The recent strength of the US dollar, which is up about 3.5% in nominal effective terms since late January following a two-year depreciation, is causing investors to re-evaluate their emerging market (EM) exposures. Comparisons with the 1982 Mexican crisis and the 1997 Asian crisis are alarmist and overdone, but faith in better EM macroeconomic and credit fundamentals in support of a view that “this time is different” is equally misplaced. The dollar remains the single most important consideration for EM finances.

If January was, in fact, a dollar inflection point and trend appreciation lies ahead, the outlook for EM sovereigns…

By James McCormack

News that Japan has overtaken China as the top foreign holder of U.S. Treasury securities comes perhaps fortuitously as the incoming Trump administration girds for potential confrontation on economic and trade issues with Beijing. The development could play into a coordinated initiative that might help with Japan’s extended deflation battle and offer the U.S. a chance to tilt Asia’s regional economic balance in its preferred direction.

There are two reasons why the decline in China’s foreign reserves could be viewed positively by the U.S. Most obviously, as China gradually runs down its holdings of U.S. Treasuries to lean against yuan…

By Michael Taiano

Despite growing sharply off of a low base in recent years, consumer adoption of mobile wallets in the U.S. has developed at a much slower pace than most industry experts would have predicted.

According to MasterCard, nearly 85% of payment transactions globally are still made with cash, creating a significant growth opportunity for digital payment providers. Mobile wallets are a subset of this addressable market, which we define as payments made by consumers at a physical point of sale using a mobile device. There have been numerous constituencies that have invested heavily in recent years in mobile payment technologies. Among…

By Alex Bumahzny and Colin Mansfield

Nearly half of Atlantic City’s resorts have closed in the past two years, a scene not altogether unlike the noted closures of the Las Vegas’ casinos of yesteryear like The Dunes and Sahara. Where the storyline differs, however, is in the fate awaiting that other casino resort city. In short, Sin City has a much brighter future ahead of it.

Why? Because Las Vegas has had the foresight to broaden its appeal beyond gaming. The city’s main entertainment cluster, the Strip, has positioned itself over the decades as a coveted leisure and convention destination. …

By James McCormack

The UK is on the verge of embarking on its biggest and most abrupt transition since the end of World War II with only a rudimentary public understanding of what it will entail. Nearly four months after the referendum confirmed a majority in favour of leaving the EU, there is no greater clarity on the alternative future the country has chosen, how it will materialise, or over what timeframe. Why? These are fundamental questions to remain unanswered for such a momentous change in direction.

Brexit referendum result came as surprise

Brexit confusion reigns in the UK primarily because the referendum result caught the government completely unprepared…

By Alastair Sewell

Vivian Mercier famously reviewed “Waiting for Godot” as the play in which “…nothing happens, twice.” We may well have just seen the very same effect in the UK commercial property fund market. Following on from the Brexit vote in June 2016 the vast majority of UK open-end commercial property funds closed to redemption — or gated. That is, they stopped investors from being able to withdraw money. This isn’t the first time this has happened. Following the financial crisis in 2009, many such funds also closed to redemption. …

By Bashar Al Natoor

Many African countries are working to develop their legislative and regulatory frameworks to establish Islamic finance and sukuk as a sustainable funding alternative. With Africa’s demand for infrastructure financing solutions and its significant Muslim population, such an opportunity might be well received.

Islamic finance is already present in more than 20 African countries, with Sudan having a fully-fledged 100% Islamic financial system. However, the size of the Islamic finance industry in Africa is still small in relation to the industry as a whole. Fitch estimates around USD1bn of sukuk total issuance from the whole of Africa in 2016 compared to…

By Chad Lewis

The Safeway Open, which begins Thursday and effectively kicks off the 2016–17 PGA TOUR season, was supposed to mark the return of one of golf’s most recognizable names, Tiger Woods. Tiger withdrew from the event on Monday citing vulnerabilities with his game. This reignites questions around Tiger’s return and, specifically, ‘When?’ or ‘Will he ever return’, ’In what form?’ and ‘Will we ever see the early 2000’s Tiger?’. Which raises another overarching question: ‘Is the PGA stronger today with or without the presence of one of golf’s marquee players?’

A new ‘Core Four’

Whether or not we’ve seen the last of…