Blog

Three Hints on the Direction of Chinese Assets October 04, 2018

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Markets

The Chinese stock market is closed this week for the Golden Week holiday. On this side of the Pacific the markets have been busy this week with US Treasury bond yields breaking out and stocks selling off—especially technology—based on the revelation that China implanted devices…

Small Caps Fail to Break Out September 27, 2018

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Markets

Among the major groups of stocks around the world that we follow, US small-cap stocks have been the best performer over the last decade as the USD experienced a strong bull market. US small caps have outperformed our mid/large group of developed companies by…

Playing for a Bounce September 20, 2018

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Markets

Over the summer, some groups within the global equity market sold off sharply, leading to the current trends of poor performance and weak breadth. Foreign stocks, cyclicals and value-oriented sectors were the hardest hit. From here, we expect better trends from these groups as they…

Spotlight: Inside Prada’s Knowledge Workshop September 11, 2018

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Knowledge Leaders

For decades, the fashion industry has tried to explain the elusive magic of the Prada brand. “Some designers are seekers of trends, but Prada actually is the trend, season after season,” the New York Times Magazine wrote. And this summer, when Jeff Goldblum appeared on…

Thoughts on the Term Premium September 07, 2018

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets

As many have documented, the main channel of transmission for the Fed’s quantitative easing policy was via the term premium component of US treasuries. As the Fed’s balance sheet doubled from 2010 to 2015, the term premium embedded in US treasuries fell from 2.5% to…

What We’re Reading August 21, 2018

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Economy, News

Recently we were asked about the latest books and ideas contributing to our economic analysis. Here’s an incomplete list of what we’ve been reading this summer. Straight Talk on Trade: Ideas for a Sane World Economy By Dani Rodrik A discussion of free trade and…

Spotlight: Where Fanuc’s Robots Go, the Rest of Industry Follows August 16, 2018

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Knowledge Leaders

As we outline in our white paper, the semiconductor is the General Purpose Technology of our time. A GPT is a core breakthrough technology that performs a general function, and many applications are built on top of it, forming the basis of economic development for…

Are Commodities Signaling a Shift Away From US Equity Leadership? August 08, 2018

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets

Most commodities have suffered lately with the backdrop of tariffs and China’s devaluation. But some have fared worse than others, and there is information content to the relative move in commodities. While copper catches many of the headlines (i.e. Dr. Copper, the metal with a…

Who Reads Financial Reports? Nobody! August 01, 2018

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Guest Author, Knowledge Leaders

For several years I have argued, based on comprehensive statistical evidence, that corporate financial reports―quarterly and annual statements―have lost most of their relevance and usefulness to investors. Corporate earnings, in particular, are no longer a reliable measure of enterprise value change, nor are they indicators…

Quarterly Strategy Update: What We Know, What We Think & What We Are Unsure Of July 26, 2018

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Economy, Markets, Portfolio Management

Recently, fears of a slowdown in global growth brought on by a trade war have led to turbulence in cyclical assets. The US Dollar has risen while commodities and emerging markets have struggled. The Chinese Yuan has depreciated significantly, recalling fears of the 2014-2016 industrial…

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The information presented here is for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, securities. Some investments are not suitable for all investors, and there can be no assurance that any investment strategy will be successful. Hyperlinks may be included in this message that provide direct access to other internet resources, including web sites. While we believe these links are to reliable sources, Knowledge Leaders Capital (“KLC”) has no control over the accuracy or content of information contained on these sites. Although we make every effort to ensure such links are accurate, up to date and relevant, we have no control over pages maintained by external providers. The views expressed by these external providers on their own web pages or on external sites they link to are not necessarily those of Knowledge Leaders Capital.

The information provided on this blog is for illustrative or example purposes only and should not be construed as KLC’s opinion or investment outlook. As of the most recent quarter end, the named companies may have been held by KLC. For full information including additional policies and full disclosures, please visit our website: KnowledgeLeadersCapital.com.

Any reference to Index performance does not represent the performance of any investment product offered by Knowledge Leaders Capital, LLC. An investor cannot invest directly in an index. The performance of client account may vary from the Index performance. Index returns shown are not reflective of actual investor performance nor do they reflect fees and expenses applicable to investing.

Companies are selected for “Spotlights” based on high levels of innovation activities in their respective industries and illustrate innovation being employed across all sectors and geographies. Spotlight selection is separate from stock selection by the investment team. Spotlights are not necessarily representative of investment opportunities and can be selected regardless of investment performance or inclusion as a KLC holding.