After almost seven long years at effectively zero interest rates, on December 16th the Federal reserve raised rates 25 basis points and signaled a handful of similar increases to come over the course of the year. This move was not unexpected, and there are numerous caveats and complications since so many unconventional tools have been …
Overall, we did well on our call for 2015. We were right on six, half right on three others and had one wrong. In general, the year lived up to our expectations of a low return environment with the anticipated Fed rate hike being the biggest influence. ~ If not now, when? If …
In our last letter, we stressed how economic turmoil in China could have far-reaching implications for the global economy. Much of the past quarter’s market activity has been driven by this concern as global risk assets sold off in response to persistently weak data out of China. We continue to view events in China as …
Over the course of this week, every move in global markets has been ascribed to “fear about China”. But it’s pretty clear that most of the media does not really understand what is happening in Chinese “markets” and the Chinese economy. Markets are closed in China today and tomorrow, while Hong Kong will be open …
Futures this morning were up over 500 points, most of the trading during the day was above the 16,000 level between 250 and 400 points up. But we’ve closed at 15,666, the lows of the day. Though yesterday’s numbers were eye-popping, today is arguably going to create more jitters. Big intra-day swings that end on …
Two inflection points long in the making appear to have arrived simultaneously over the past few weeks. In Europe, negotiations between Greece and Euro-zone countries that have lent to Greece appear to have broken down; and in China, the stock market has taken a remarkable tumble. In itself, the Shanghai market’s steep fall is not …
Lou will be speaking on a Climate Action Panel titled “Local Climate Action in the Age of Big Fossil” sponsored by Greater NYC For Change, 350NYC, Manhattan Young Democrats and United For Action this Tuesday February 3rd starting at 6:30pm. The event will be held at St. John’s Church meeting room located at 81 Christopher …
If not now, when? If not the Fed, who?: We expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in 2015. We expect rates to gradually rise to a 1.0%–1.5% target, which would still be historically low. Short term rates after the tech wreck and 9/11 were kept below 2.0% for 3 years. For one …
2014 Themes: Year-End Review × The bond decline continues: …The 20 year treasury began 2013 at 2.63% and ended the year at 3.70%. We wouldn’t be surprised to see it exceed 4.50% by the end of 2014…. We were flat out wrong on this prediction. Increasing uncertainty overseas drove demand for treasuries that was …
Louis will be speaking on a sustainable investment panel with the Portfolio Director of the Acumen Fund next Monday November 24th at the Center For Social Innovation. The panel starts at 6pm and it should be an interesting and lively discussion. If you would like to attend, please reserve a spot by clicking on this …
The summer of 2014 has been one of revolutions with unrest spreading across much of Central Asia and the Middle East. Towards the end of September, we also saw a protest movement begin to take hold in Hong Kong. The common thread running through so many of these events is the democratic aspirations of a …
Below is an article written by Louis about the recent trend in clean energy crowdfunding. It was first published by Green Tech Media and the original article can be found here. For clean energy investors, Title III of the JOBS Act could change the game. Prior to its implementation, investing in clean energy startups or small-scale …
The second quarter of 2014 saw global markets rise after shrugging off a number of geo-political concerns clustered primarily around the middle-east (Ukraine, Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, Palestine). Stocks and bonds in the US have continued their march upwards with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones indices scaling all-time highs. There is some speculation that turmoil …
If you follow the clean energy investment space, you’ve probably heard the term “YieldCo” thrown around quite a bit in recent months. YieldCos have burst onto the investment scene and quickly become the company structure du jour for publicly traded power producers looking to capitalize on their renewable energy assets. In the past year, we’ve …
Dear Friends, The first quarter of 2014 saw an uptick in stock market volatility as a change in Fed leadership and Russia’s annexation of Crimea caused some investors to rethink investment and trading positions. The Dow Jones Industrials finished the quarter -0.72%, the S&P 500 +1.3% and the Nasdaq 100 was +0.54%. Meanwhile, after a …