News

Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, recently participated on a live webcast focusing on international investing, presented by leading South African financial news platform Biznews.

Join us for our annual client conference. The event will be held virtually, with the option to attend any one or all of the presentations.

15-16 OCTOBER 2020

Certificates of Attendance, for CPD purposes, will be provided for UK and SA Financial Intermediary attendees.

Presentations

Global Markets Update
Deon Gouws, Credo's CIO, will share some thoughts on global financial markets in the context of Covid-19.
15 October 2020
9:00 to 9:50 (UK) / 10:00 to 10:50 (SA)

Wealth Platform: Looking Ahead
Helping our Financial Intermediary clients to grow and service their clients is critical for success. Charles van der Merwe, Managing Director, Financial Intermediaries, will share an update on our strategy with some industry insights.
15 October 2020
10:00 to 10:35 (UK) / 11:00 to 11:35 (SA)

Credo's Equity Portfolios
It has been a fascinating time to be an equity manager. Jarrod Cahn, Credo Global Equity Fund Manager, will update you on our equity portfolios.
16 October 2020
9:00 to 9:50 (UK) / 10:00 to 10:50 (SA)

Multi-Asset Investing
Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo, will provide a fresh perspective on the impact of noise in investing.
16 October 2020
10:00 to 10:35 (UK) / 11:00 to 11:35 (SA)

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

To help provide investors with relevant information beyond the day-to-day, Credo has published the second of its 2020 Investment Series segments, addressing the topic of Rebalancing. These short, user-friendly videos tackle key investment concepts and, importantly, how they are applied in real life.

August was largely a positive month for global equity markets despite the coronavirus pandemic continuing to dominate headlines. In the US, the number of new daily cases started to decline. However, in European regions, such as Spain and France, fears of a second wave took hold as the number of new daily cases increased. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX were up 7.2%, 1.8% and 3.2% respectively. The US presidential campaign gained momentum with the announcement of Kamala Harris as Joe Biden's running mate and the nomination of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee being confirmed. In the UK, Brexit negotiations resumed as EU and UK negotiators met in Brussels to discuss their future partnership. The yields for US, UK, and German 10-year bonds increased by 18, 21 and 13 basis point respectively. The pound was up 2.2% against the US dollar and 0.8% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

On Wednesday, the 2nd of September 2020, Credo Wealth arranged its fourth live event which was watched by clients and other interested parties from the comfort of their own homes.

Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo, chatted to Anatole Kaletsky, economist and journalist based in the UK, several times awarded for his work with media channels such as The Economist, The Financial Times, The Times of London, Reuters and The International Herald Tribune.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

As active investors, we believe that sometimes events can cause the market to fail to reflect the true value of a company. Over the long term, however, share price performance will always be driven by...

Global stock markets have just experienced an unprecedented turnaround: following the quickest and steepest drawdown in history, indices are now back around the all-time highs reached six months ago.

In his sixth guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) illustrates the pitfalls of market timing in the context of these dramatic swings in equity prices.

Please join Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo Wealth, when he chats to Anatole Kaletsky, economist and journalist based in the UK, several times awarded for his work with media channels such as The Economist, The Financial Times, The Times of London, Reuters and The International Herald Tribune.

Date: Wednesday, 02 September 2020
Time: 4.30 PM (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Anatole and Ainsley to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

July saw US equity markets extend their gains while European equity markets ended the month down as concerns over the number of new coronavirus infections increased and some countries re-instated lockdown restrictions. The S&P 500 was up 5.6%, while the FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX were down 4.2% and 1.5% respectively. Gold was up 8.5% over the month as investors shied away from riskier assets. The European Union reached a deal on a €750 billion recovery fund which will enable them to borrow from capital markets to finance expenditures caused by the coronavirus pandemic throughout the region. In the UK, the Chancellor of the Exchequer introduced further measures to stimulate the economy including by reducing stamp duty and cutting VAT for the food and hospitality sectors. The yield for US 10-year bond decreased by 13 basis points, while the UK and German 10-year bonds both decreased by 7 basis points. The pound was up 5.7% against the US dollar and 0.9% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Many people wonder how it's possible that stock markets have been so resilient in the face of Covid-19 adversity. Commentators fixate on the S&P 500, which is trading within touching distance of where it started the year, even though the global economy is dealing with its worst crisis since the Great Depression.

