Andrew Van Sickle

Stockmarkets

Curiouser and curiouser: 20 years in the markets

Central banks have been interfering with market and economic cycles for two decades, undermining capitalism and storing up huge trouble for the future…

21 May 2020

Investment strategy

Does a “Dogs” investment strategy make sense?

Buying the market’s “Dogs” – top-ten high yielders – every year is a popular strategy, but does it make sense?

31 Aug 2018

Commodities

Jim Rogers: buy gold

Commodities guru Jim Rogers thinks the current oil price is a floor, not a ceiling – but his favourite picks are gold and silver.

24 Aug 2018

Investment strategy

Don’t believe the forecasters

Analysts are always telling us what they think is about to happen to economies or equities, says Andrew Van Sickle. Investors should ignore them.

24 Aug 2018

Economy

The spectre of a crisis still haunts Europe

With talk of a trade war hampering equities in a region that is dependent on exports, investors are going cold on Europe.

13 Jul 2018

Economy

Trump fires first shots in trade war

Donald Trump has fired the first shots in a US-China trade war, slapping tariffs on $34bn of Chinese imports, with another $16bn to follow soon.

12 Jul 2018

Stockmarkets

America's bull market gets vertigo

America's benchmark S&P 500 stockmarket index has been in a bull market since March 2009 – or just over 3,400 days. It is only 50 days short of the lo…

6 Jul 2018

Stockmarkets

Global M&A hits first-half record

In the first half of 2018, the value of global M&A reached $2.5trn, a 65% jump on the same period last year and a first-half record.

6 Jul 2018

Stockmarkets

Chinese stocks catch a fever

With the Shanghai Composite index down by a fifth since its latest peak in January, Chinese stocks are into official bear-market territory.

29 Jun 2018

Economy

Greece: another serving of EU fudge

Greece is finally emerging from its financial rescue programme, but it will have to keep a tight lid on spending for years.

29 Jun 2018

Economy

Rattled investors flee Turkey

Investors' flight form Turkey, after Recep Tayyip Erdogan won last Sunday’s election, is making a nasty recession all the more likely.

29 Jun 2018

Commodities

Opec turns on the taps again

Oil cartel Opec's decision to raise production was seen as bullish for the oil price, even though a lot more crude is heading to market.

28 Jun 2018

Stockmarkets

GE crashes out of the Dow Jones index

General Electric's eviction from a key American stockmarket gauge is a reminder to check what’s in an index.

22 Jun 2018

Stockmarkets

Behind the new tech bubble

It's starting to look a lot like 2001 as analysts have been warning for some time that the technology sector is back in a bubble.

22 Jun 2018

Stockmarkets

Emerging markets face turbulence

The latest fuss over protectionism coming from the White House is especially worrying for emerging markets.

22 Jun 2018

Economy

Trump’s trade tirade rattles stocks

Donald Trump's bluster has given markets around the world the jitters, says Andrew Van Sickle.

22 Jun 2018

Stockmarkets

US tax cut leads to share buyback record

The constituents of America's S&P 500 index are expected to spend $650bn buying back their shares this year, which would set a new annual record.

15 Jun 2018

Economy

Don’t give up on European stocks

The latest political upset in Italy has given investors a fright. But they are taking too pessimistic a view.

15 Jun 2018

Economy

Investors turn on Brazil

Emerging-markets investors have turned their guns on Brazil, sending the real to a two-year low and wiping 15% off the stockmarket in three weeks.

14 Jun 2018

Economy

Argentina is thrown a $50bn lifeline

Argentina has agreed s $50bn credit deal with the IMF, which should stabilise the currency and encourage foreign investment.

14 Jun 2018

Economy

US workers get a pay rise – and more is on the way

Wages are rising slowly in the US – growth should hit 3% later this year. Bbut the prospects for workers continue to improve.

8 Jun 2018

Economy

Italy: crisis postponed

Italy's populist coalition is back on, and a collision between Brussels and Rome has been postponed. But hostility to the euro will grow.

7 Jun 2018

Economy

Trump slaps tariffs on $23bn of trade

Donald Trump's tariffs on steel from the EU, Canada and Mexico are bad for the US economy or the global economy, and will lead to retaliatory tariffs …

7 Jun 2018

Gold

Why gold is losing its lustre

Gold has slipped by 5% or so from January’s 17-month high and now costs about $1,300 an ounce.

1 Jun 2018

Economy

How Turkey could bring down the euro

Turkish banks and companies owe approximately $150bn to foreign creditors, mostly European banks, which could cause big problems in the event of a def…

1 Jun 2018

Economy

Global economic growth is slowing

Economic growth dipped in all major economies in the first quarter, even slipping below zero in Japan.

1 Jun 2018

Economy

The euro crisis returns as Italy's establishment strikes back

Italy's president blocking the government's choice of finance minister will mean fresh elections – which could easily turn into a referendum on Europe…

30 May 2018

Oil

The oil price is at the top of a slippery slope

The big story in the markets this year has been the sharp jump in the oil price. The story of 2019 could be how it came back to earth with a bump.

25 May 2018

Stockmarkets

US earnings: as good as it gets

US earnings have had their best quarter since 2010, when they were bouncing back from the financial crisis.

25 May 2018

Stockmarkets

Time to back British blue-chip stocks

UK blue-chip stocks are surging ahead. But the FTSE 100 offers a tasty yield and remains very reasonably priced compared with its major counterparts.

25 May 2018

Economy

Corporate bonds: where the next financial crisis will start

The next financial crisis could start in corporate bonds, as credit quality has deteriorated over the past few years and decades.

18 May 2018

Emerging markets

There’s no need to flee emerging markets

Investors are worried that Argentina and Turkey could be the first two dominoes to fall in a wider emerging-markets crisis.

18 May 2018

Commodities

Iran sanctions won’t change the oil game

Donald Trump’s decision to reinstate sanctions on Iran, the world’s fifth-biggest oil producer, has given oil prices another boost, but oil bulls shou…

17 May 2018

Economy

Populists take power in Italy – what does that mean for the markets?

The election of two populist parties, the Northern League and the 5-Star Movement, could shake things up in Italy and beyond.

17 May 2018

Economy

Australia's record run of economic growth may finally be coming to an end

Late last year Australia officially notched up the longest stretch of economic growth in modern history. But it may finally have reached the end of th…

11 May 2018

Economy

Expect more US interest-rate rises

The odds of the US Federal Reserve having to raise US interest rates quickly are rising.

11 May 2018