Banking on change when it comes to Fossil Fuel Financing

The European Central Bank (ECB) will almost certainly start their rates cutting cycle next month. Supportive inflation data and clear guidance from the governing council has driven market implied probabilities of a June cut to almost 100%, with little in the way to derail that.

The most important event this week is likely to be this Wednesday’s US Consumer Prices Index (CPI) release.

The term ‘fossil fuel financing’ refers to the provision of capital (including loans, investments, and other forms of capital) to companies involved in the exploration, extraction and production of coal, oil and natural gas.

Following an incredible 2023, collateralised loan obligation (CLO) investors are again having a great year with the asset class outperforming the more traditional asset classes.

The first four months of this year have seen €11.6bn in gross Additional Tier 1 (AT1) issuance from European banks, across euros, dollars and sterling markets.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting was a relatively uneventful one, but there are a few points worth highlighting.

On ​​​​​our latest webinar, "The duration deliberation - to extend or not to extend?", Chris Bowie (Partner, Portfolio Management) provided a macro update on fixed income markets and how these views are reflected in the positioning of our short-dated funds.

Recently, BBVA announced that it had approached the management of Banco Sabadell, to explore a possible merger between both entities, with BBVA also appointing advisers for this purpose.

On our recent webinar in the "Back to Basics" series, Jakub Lichwa (Portfolio Management) and Dillon Lancaster (Portfolio Management) from our Multi-Sector Bond team gave their valuable insights into the importance of maintaining sufficient levels of bank capital to uphold financial stability.