In his fifth guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) explains how equity indices have been lifted by the strong performance of a relatively small number of large tech companies, which has more than made up for substantial declines practically everywhere else.

We have owned Flutter Entertainment for a few years now, having originally identified the company as a highly profitable and cash generative compounder, with unique competitive advantages. The company is benefitting from secular...

To help provide investors with relevant information beyond the day-to-day, Credo has published the first of its 2020 Investment Series segments, addressing the topic of Phasing. These short, user-friendly videos tackle key investment concepts and, importantly, how they are applied in real life.

"Findawealthmanager.com" represents an assortment of investment managers and private banks. They provide investors with an objective method of finding the right wealth manager, suited to their specific needs; to this end, they periodically publish opinion pieces from investment managers around the UK. In the most recent edition, Credo Wealth's CIO, Deon Gouws, offered a view on the current opportunity offered by the equity market.

Global equity markets continued their rebound in June as economies started to re-open. Optimism outweighed concerns about the recovery of the global economy and the worsening of coronavirus cases. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX were all up 2.0%, 1.7%, 6.5% respectively. Copper was up 11.9% over the month, driven by supply disruptions in Chile and a resurgence in Chinese demand due to the easing of lockdown restrictions. The Bank of England increased its quantitative easing programme by a further £100 billion and the ECB expanded its Pandemic Emergency Purchase Program (PEPP) by €600 billion, helping to keep government and corporate borrowing costs low and provide liquidity. The yields for UK and German 10-year bonds both decreased by 1 basis point, while the yield on US 10-year bonds was flat. The pound was up 0.5% against the US dollar and down 0.7% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

On Wednesday, the 8th of July 2020, Credo Wealth arranged its third live event which was watched by some 300 clients and other interested parties from the comfort of their own homes.

Deon Gouws, the firm's Chief Investment Officer, chatted to Dawid Krige, manager of the top-performing Cederberg Greater China Equity Fund, about Chinese investment opportunities.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

Please join Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, when he chats to Dawid Krige, co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of Cederberg Capital and manager of the top-performing Cederberg Greater China Equity Fund.

Date: Wednesday, 08 July 2020
Time: 16h30 (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Dawid and Deon to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. You may be prompted to install an add-on to your browser, please follow the easy steps available.

Insurance companies around the world are in dispute with clients about the terms of business interruption policies in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic... but can one really blame them for vigorously defending claims based on carefully articulated legal language in policy documents?

In his fourth guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) discusses Arch Capital Group - one of the core holdings in Credo's equity products - against this background.

During the recent COVID-19 induced market sell-off, the insurance components of the S&P 500 fell approximately 45% from their February highs. As businesses were forced to close, events cancelled and earnings lost, investors...

A week ago, Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, wrote an open letter addressed to Pierre de Vos, Professor in Constitutional Governance at the University of Cape Town. This followed a blog post by Prof de Vos in which he had argued for a 100% inheritance tax. The debate attracted lots of media coverage, including an appearance by Deon on South African television channel kykNET where he was interviewed by the editor of Rapport newspaper, Waldimar Pelser. Those who understand Afrikaans can watch the clip by clicking below.

