EZA News and Press, iShares MSCI South Africa Index Fund From 09/09/22

Summary The main economic data release for the trading week is the US inflation report. The UK economy is in a precarious position and facing a recession. Chinese President Xi is expected to meet with Russian President Putin at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in U...

Summary Policymakers have spent weeks trying to convince investors that there was no dovish pivot, to no avail. So it was up to Powell to reinforce the Fed’s commitment to bringing inflation back to target and I think there’s little doubt he did it. In referencin...

Jackson Hole has been heavily discussed since the Fed’s supposed “dovish pivot” last month when it adopted a more data-dependent stance. While policymakers have pushed back against the idea of a pivot, markets have continued to price in a slower path of tightening...

Despite a solid fundamental outlook, headwinds have been present. The commodity run-up has clearly benefited Latin American fiscal and external accounts. Given the political currents in the region, concerns surrounding the political outlook will likely remain at the forefront. ...

With the MSCI South Africa 25/50 Index lying at the crux of it, EZA oversees a portfolio of around $332 million disproportionately spread between 37 equity holdings. EZA has seen strong momentum earlier this year bolstered by geopolitics and the supervening commodity market turmoil th...

Last week was action-packed and it’s not likely to ease up with attention now shifting from the Fed and the “technical recession” in the US to the labour market. Various officials have highlighted the strength of the labour market when explaining why the US isn&#x...

As inflation raged, central banks accelerated the pace of monetary policy tightening, aiming to slow the growth of aggregate demand and calm price pressures. In response to persistently high inflation and an upward drift in long-run inflation expectations, central banks are accelerati...

Europe took centre stage last week as leaders waited nervously to see if gas would start flowing through Nord Stream 1 again following scheduled maintenance. Next week the focus switches back to the US which has a big interest rate decision of its own and a number of major earnings re...

There have been winners and losers. Some net commodity exporters, like Brazil and South Africa, have seen current accounts improve as commodity prices and revenues have surged. However, for many emerging markets, food security is a growing concern, and net importers are particularly a...

Rising input costs and weaker exchange rates of local currencies are primarily responsible for the rapid price increases in recent months. The spike in global oil prices has increased the demand for refined fuel imports in sub-Saharan Africa given the lack of sufficient local refinery...