Weekly Newsletters
26 March 2021 | William Buckhurst
That Was The Week That Was
MACRO
- In the UK, CPI came in at 0.4% for the 12 months to the end of February, lower than expected, as clothing and second-hand cars drove the inflation rate downwards
- As events of the last year have further exacerbated the pressure on high street retailers, John Lewis announced that they would be closing a further eight stores
- In the US, the Federal Reserve did not extend looser capital requirements for US banks introduced at the start of the pandemic
STATISTIC OF THE WEEK
Following a brief cooling off period, the oil price rallied once again as a giant container ship – almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall – ran aground in the Suez Canal. The blockage is holding up around $9.6bn worth of goods a day. More than 300 ships are stuck on either side of the blockage and some vessels have had to reroute around Africa.
The pandemic itself was already exposing vulnerabilities in global supply chains. Container shipping rates have more than tripled as companies that control shipping lines took out capacity in expectation of falling demand. Now it costs about $4,000 to ship a 40-ft container between east Asia and the US west coast, up from $1,500 at the start of 2020
COMPANY NEWS
- Halma highlighted the resilience of its business upping its guidance on Wednesday, stating that pre-tax profits for the year to March would be the same as the previous year’s £267m
- Richemont shares finished the week higher on rumours of a takeover by Kering
- Kansas City Southern, the smallest of the seven Class 1 railway operators in the US, agreed to be taken over by Canadian Pacific
FUND NEWS
The polarisation of Covid-19 “winners” versus stocks that should benefit from the reopening of the economy is pretty evident in the property sector with meds (hospitals) and sheds (logistics warehouses) having outperformed their office and retail park peers. Yet, unlike some sectors (travel etc), the recovery in the latter has still not really caught on. Take Secure Income REIT and Yew Grove REIT, both of whom are collecting 100% of their rents again, yet still sit on meaningful discounts to NAV (or NTA) as investors question whether a “reopening” of the economy will lead to “re-commuting”, “re-business travel” and “re-officing”. We look forward to seeing how the experienced management teams of these two funds update the market over the coming months.
THIS WEEK IN HISTORY
1954: the London gold market reopens for the first time since 1929 at $35 an ounce
2009: in an early sign of the swift actions taken to repair the US banking system after the Great Financial Crisis, the Obama administration unveils plans to set up a $1tn fund for US banks to offload bad assets such as subprime mortgages
MARKET DATA
|
% returns |
1 Week |
1 Month |
1 Year |
5 Years |
|
UK Equities (% return GBP) |
-0.31 |
3.48 |
16.33 |
29.87 |
|
World Equities (% return GBP) |
0.35 |
3.86 |
33.50 |
98.67 |
|
10 Year US Treasury Yield (%) |
1.69 |
1.37 |
0.83 |
1.91 |
|
GBP / USD (fx rate) |
1.38 |
1.39 |
1.22 |
1.41 |
As at 26th March 2021. Source: Financial Express
This publication has been produced by Vermeer Investment Management Limited (VIM) trading as Vermeer Partners. It is provided for information purposes only. VIM makes no express or implied warranties and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to any data included in this publication. VIM will not treat unauthorised recipients of this publication as its clients. Prices shown are indicative and VIM is not offering to buy or sell or soliciting offers to buy or sell any financial instrument. Without limiting any of the foregoing and to the extent permitted by law, in no event shall VIM, nor any of its officers, directors, partners, or employees, have any liability for (a) any special, punitive, indirect, or consequential damages; or (b) any lost profits, lost revenue, loss of anticipated savings or loss of opportunity or other financial loss, even if notified of the possibility of such damages, arising from any use of this publication or its contents. Other than disclosures relating to VIM, the information contained in this publication has been obtained from sources that VIM believes to be reliable, but VIM does not represent or warrant that it is accurate or complete. VIM is not responsible for, and makes no warranties whatsoever as to, the content of any third-party website referred to herein or accessed via a hyperlink in this publication and such information is not incorporated by reference. The views in this publication are those of the author(s) and are subject to change. VIM has no obligation to update its opinions or the information in this publication. This publication does not constitute personal investment advice or take into account the individual financial circumstances or objectives of the client who receives it. Any securities discussed herein may not be suitable for all investors. VIM recommends that investors independently evaluate each issuer, security or instrument discussed herein and consult any independent advisors they believe necessary. The value of and income from any investment may fluctuate from day to day as a result of changes in relevant economic markets (including changes in market liquidity). The information herein is not intended to predict actual results, which may differ substantially from those reflected. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.