Although the impact of the coronavirus pandemic continued to dominate the headlines, May saw an extended rebound in global equity markets. A clear contrast to the negative macroeconomic data prevalent in the real economy. Volatility declined as investors became more optimistic about a successful vaccine and countries started to ease their lockdown restrictions. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX were all up 4.8%, 3.4% and 4.9% respectively. Oil prices made significant gains over the month, with Brent crude oil up 36.0%, driven by eased lockdown restrictions and oil production cuts. In the UK, the Chancellor of the Exchequer confirmed that the furlough scheme would be extended until October with businesses taking on some of the contributions from August. The yields for US and German 10-year bonds increased by 1 and 14 basis points respectively while the yield on UK 10-year bonds decreased by 5 basis points. The pound was down 2.0% against the US dollar and 3.3% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Earlier this week, a social media debate ensued in South Africa following a blog post by Pierre de Vos, Professor in Constitutional Governance at the University of Cape Town, in which he argues for a 100% inheritance tax. Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, wrote an open letter in response, suggesting an alternative.

Jarrod Cahn, Lead Manager of the Credo Global Equity Fund, recently provided a video update on the fund and discussed a variety of subjects. These included Credo's Value based investment approach, the impact of Coronavirus on stocks in the fund, recent changes to the portfolio and current positioning.

On Wednesday, the 3rd of June 2020, Credo Wealth arranged its second live webinar which was watched by some 300 clients and other interested parties from the comfort of their own homes. Deon Gouws, the firm's Chief Investment Officer, chatted to well-known UK economist Stephen King about a grave new world beyond lockdown. Click above to watch the clip.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

Earlier this week, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) contributed to the financial program "Winslyn" on South African television channel kykNET. Those who understand Afrikaans can watch the clip by clicking below.

Alan Noik, Managing Director of Credo, is quoted in the piece "Why behavioural biases can blow your investments" featured in findawealthmanager.com. He explains that the extreme market volatility we saw in February and March made clients think twice about their real appetite for risk.

Last week happened to be Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK. In response, industry magazine Citywire invited wealth managers to submit contributions in which they discussed how they approach their own mental health challenges during this very testing time for all. As part of this initiative, Citywire published a piece by Deon Gouws.

Some companies will suffer more in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic than others... but has the stock market perhaps over-reacted in some instances?

In his third guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) discusses Disney - one of the core holdings in Credo's equity products - against this very background.

Please join Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, when he chats to well-known economist Stephen King about a grave new world beyond lockdown.

Date: Wednesday, 03 June 2020
Time: 16h30 (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Stephen and Deon to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. You may be prompted to install an add-on to your browser, please follow the easy steps available.

As governments across the globe start to ease lockdown measures, a return to "normality" is starting to be discussed. Whether reversion back to a 2019 type of normal is possible, probable or desirable is a question for someone with many more pages to fill. It is likely that...

Ben Newton, Co-Portfolio Manager of the Credo Dynamic Fund, discusses in a "Next Gen" feature in Citywire Wealth Manager challenges facing the wealth management industry and his experience to date.

"Findawealthmanager.com" represents an assortment of investment managers and private banks. They provide investors with an objective method of finding the right wealth manager, suited to their specific needs. They have recently asked Credo for insights into Equity markets in these challenged times. Credo Wealth's CIO, Deon Gouws, provided an explanation for the recent rebound in markets and gave his current perspective.

Credo's Head of Multi-Asset, Ainsley To, was featured in a recent edition of Citywire Wealth Manager that focused on investment benchmarks and indices. He offers an alternative perspective, arguing that benchmarks are more useful when considered from the perspective of an investor's goals and the risk they need to take to achieve them.

Although much of the global economy remained in lockdown as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, April provided some relief for investors as global equity markets rebounded strongly from the March lows. Volatility remained high as uncertainty prevailed. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX were all up 12.8%, 4.3%, 5.4% respectively. Governments and central banks continued to introduce substantial stimulus measures to combat the negative effects of the coronavirus on their economies and improve investor confidence amid global recessionary fears. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude Oil Futures for delivery in May fell into negative territory for the first time ever due to fears that the country was running out of space to store the commodity. Brent Crude oil was down 10.7% over the month. In fixed income markets, the yields for the US, UK and German 10-year bonds decreased by 3, 13 and 12 basis points respectively. The pound was up 1.5% against the US dollar and 1.8% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Machine Learning has been an increasingly hot topic within finance. In this presentation, Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo, demystifies machine learning for investors and explains some of the nuances in applying these techniques within the investing domain.

