Percentage Share of Total Employment That Depend on Exports for Select Countries: Chart

The economies of some countries are heavily dependent on exports while others do not. A higher percentage of jobs in export-driven countries depend on exports. For example, Germany is a classic export-based economy unlike the US which is a consumption-based economy. So 30% of total employment is attributed to exports. In the US, the figure …

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Valuation Metrics: U.S. vs. Foreign Stocks

The U.S. equity market has performed well in recent months especially since the election in November. The S&P 500 is up by over 5.50% year-to-date on price only basis. The solid performance of US stocks has pushed valuations to high levels. When compared to other markets, US valuations look stretched according to a report by …

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Knowledge is Power: Oil Opportunities, Emerging Markets and American Democracy Edition

Ian Cowie: why I’m sticking with Europe during Brexit (CityWire, UK) Why emerging market fundamentals are positive for 2017 (Schroders) Opportunities amid the oil dip (Blackrock) This Is Why Australia Hasn’t Had a Recession in Over 25 Years (Bloomberg) Stop wasting money: Confronting confirmation bias can make you a better investor (Financial Post) The clouds are lifting for …

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Small Caps Are Attractive Relative To Large Caps

Global small cap stocks are attractive now compared to large caps based on valuation, according to an article by David Brett at Schroders. Small caps as measured by the MSCI Small Cap Index has returned three times as much as large caps since March 2001. Small caps returned 317%  including dividends compared with 107% for the MSCI …

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Emerging Markets: Companies Showing Signs Of Recovery ?

Emerging markets are performing well so far this year. But until last year they were depressed as investors avoided them for a variety of reasons including the plunge in commodity prices. According to an article at Franklin Templeton, these markets are showing signs of recovery ass earnings, exports and commodity prices are on the upswing. …

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