In March 2017 Ben Griffiths found himself in a deeply uncomfortable position. For the first time since inception 15 years ago his small cap portfolio was badly lagging the benchmark. Sentiment had violently swung against his stocks and Griffiths was facing a tough decision – hold the current course or... Show More
With the Brent crude oil price tipping over US$80 a barrel, continuing its rebound since 2016, attention has inevitably again turned to the current valuations of resource stocks. Portfolio Manager Uday Cheruvu looks at what the rise in energy prices may mean for long term investors. Show More
This week’s guest on the podcast is Rick Rule, President and CEO of natural resources specialists, Sprott US Holdings. According to Mining Journal, Rick is one of the top five most influential people in mining globally; an honour that he shares with President Xi Jinping and Donald Trump. Show More
For many years China has had a single focus of delivering high GDP growth. John Lake from Paradice Investment Management has recently returned from a visit to China and says two important shifts are taking place. One is a focus on sustainability and the environment ahead of growth. The other... Show More
The All Resources Index in trend terms has been outperforming the ASX 200 Index since the start of 2016. In this note we compare the performance of the big Australian mining stocks against their international peers on a common-currency basis, as well as comparing their current valuation metrics. Show More
In the context of the Sir John Templeton quote “… Bull markets are born on pessimism, grow on scepticism, mature on optimism and die of euphoria …” we are clearly still in the optimistic phase. Show More
We have argued the case for an exposure to the resources sector for over 12 months. Despite the excellent performance of the sector over this period, we continue to remain confident as our multi-pronged investment case remains intact. Show More
Over the past quarter, much of the small-cap index outperformance over large caps has been due to the excellent returns of small resource companies. Given their cyclical nature, is that a reason to look elsewhere? The following note makes it clear that we think not. Show More
Unlike industrial companies such as Amcor or Transurban, profits for mining companies are inherently cyclical. The earnings from mining companies are subject to booms and busts, largely outside the control of their management teams. This occurs as ultimately any company producing a commodity is a “price taker” not a “price... Show More
The sky is not falling was the message in September 2017. Our message was that the overall market did not show excessive valuations, which generally is a precursor to stock market corrections. However, our market outlook dimmed due to recent ‘risk-on’ rally, where most of the year’s return was delivered... Show More
There’s an overwhelming sense of déjà vu as far as the gold market is concerned. Two years ago during December 2015, we witnessed the first US Fed rate hike since the 2008 GFC – a 25-basis point increase. This followed years of promises, threats and jawboning by the US Federal... Show More
Another year (almost) over, and assets have again been on a tear. All ASX sectors have performed well this year, with most generating double digit returns, consistent with global experience. The other global norm is the notable sectoral exception to this great performance; Telecommunications has been the laggard, underperforming by... Show More
On 22 September 2017, Rio announced a A$2.5B share buy-back which includes A$700M as an off-market buyback and the balance being allocated to Rio Tinto’s existing on-market buyback. Show More
Just how risky is the Materials sector? That’s the question we sought to answer as we dive into one of Australia’s largest industries. We use Axioma’s Multifactor Australian Risk Model to map the sector’s risk characteristics, style footprint, as well as the type of investment opportunity it offers investors. Show More
Resources equities have outperformed the rest of the market by a wide margin in the time since January 2016, when the long bust ended. This period has been marked by increasing investor interest in miners, and consequent increase in liquidity - investor funds flowing toward the sector. Show More
Given recent headlines and speculation with respect to commodity prices, I thought it worthwhile to outline my views on the near-term picture. Overall, I remain very optimistic with respect to prices and demand. In particular, recent positive Chinese commodity demand data and outcomes from the recent Chinese Communist Party Congress,... Show More
Commodity prices have defied pessimism and rallied solidly over recent months on the back of improved Chinese economic prospects, stability on the European political front, some degree of acclimatisation to Trump-related government volatility in the USA - and a weaker US dollar. Show More
Local market was smacked down on the open before making a slight recover…market reducing exposure before US goes into a long weekend…Memorial Day on Monday. The best performers were Gold, Property and Utilities while Energy, Miners and IT were the worst performers...safe-haven trading was in play…bond yields fell as well.... Show More
Local market ran out of puff and closed at the lows of a negative last day of the quarter. We are heading into the last week of trading before school holidays and institutional investors are likely to lock in their profits before going on holiday with their families. Retail investors... Show More
China has had a significant impact on the supply side in two key global commodities during 2016. Going forward, look out for further actions from China on the supply side of commodities. Show More
