Monthly Archives: August 2010
Term Structure of Interest Rates
Introduction Interest rates are important in pricing market securities. Interest rates are also important at corporate level since most investment decisions are based on some expectations regarding alternative opportunities and the cost of capital—both of which depend on the interest … Continue reading
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Understanding Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
What are Exchange Traded Funds? Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are investment funds that are traded on stock exchanges like stocks. This is one of the major differences between Exchange Traded Funds and Mutual Funds, which are also investment funds. An … Continue reading
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Why Market Perception of Liquidity is more Important for Investment Banks
It has been almost two years since the collapse of Lehman Brothers, which was one of the big five pure play investment banks before the credit crunch. Just a few months before Lehman collapsed, Bear Sterns, another pure play investment … Continue reading
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M&A Activity Soaring in the Second Half
In the first half of 2010, global M&A activity was slow. Many factors accounted for a slowdown in the M&A activity. One of them was the sovereign debt crisis in Europe. However, M&A activity has picked up in the second … Continue reading
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Update on the Global Economy
In the past few weeks, there has been small turnaround with the U.S. economy, which earlier this year had shown strong signs of recovery, stumbling, and the concerns about the Euro area economy, which at the beginning of this year … Continue reading
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China is now the Second Largest Economy in the World
China finally surpassed Japan to become the second largest economy in the world. According to the latest figures, China overtook the Japanese economy in the second quarter of 2010. Japan held its position as the world’s second largest economy for … Continue reading
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Using Fiscal Policy to Stimulate Growth
The recent recession saw governments in advanced economies use fiscal policy to stimulate growth. Governments in major developed economies implemented bailout plans and cut interest rates during the financial crisis. Interest rate in the US was cut to almost zero … Continue reading
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Country Report; Brazil
After many years fighting economic instability, Brazil, the biggest country in Latin America, is finally enjoying a period of stability and growth. It is hard to imagine that only a few years ago, Brazil was facing a financial crisis that … Continue reading
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Global M&A Activity Slow in First Half of 2010
Global M&A activity has been off to slow start in the first half of this year. According to data by Thomson Reuters, the global M&A activity, for the first six month of this year, was worth a little under $976 … Continue reading
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Understanding the Carry Trade Strategy
The currency market sees the exchange of billions of dollars on a daily basis. Most of the trading in the currency market is speculative in nature. Many hedge funds and trading divisions of big investment banks speculate on currency. In … Continue reading
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