High drama engulfed Brazil recently after the supreme federal court ordered the country’s leading presidential candidate to prison until he exhausts all other avenues for appeal against a prior conviction. Former President Luiz Inacio “Lula” Da...

We have been saying recently that investors should prepare for greater volatility as the world’s major central banks start to tighten the spigot of liquidity that has supported not only asset prices, but also the synchronized...

Last year was another challenging one for South Africa. Sluggish economic growth, political uncertainty, mounting fiscal pressure and weakening governance led two of the three largest credit rating agencies to push the country’s foreign currency rating...

By the end of 2017, emerging market (EM) assets were on track to deliver their best performance since 2009. An environment of improved global economic growth, higher commodity prices, and still-easy liquidity conditions has driven a...

Come December, it will be South Africa’s turn to determine its future leadership, and in turn its economic and investment potential. The governing African National Congress (ANC) will elect a new president, and as the head...

Brazil and Mexico have long battled it out as heavyweights of the Latin American economies. For much of the new millennium, one defining feature of their rivalry is that Mexico has had lower interest rates than...

Africa is often labeled the “final investment frontier”. It consists of countries whose indicators of social, economic and financial development are relatively low, which translates into more upside potential than anywhere else on the planet. But...

President Jacob Zuma survived a motion of no confidence this week, the latest of many attempts to unseat an administration besieged by allegations of corruption and economic mismanagement. The victory not only allows Zuma to remain...

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the global financial crisis, we are also closer to what economists like to call policy normalization or “taking away the punchbowl.” This is the time when the world’s major...