04-25-2017, 11:17 PM
WHAT a difference a year makes. When America’s big banks reported first-quarter earnings for 2016, the mood was glum. The Federal Reserve was proving tardier than hoped in raising interest rates, which held down lending margins. Jitters about the world economy meant rotten results for investment-banking units, in what is usually their best season of the year. Regulators added to the misery: last April the Fed rejected the “living wills”—plans for liquidating lenders that get into trouble—of five of the six largest banks.
Happy returns: America’s big banks have an encouraging first quarter | The Economist
Amazon's stock price has soared 43.7% over the last year to more than $900, and several Wall Street analysts think it could go to $1,000. Credit Suisse equity research analyst Stephen Ju is the latest to call for a big move in Amazon's share price. In a note circulated to clients on Monday, Ju reiterated his "Outperform" rating on Amazon and raised his price target to $1,050 from $900. Amazon has been investing heavily in fulfillment and data centers, and Ju thinks some of those investments will start to pay off this quarter, improving margins for the retail behemoth. Those investments will also help balance out what profit Amazon loses by offering so much free shipping to customers. Credit Suisse notes Amazon's "push to invest should serve as positive demand indicators across its consumer and enterprise-facing businesses."
CREDIT SUISSE: Here's why Amazon's stock is going to soar (AMZN) | 04/17/17 | Markets Insider
But before deciphering what these developments might lead to in the future, markets could benefit from understanding what populism actually is and how previous examples of populist movements have played out. In an interview with Business Insider Global Editor-in-Chief Henry Blodget on the "The Bottom Line," Business Insider's new weekly business news show, Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio discussed his study of the populist phenomenon throughout history and the similarities he found across different iterations. You can watch the full interview here.
Ray Dalio on populism - Business Insider
Whereas investment weakness in advanced economies reflects mainly sluggish output growth, investment weakness in EMDEs is associated with a larger number of factors. Weak output growth can account for three-quarters, on average, for slowdowns in investment growth among advanced economies during 2011-15, it accounted for a small share of the investment growth slowdown in the average EMDE
The persistent headache of sluggish investment | VOX, CEPR’s Policy Portal
The report is based on an annual survey of 1,000 people in more than 150 countries that simply asks them to rank, on a scale of zero to 10, whether they are living their best life. Researchers then use six measures to try to understand the results: gross domestic product per capita, life expectancy, support from relatives or friends, charitable giving, freedom to make life choices, and perceived levels of government and corporate corruption.