With the world’s attention focused on the tragic situation unfolding in Ukraine, it is difficult at times to put aside personal, political and humanitarian views and to concentrate on the financial implications of global events.
Although the pandemic is far from over, with cases in some areas rising to the highest levels seen since the beginning of the pandemic and the threat of a new variant always around the corner, the volatility from the pandemic seen in markets is decreasing, as investors become more accustomed to the ebbs and flows of an endemic virus.
Much investor attention has turned to China in the past year, with increased foreign capital flowing into Chinese stocks. In our view it is worthwhile looking more closely at this to see what investors are focusing on.
Initially, the emergence of the Omicron variant spooked investors and caused markets to fall.