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Investors worldwide have suffered losses to their investment portfolios as they hold or have held bonds issued by the Republic of Venezuela or the state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA). Many bond investors here in Jamaica once owned or still own bonds issued by one...

A client of ours recently asked my opinion on the financial media frenzy debate about the possible demise of the U.S. dollar in the near-term. Concerns range from growing national debt to the emergence of competing currencies and economic shifts. In this article, we'll explore the...

The dominance of the US dollar has been a hot topic in recent weeks. The consensus is that in the long term there may be a trend toward currency diversification. However, the dollar losing its reserve status will not occur any time soon. As mentioned, investors should not look to...

In a globalized economy, the use of a single dominant currency allows for ease and efficiency of trading between countries. With each country having their own currency, trading with multiple partners is more difficult when having to pay for goods and services from each trading partner in...

The only cure for a crisis of confidence and anxiety is an improved understanding of the events that are occurring. We do not need to have a firm grasp of the complexities of every accounting rule on a bank’s balance sheet to make prudent decisions. This article tries to provide readers...

The past 2 weeks in the global financial markets have been “eventful”, to say the least. In the United States, Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell indicated that interest rates were likely to go higher than previously anticipated, with higher-than-expected incremental rate...

2022 was a challenging year for international investors from a portfolio valuation perspective as well as for those who needed to or were forced to sell positions during the year. Both stocks and bonds declined appreciably in value as the combination of unprecedented interest rate...

The U.S. Federal Reserve's (Fed) policy setting committee boosted its benchmark rate (fed funds rate) by 75 basis points (bps) or 0.75% on Wednesday, September 21^st. That was the third consecutive increase of such magnitude, and it brought the target range for the federal funds rate to 3.0...

Today we provide a market recap for investors who are patiently assessing the financial markets and trying to decide when and what to buy. This information will help direct you to pockets of opportunities and provide context for future market moves. Staying liquid is an important tenet of...

A few weeks ago, we looked at the effect of the Russia-Ukraine war (and other factors) on interest rates and market volatility. As the war continues, sanctions have been imposed and governments now have to decide how to move forward. Since then, actions have been taken by various...