Markets go thru many phases of bull and bear markets over decades. Though bear markets are difficult to handle, bull markets tend to be longer. For example, from 1980 to 2024 global stocks as represented by the MSCI World Index had bull markets whose duration were four times that of bear markets. In addition, the average total return was much higher during bull markets than the losses during bear markets.
The province of Ontario in Canada is rich in many natural resources. Mining companies there extract a variety of minerals such as Silver, gold, Nickel, Copper, etc. I recently came across an infographic that shows how mining helps us in our everyday lives. For example, copper is used in hospital equipment and devices to reduce the risks of infection.
China is the second largest economy in the world with a nominal GDP of about $18.5 Trillion in 2024. The Chinese economy has had tremendous growth every year until a few years ago. One of the industries that contributed to the growth is the manufacturing sector. Products made in China are found in most of the markets in the world. Chinese companies have not conquered the markets in the developed world but also in most emerging and frontier markets. I recently came across an interesting article at Der Speigel that I had bookmarked last October. The article discussed if the German economic model is in trouble and if this is the end of Globalization. Two charts from the piece caught my eye.
The following chart titled “The Trading Power of China” shows that most countries depend on China for their imports in 2022. Though the US was the largest importer with good worth over $575 billion, most countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia also had huge imports from China. For instance, Brazil imported about $68 billion worth of goods from China.
One factor that is helping China with becoming a major trade partner for many countries in the world is its “Belt and Road Initiative” thorough which China is investing heavily in infrastructure projects around the world. The following chart shows the member countries of this initiative in 2023:
