News and Insights

Download PDF Being less negative We know that two wrongs do not make a right, except mathematically, when we get a positive number by multiplying two negative numbers. Yet, it would seem that in the case of SA, a less…
Read more

Download PDF The ESG differentiator The year 2020 has made an indelible imprint on this generation, as the world grappled with a global health crisis not seen since the outbreak of Spanish flu in 1918. Coronavirus updates almost, but not…
Read more

Download PDF Navigating the headwinds Financial conditions are set in the West, while real conditions are made in the East – usually the former dominates. As such, the re-emergence of US exceptionalism put pressure on EM financial markets in March.…
Read more

Download PDF Be careful what you wish for The relative stability of January gave way to volatility in February. This time, interest rates led the way with a shift from reflation hopes to inflation fears. Breakeven inflation across most tenors…
Read more

Matrix Fund Managers is the proud recipient of the award for best South African fixed income hedge fund in 2020, presented at the HedgeNews Africa Awards on March 4. The Matrix NCIS Fixed Income Retail Hedge Fund was a clear…
Read more

Download PDF Easy policy the upside of pessimism For many, January felt like a particularly long month. Health care workers were pressured by resurgent Covid-19 cases and the confirmation of three new, more virulent variants of the coronavirus, in Brazil,…
Read more

Download PDF Two steps forward, one step back Asset markets posted a respectable end to a challenging year, as most indices more than recouped the substantial March drawdowns. Yet this was largely thanks to extraordinary monetary and fiscal policy stimulus…
Read more

Download PDF Discounting the V-bound Global developments trumped domestic dynamics during November, leaving SA asset markets stronger. SOSO (stimulus on/stimulus off) and VOVO (vaccine on/vaccine off) aligned for the perfect financial market backdrop. The US election was resolved quickly in…
Read more

Download PDF Taking on the wage bill SOSO (stimulus on/stimulus off) exacerbated RORO (risk on/risk off) in October. Covid-19 and vaccine developments remain the underlying drivers of markets (as POTUS and FLOTUS both tested positive for Covid-19), but there was…
Read more

Download PDF Hanging in the balance Market participants have broadened their focus beyond Covid and vaccine developments to include the absence of a second fiscal package in the US and escalating uncertainty around the US election. In addition, various countries…
Read more