This material has been issued and approved for distribution in the UK by VIM. ©2021 Vermeer Investment Management Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or redistributed in any manner without the prior written permission of VIM. VIM is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN: 710280) and is incorporated in England and Wales (company number: 09081916).
Other Recent Weekly Newsletters
That Was The Week That Was
26 November 2021
That Was The Week That Was
19 November 2021
That Was the Week That Was
12 November 2021
That Was The Week That Was
05 November 2021
That Was The Week That Was
29 October 2021
That Was The Week That Was
22 October 2021
That Was The Week That Was
15 October 2021
That Was The Week That Was
08 October 2021
That Was The Week That Was
01 October 2021
That Was The Week That Was
24 September 2021
That Was The Week That Was
17 September 2021
That Was The Week That Was
10 September 2021
That Was The Week That Was
03 September 2021
That Was The Week That Was
27 August 2021
That Was The Week That Was
20 August 2021
That Was The Week That Was
06 August 2021
That Was The Week That Was
30 July 2021
That Was The Week That Was
23 July 2021
That was The Week That Was
16 July 2021
That Was The Week That Was
09 July 2021
That Was The Week That Was
02 July 2021
That Was The Week That Was
25 June 2021
That Was The Week That Was
18 June 2021
That Was The Week That Was
11 June 2021
That Was The Week That Was
04 June 2021
That Was The Week That Was
28 May 2021
That Was The Week That Was
21 May 2021
That Was The Week That Was
14 May 2021
That Was The Week That Was
07 May 2021
That Was The Week That Was
30 April 2021
That Was The Week That Was
23 April 2021
That Was The Week That Was
16 April 2021
That Was The Week That Was
09 April 2021
That Was The Week That Was
02 April 2021
That Was The Week That Was
26 March 2021
That Was The Week That Was
19 March 2021
That Was The Week That Was
12 March 2021
That Was The Week That Was
05 March 2021
That Was The Week That Was
26 February 2021
That Was The Week That Was
19 February 2021
That Was The Week That Was
12 February 2021
That Was The Week That Was
05 February 2021
That Was The Week That Was
29 January 2021
That Was The Week That Was
22 January 2021
That Was The Week That Was
15 January 2021
That Was The Week That Was
08 January 2021
That Was The Week That Was
18 December 2020
That Was The Week That Was
11 December 2020
That Was The Week That Was
04 December 2020
That Was The Week That Was
27 November 2020
That Was The Week That Was
20 November 2020
That Was The Week That Was
13 November 2020
That Was The Week That Was
06 November 2020
That Was The Week That Was
30 October 2020
That Was The Week That Was
23 October 2020
That Was The Week That Was
16 October 2020
That Was The Week That Was
09 October 2020
That Was The Week That Was
02 October 2020
That Was The Week That Was
25 September 2020
That Was The Week That Was
18 September 2020
That Was The Week That Was
11 September 2020
That Was The Week That Was
04 September 2020
That Was The Week That Was
28 August 2020
That Was The Week That Was
21 August 2020
That Was The Week That Was
14 August 2020
That Was The Week That Was
07 August 2020
That Was The Week That Was
31 July 2020
That Was The Week That Was
24 July 2020
That Was The Week That Was
17 July 2020
That Was The Week That Was
10 July 2020
That Was The Week That Was
03 July 2020
That Was The Week That Was
26 June 2020
That Was The Week That Was
19 June 2020
That Was The Week That Was
12 June 2020
That Was The Week That Was
05 June 2020
That Was The Week That Was
29 May 2020
That Was The Week That Was
22 May 2020
That Was The Week That Was
15 May 2020
That Was The Week That Was
08 May 2020
That Was The Week That Was
01 May 2020