CPD for the event available for Asset TV registered users.

On Wednesday the 29th of April 2020, Credo Wealth arranged its first ever live webinar which was watched by some 400 clients and other interested parties from the comfort of their own homes. Deon Gouws, the firm's Chief Investment Officer, chatted to well-known South African political commentator and journalist Max du Preez about a world in lockdown. Click above to watch the clip.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

Please join Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth in London, when he chats to well-known South African political commentator and journalist Max du Preez about a world in lockdown.

Date: Wednesday, 29 April 2020
Time: 16h30 (UK) / 17h30 (SA)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Max and Deon to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. You may be prompted to install an add-on to your browser, please follow the easy steps available.

After a rapid drawdown in March, equity markets around the world have confounded the expectations of many with a strong comeback in the ensuing four weeks.

In his second guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) provides perspective.

In February, we bought Progressive in the Dividend Growth Portfolio as well as the Credo Global Equity Fund. The world looked very different then and investors were still relatively sanguine about the impact of COVID-19, with global markets continuing to push higher. Progressive is the...

In February we reported that equity markets made significant losses following the spread of the coronavirus across the globe. March followed a similar pattern, although this was more pronounced as containment measures brought large parts of the global economy to a standstill, with many countries imposing lockdowns. The S&P 500, Euro STOXX 50, FTSE 100 and Nikkei 225 were all down 12.4%, 16.2%, 13.4% and 9.8% respectively. Coronavirus fears also disturbed the alliance between OPEC and Russia, pushing oil prices to their worst one-day drop in thirty years. As a result, Brent Crude oil fell 43.2% over the month. Further, central banks across the globe cut interest rates and restarted quantitative easing programs in order to keep borrowing costs low, improve liquidity and protect their economies from the effects of the coronavirus. US and UK 10-year bonds decreased by 48 and 9 basis points respectively. The pound was down 3.3% against the US dollar and 2.8% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is a technology that uses digital 'robots' to help automate mundane, repetitive, manual and error-prone processes, freeing up staff to concentrate on more complex and value-added tasks. Karl Broadway, PMO Manager at Credo, discusses the company's first foray into this technology with its implementation partner, human+.

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is having a significant impact on corporates, with historical analysis and stress tests against even the extreme economic conditions of 2008 not providing answers. Rupert Silver, Head of Fixed Income, examines the impact on the corporate bond market.

News channels and publications are full of predictions about the effect of Coronavirus. Both short and long-term predictions tend to be opinionated guesswork, however. Sometimes it's useful to step back and look at some of the established facts to get a sense of directionality, as discussed by Andrew Cormack, Business Development Manager - Investment Solutions.

Alison Norbury, global equity analyst at Credo, was featured in the latest edition of Investment Week's Bull v Bear. She discusses the repercussions of the coronavirus outbreak on global equity markets as well as examining the important characteristics that Credo is looking for in companies during these turbulent times.

Following the recent article by Credo Wealth CIO, Deon Gouws, about some of the questionable mathematics and dubious reporting related to the coronavirus, he was interviewed on this same topic by Alec Hogg, founder of financial news site Biznews.

Covid-19 is a harrowing disease, and the plight of hospitals around the world and their overworked staff will continue to be overwhelming for some time. Having said that, there has also been a lot of misleading reporting about the pandemic, much of it a consequence of questionable mathematics. Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, explains.

Events have been evolving rapidly since we last put pen to paper to write the monthly Spotlight. The international spread of Covid-19, alongside the breakdown of an agreement between OPEC and Russia regarding oil supply restrictions, has spooked markets into some of the worst days since 1987. One of the longest bull markets in history has abruptly...

One downside of social distancing is the increased temptation for would-be long-term investors to watch the market far more than is healthy - particularly given the dramatic moves in recent weeks. Ainsley To, who heads up the Multi-Asset Portfolio offering at Credo Wealth, provides perspective.

