BUSINESS
As COVID optimism grows, investors seek to hedge against inflation risk
US inflation expectations are rising and huge increases in public debt and central bank balance sheets are causing many investors to think seriously about how to protect their portfolios from inflationary risks
BUSINESS
Airbnb and DoorDash IPOs leave gig economy issues unresolved
Questions remain over profitability and broader impact on society
TRENDS
Ruchir Sharma: Will bitcoin end the dollar’s reign?
Digital currency poses a significant threat to greenback’s supremacy
BUSINESS
Martin Wolf writes: Milton Friedman was wrong on the corporation
The doctrine that has guided economists and businesses for 50 years needs re-evaluation
BUSINESS
Investors bet ECB will do what it takes to keep borrowing costs low
Lagarde’s interventions have helped put a lid on bond yields even for weaker borrowers
BUSINESS
Airbnb IPO: a barometer for travel after the pandemic
Airbnb’s decision to list its shares is a significant moment for America’s capital markets, especially given the preference of many Silicon Valley companies for private funding
BUSINESS
Factors that could halt the bull market charge
Investor hubris can be pierced when expectations of further gains are as strong as they are now
TRENDS
What puzzles and poker teach us about misinformation
We cannot escape our emotions, but clear decision-making requires that we notice them and take them into account
BUSINESS
The ‘everything rally’: Vaccines prompt wave of market exuberance
Retail investors led the dramatic equity market recovery from the Covid-19 shock, flooding internet message boards to share memes, boast of wins and lament losses
BUSINESS
S&P Global’s $44bn deal shows data is the oil of the 21st century
Information has always been central to the workings of financial institutions, whether a Swiss private bank, Boston money manager or a City of London investment bank
BUSINESS
Contrarian scenarios that could upset the market consensus
Year-end forecasts from strategists narrow to a common outlook as the pandemic shock eases
BUSINESS
Is Jeff Bezos really serious about beating climate change?
Amazon founder is donating $791m to green charities, but it will take more than money to help the planet
TRENDS
Bitcoin finally finds a rationale in doomsday scenarios
The digital ecosystem draws support from being the currency of last resort
BUSINESS
Yellen prepares for second act at pinnacle of economic policymaking
The former central banker fits well with Biden’s drive to fill his Cabinet with competent institutionalists
BUSINESS
Lessons from Japan: coping with low rates and inflation after the pandemic
Rather than the secrets to miraculous economic growth, today’s students of Japan want to know how to respond when the good times stop
BUSINESS
Surge in vaccine optimism slams brakes on gold
Gold prices have already fallen about 10 per cent since their August peak above $2,000 a troy ounce, as confidence gradually returned to asset markets
BUSINESS
Vaccine arrival expected to trigger dollar slump in 2021
Analysts predict the currency could fall 20% if widely available coronavirus jab leads to economic rebound
BUSINESS
Historic vaccine boost for value stocks sparks debate on market reset
Astounding switch into unloved industries breaks records
BUSINESS
Warren Buffett pulls back on banks and bets on drugmakers
Billionaire investor’s Berkshire Hathaway put $5.7bn into four US pharma stocks in Q3
BUSINESS
Lex: Investment research -- tipping points
There is evidence that research-driven investments do better. Active managers will prosper when they can consistently beat indices
BUSINESS
Oil producers have more than a pandemic to worry about
Even an effective COVID vaccine may not offer a route out of the mess the industry finds itself in
BUSINESS
Active managers struggle to prove their worth in a turbulent year
Over the past two decades, there has been a shift of power from the pedigreed stockpickers and bond kings who have straddled markets, to the cheap, passively-managed index funds now in the ascendancy
BUSINESS
Vaccine success has given investors their bull case
Breakthrough sets the stage for sustained gains — and a shift in leadership — within equity markets
BUSINESS
What Wall Street would make of a Biden presidency
US bank investors care less about the prospect of a Trump defeat than the outlook for interest rates
