2014 - Knightsbridge Wealth

Greek economy faces ‘irreparable’ damage

The Boss of the Greek Central Bank has warned that the economy faces ‘irreparable’ damage from the ongoing political crisis.

Argentina has been relegated

Jorge Mariscal at UBS Wealth Management said recently “Argentina has all the ingredients to be great, but the political make up has been a disaster. It’s a sad story.

Is a Chinese soft-landing possible?

Aaron Back in the Wall Street Journal recently said that China’s central bank had served up “a dish of stimulus with a side order of banking reform.

Romania heads to the polls

It is great to be in Romania in the run up to tomorrow’s European Championship qualifier match with Northern Ireland.

Radical change in Mexico

In difficult market conditions, emerging market Bonds are out favour, since deemed to carry too much risk. However, Mexico’s 100 year bond (the longest maturity on soverign debt in the world) increased by 6% in value in the first half of October.

A boost for gold

The gold price has bounced by 5% this month, as the markets have suffered a scare over global growth prospects. The $1,200 lower support level had been challenged, but not breached, for the second time this year.

Europe’s triple dip recession

Hamish McRae said in the Evening Standard this week that: “The notion that the Eurozone could be the new Japan did not seem realistic five years ago. Now, I’m afraid it does.

Paralysis in Paris

Paul Ames reported in Globalpost this week that “France is in a mess.” I agree.

Australia’s downturn

Australia’s July unemployment figures have just been announced – going from 6% to 6.

Italian woes

Italy is back in recession, with the economy shrinking in both the first quarters in 2014. This is Italy’s third recession since 2011 and the Economist said last week it "will have a profoundly demoralizing effect on a nation that thought the worst was over.

A jewel in the emerging market crown

India’s stock market has leaped 20% this year – the best performance of any emerging market.

Indonesian election results due

On 9th July, the Indonesian Presidential elections took place. The results will be known next week after counting almost 200 million votes.

Won rising….

South Korea’ s currency – the Won – has risen to a six-year high of 1,020 to the US Dollar, and over half a billion dollars of local stocks were bought in the market in the last week of May alone.

World Cup Party in Brazil ?

The World Cup has kicked off but Brazil is not in the mood to party.

A new Cold War ?

It is good to see that Russian President, Vladamir Putin is on speaking terms this week with Ukranian’s new President, Petro Poroshenko.

Europe : Power moving East

I travelled to Warsaw during the Communist era and returned soon after the regime fell, visiting Bratislava and Prague at the same time. You could not fly to Bratislava in 1990, other than by internal flight from Prague.

India’s election results

Narendra Modi’s election victory in India makes his Janata Party (BJP) the first party since 1984 to win a majority.

He faces a daunting number of problems: bringing down the budget deficit, tackling inflation, boosting growth, and making India a more attractive destination for foreign investment.

The Bangladesh transformation

It is a privilege to be in Dhaka and witnessing, first hand, this South Asian success story that has delivered growth of around 5% to 6% annually for most of the last 20 years.

Is the Euro crisis really over?

The Eurozone recovery is spreading from the core to its more troubled periphery, according to manufacturing data issued on Friday. Confidence in the troubled countries is growing as the recovery continues.

International residents make record UK tax contribution

International clients are the only clients that Knighstsbridge Wealth deal with - those resident anywhere in the world but seeing the advantage of UK regulated advice, and those from all over the world who make the UK a home.

The Manila Growth Story

The Philippines Stock Exchange index (PSEi) suffered a volatile 2013 as foreign investors began bailing out of emerging markets everywhere, on the back if the US Federal Reserve’s announcement that it would wind down on quantative easing policies.

Is Japan changing?

Is there real change underway? Probably.

UK pensions are getting interesting

The UK’s recent budget has paved the way for the biggest shake up in pensions ever. From next April, most restrictions on pensions will be removed.

UK Investor Visa shake up

About 600 migrants a year come to the UK, under the Tier 1 Investor Visa scheme, whereby those with £1m to invest are awarded UK residency after five years, This falls to three years for those with £5m and to two years for those with £10m.

Qatar is being promoted!

Emerging markets are continuing their difficult run. However, there remains a considerable number of investors who wish to look beyond the more mature Western markets.

Will Russia buck the rout in emerging markets?

Investors are continuing to desert emerging markets, with more than $6.

China slowdown

China's growth rate has dropped to the lowest since 1999. As a result, markets have fallen and commodities have taken a real hammering.

Turkey : sliding out of control?

The Economist reported this week that there is now 'a sense that things are sliding out of control,' in Turkey.

What’s in store for 2014?

Last year was fantastic for markets.

Totally UK

Totally UK is a magazine published by Ismay New Media in Hong Kong.

The falling price of an EU passport

In our autumn newsletter, we reported that many are trying to protect their future by securing the right to live permanently in an attractive destination, in case of need.