In the wake of news-flow surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic, the past month has been an extremely challenging time in financial markets. Jarrod Cahn, who heads up the equity team at Credo, provides some perspective with reference to the Best Ideas and Dividend Growth Portfolios.

Coronavirus fears are gripping the whole world right now and financial markets have been extremely turbulent as a result. What's an investor to do?

This week, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) published a guest column on this topic in leading South African publication Financial Mail.

The paywalled (and slightly edited) version of the article can be viewed on the Financial Mail's own website

Credo Wealth participated in this year's Investment Forum: the pre-eminent conference for financial advisors in South Africa with more than 1,500 attendees. Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer) and Jarrod Cahn (Lead Portfolio Manager of the Credo Global Equity Fund) were both involved as presenters. Due to the Covid-19 risks, the conference took place on a virtual basis in the end, with participants being able to view all sessions online.

Business Day prepared a special wraparound edition of their newspaper specifically for the event; an article by Deon Gouws was included in this.

Global, developed equity markets made significant losses in February as the outbreak of the coronavirus restricted travel and caused serious disruptions to global supply chains. Confirmed cases in Italy increased fears which led to a large sell-off in global equities towards the end of the month. The S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX 50 were down 8.2%, 9.0% and 8.4% respectively. Against the backdrop of a continued weaker global economy largely due to the outbreak and increased spread of the coronavirus, Brent Crude oil was down 11.9% over the month. In fixed income, bond yields hit record lows with the prospect that Central Banks may need to provide monetary policy support. Notably, US, UK and German 10-year bond yields were all down 0.36%, 0.08% and 0.17% basis points respectively. The pound was down 2.9% against the US dollar and 2.3% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

As we approach the end of the UK tax year, and to assist with your planning, we have listed key information and deadlines that you will need to be aware of in the run up to the end of the current tax year - Friday, 3rd April (last business day).

The coronavirus has been causing havoc in financial markets and we've just witnessed the quickest ever correction in share prices over the past few days. Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, offers some perspective.

"When Wall Street sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold" goes the old saying. What happens when an outbreak of a novel coronavirus shuts down many of China's major cities is a new question. The particularly virulent nature of the virus, combined with the apparently long incubation period, where sufferers can show no symptoms, are posing challenges to those trying to contain the outbreak. After initially trying to suppress the news, the Chinese authorities...

Jarrod Cahn, Manager of the Credo Global Equity Fund, was featured in a recent edition of Citywire Wealth Manager. The article assesses the evolution of Microsoft's business over the last decade, its growth prospects and also why the stock still offers relative value to investors. The strong performance of the Credo Global Equity Fund in 2019 is also highlighted.

Credo Wealth is proud to feature in the latest edition of Blue Chip, the official publication of the Financial Planning Institute in South Africa. Not only did Chief Investment Officer, Deon Gouws, contribute a piece about investing in China, but Credo also advertised on the back cover of the magazine.

Equity markets had an optimistic start to the new year with US President Donald Trump signing a phase one trade deal with China. However, this optimism waned as fears mounted over the outbreak of the coronavirus in Wuhan, China. Asian and European equity markets made significant losses with the Hang Seng, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX 500 all down 6.7%, 3.4% and 2.6% respectively. Facing the prospect of a weaker global economy due to the coronavirus outbreak, Brent Crude oil was down 12.6% over the month. Safe haven assets performed well over the month with Gold up 4% and the US dollar and Japanese yen both appreciating against pound sterling. Yields on US, UK and German 10-year government bonds fell by 0.41, 0.30 and 0.25 basis points respectively. As an aside, the UK officially exited the EU on 31 January and will aim to negotiate a free trade deal with the EU within the 11-month transition period ending 31 December 2020.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Credo Wealth has enhanced its investment offering with the launch of its ZAR-denominated BCI Credo Global Equity Feeder Fund. The fund will invest in the Irish-domiciled Credo Global Equity Fund. Launched in 2017, the Credo Global Equity Fund has reported stellar performance for the 12 months ending 31 December 2019, returning over 32% in US dollar terms.

