In his full article, Chris comments on the recent fall in stock markets despite the widespread understanding that global growth will slow down. He feels that this is mainly sentiment-driven. However, he believes that reduced spending and strong corporate earnings in the US, increased industrial production in Japan, and determination to support financial stability and growth in the Eurozone, will help to support global growth. More importantly, Chris fears that many people are falling slave to money, and, particularly in Asia, have been over-confident with their money, pushing property and car prices too high, and taking on too much debt. He feels that adopting an attitude of contentment – which is to strive for what really matters and accept that certain things cannot or need not be had – is a sure way to release oneself from the shackles of money.

We at Providend have been commodity bulls over the past few years, believing that the coupling of strong global demand with unstable supply has created a fundamental shortage in many types of commodities. While this have benefitted our portfolios, we have become increasingly concerned with the sharp and sometimes unfathomable rise in some commodity prices. Are we seeing a commodity “bubble” emerge? Read Daryl’s article to find out more!

With the worsening credit crunch and deteriorating US economy, Daryl and his team has shifted a portion of Providend’s clients’ money out of riskier equities and directed small allocation to a Middle Easter & North African (MENA) equity fund for the more aggressive mandates. They believe that the MENA stock indices are lowly or even negatively correlated to developed and other emerging equity markets. Read more in the article as Daryl shares on his team’s research and views on the MENA market and how their decision will minimize the overall portfolio volatility.

The greater-than-expected rate cut was the catalyst for equity markets to stage a strong rally in September, with some of Providend’s portfolios hitting their annual targeted returns in the one month alone. However, it has also prompted queries on whether a short term correction is on the cards and how much longer markets can continue heading upwards. Read this article written by Daryl as he gives his professional views on the market outlook and sentiments for the rest of the year and 2008.

After delivering a sterling performance in 2005, Japanese equities have struggled, underperforming last year, and ranking the worst performer so far this year. Providend’s portfolios however continue to have an exposure, albeit small, to Japanese equities. Daryl recently made a trip to Japan to gather on-the-ground intelligence about the state of affairs in the country. Amid all the doom and gloom, are there any signs that this once-powerful economy is finally able to turn things around? Read this article as he shares with us his opinions formed from his research and reading on the Japanese economy.

The recent earthquake off Sumatra and its aftershocks mirror the tremors shaking up financial markets over the past few weeks. The negative news dominating headlines in the media has made some of Providend’s clients uneasy, prompting several to contact us with their concerns. In this article, Daryl reiterates our views on why we believe the current turmoil actually presents buying opportunities for selected markets. Read on!

Financial markets were recently paralyzed with fear over the developing crisis in the US sub-prime housing sector and the ensuing problems in the collateralized debt obligation(CDO) market. Providend’s Investment Team made an interesting observation from the volatile financial markets on the unusual behavior of the price of gold. Gold is traditionally regarded as an asset to hedge against inflation. Interestingly, however, gold prices have actually eased back somewhat despite the financial turmoil coupled with concerns of rising inflation. Read more about what we uncovered from our study on gold

With the challenging and volatile investment environment over the past few months, some argued that they would have done better than investment experts by simply putting money in fixed deposits. While it is always easy to make investment decisions with the benefit of hindsight, Daryl reiterates why holding cash was not really an attractive option when gauged over a prolonged period of time. He also reminds investors of their return and risk expectations, and how one’s investment time horizon matters in determining the kind of assets one should be investing in. Read on!