/2012
Inflows at Valartis, and a return to profits
Assets under management at the Swiss group Valartis, which has begun a process of refocusing on its wealth management activities, increased in first half by 8% compared with the end of December 2011 to a total of CHF7.4bn, according to a statement released on 28 August. Net inflows for the half totalled CHF491m, of which CHF486m came from private clients. Positive market and forex effects represented a total of CHF97m. The group returned to profitability in first half, with net profits of CHF3.9m, compared with losses of nearly CHF20m in the first six months of 2011.
29/08/2012
Vontobel planning to spin off structured products unit
The Swiss Vontobel group is reportedly planning to open its structured products platform Deritrade up to other issuers, or to spin off the activity, several sources are reporting, according to finews. Vontobel has declined to comment on the speculation. One thing, however, is sure: the structured product activity represents more than three quarters of the operating revenues for Vontobel. Separating Deritrade from the parent company could increase the credibility of the platform and spur its development in Asia, observers claim.
29/08/2012
Assets under management down but a return to profitability at Bellevue AM
Assets under management at the Swiss firm Bellevue Asset Management were down 3% in first half to a total of CHF3.5bn, according to a statement released on 27 August. The good performance of several investment products offset outflows.The asset management firm also returned to profitability in first half, with a net profit of CHF8m, where the first six months of 2011 saw a low of CHF23.5m.