Following years of political drama, the UK finally left the EU on Friday night (even though a future trade agreement is yet to be finalised). Towards the end of last week, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer of Credo Wealth) discussed developments with three different media outlets in South Africa, namely CNBC Africa, eNCA and RSG Geldsake.

Credo hosted an event in its Johannesburg office on 24 January where several of Credo's Financial Intermediary clients were updated on the United Kingdom (UK) market and the use of UK Regulatory Hosting service providers to enable firms to continue to provide services to UK resident investors. Charles van der Merwe (Managing Director, Financial Intermediaries) provided an overview of the UK market, trends in the UK Advisory and Discretionary markets and the benefits of using the services of a UK Regulatory Hosting service provider. The event was well attended as many SA based firms are considering expanding their business outside of SA and following their clients who have emigrated.

Starting a new year, or decade for that matter, is a unique opportunity to reflect. One where we both consider the changes that have occurred over the past 10 years, but also try to anticipate what the next period may bring. At the start of 2020, it thus feels like the right time to look back at one of our longest and most successful investments and in particular, one which we also believe will continue to provide an attractive return in the years to come. The world looked very different back at the start of the previous decade. For example...

Credo's Managing Director, Alan Noik, was featured in the most recent Find a Wealth Manager cover story. Find a Wealth Manager is an independent web search portal that "represents over 30 firms, including investment managers and private banks, all with a common theme: a commitment to provide best practice and better-value fees".

Rupert Silver, lead Fund Manager of Credo Dynamic Fund, was featured in the latest edition of Investment Week's Bull & Bear. He discusses the challenges presented by asset allocation in the current economic environment. Additionally, he outlines how the fund's flexible approach has helped to increase returns for investors.

December provided some relief for investors as significant political risks in the UK and between the US and China were avoided. All major equity indices made gains over the month, with the FTSE 100, the S&P 500 and the Euro STOXX 50 all up 2.8%, 3% and 1.2% respectively. US President Donald Trump announced that he plans to sign a 'phase one' trade deal with China on 15 January, which meant that the 15% tariff increases due on 15 December would not be imposed. In the UK, the Conservative Party won a commanding majority in the House of Commons which will allow Boris Johnson to push through a Brexit withdrawal agreement with the EU. Sterling ended the month up 2.6% against the US dollar and up 0.6% against the euro. The yield on UK, US and German 10-year bonds increased by 0.13%, 0.14%, 0.18% respectively.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

Following one of the strongest years in financial markets on record, 2020 began with trouble in the Middle East and rumours of war. What are the implications for investors? Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, gives his perspective.

Last month, top South African investment journalist Stephen Cranston referred extensively to the most recent edition of CredoNews in a column for leading publication Financial Mail.

After an introduction in which he mentions how Credo has been prospering as a business, he quotes from a feature article by Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, as follows:

"In the latest CredoNews, Gouws writes a note titled "Investing in China: caveat emptor". With lots of pictures of the Forbidden City in the brochure I can imagine he would have loved to change this to "caveat emperor". We seem to be seeing the rebirth of Chinese imperialism, after all".

Gouws points out that just three of the top 10 holdings in the EMQQ, an emerging-markets internet and e-commerce exchange traded fund, are not Chinese, and of these, one, Naspers, is a proxy for Chinese giant Tencent.

But Gouws warns that Naspers doesn't own its shares in Tencent in the sense understood in the West.

It has an exposure through a structure known as a variable interest entity (VIE). The listed entity is wholly owned by Chinese citizens and typically the tech firm's founders. Crucially, it holds the operating licences."

Following some further explanatory remarks, he then focuses on another article from the same edition of CredoNews, as follows:

"Credo analyst Alison Norbury says there are plenty of ways to exploit the China and broader Asian growth story without resorting to VIEs, such as the insurers AIA and Prudential and casino group Las Vegas Sands in Macao."