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Cooperation Between Fundinfo and UBS Fondcenter for Fund Data Management

UBS Fondcenter y fundinfo se alían en la gestión de datos de fondos — Photo: Pxhere CC0. Cooperation Between Fundinfo and UBS Fondcenter for Fund Data Management

UBS and its group company Fondcenter have commissioned fundinfo to procure and source fund data from fund providers and asset managers. In order to provide efficient, legally compliant investment advice, UBS Fondcenter’s external and internal partners require on-demand access to complete, accurate and up-to-date fund information, including MiFID II and PRIIPs data. They also rely on the openfunds standard for fund data that was launched and is being continuously enhanced by UBS Fondcenter, Credit Suisse and Julius Bär.

“Fundinfo has many years of experience in the procurement, validation and distribution of fund information and meets our high quality requirements”, says Christophe Hefti, head UBS Fondcenter at UBS Asset Management. “By partnering with fundinfo, we can concentrate on our core competencies and expand our range of services, including data preparation. At the same time, we are providing fund providers with an experienced partner for high-quality fund data and document management.”

“After working successfully with UBS Fondcenter for many years in the area of fund document management, we are pleased and proud that UBS Fondcenter has now placed their trust in fundinfo to perform their fund data management” says Jan Giller, Head of Sales & Marketing at fundinfo. “It is a privilege and a strong testament to our capabilities that the largest asset manager in Switzerland has chosen to work with fundinfo to procure their fund data”.

Citi Wealth Management Reorganizes its Model Based On its Clients’ Residency

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Citi Wealth Management reorganiza su modelo en función de la residencia de sus clientes — Wikimedia Commons. Citi Wealth Management Reorganizes its Model Based On its Clients' Residency

Latin America will be the pioneer region in the reorganization launched by Citi Wealth Management, which will go from having a model based on the offices to having a geography-based scheme, industry sources told Funds Society.

The Cluster market model will consist of designating specialized managers according to the clients’ residency. Thus, strategy, growth channels and business model, in addition to regulatory and market updates, will be borne by the SCE Market Heads, experts focused on each market.

Financial advisors at each office will continue to report on their daily tasks in each place.

Juan Guillermo Ramírez, current director of Citi Wealth Management Latin America, will be in charge of leading the changes in the region and launching this new model.

The South Cluster for residents of Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will be centered in Montevideo, adding to the efforts of the Miami and New York teams. Rodolfo Castilla, current director of Citi Wealth Management Southern Cone, will be in charge of the new structure.

Miguel Gross, will be in charge of the follow-up of customers residing in Chile. The countries of the Caribbean, Central America, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela will form the third Latin American Cluster of Citi and Brazil and Peru the fourth.

Campbell Fleming (Aberdeen Standard Investments): “The LatAm and US Offshore business is a strategic priority”

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Five months after the completion of the merger between Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life plc, an operation that has created a giant in the investment sector and which has probably been the largest in Europe in recent years, Aberdeen Standard Investments, with the help of Campbell Fleming, the firm’s Global Head of Distribution, and Menno de Vreeze, Head of Business Development of International Wealth Management, gathered about 70 industry professionals at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Miami to discuss investment opportunities in emerging markets.

The event was attended by Brett Diment, Head of Global Emerging Market Debt, and Nick Robison, Senior Investment Manager of Global Emerging Market Equities Investments. In addition, given investors’ growing interest in the renegotiations of the NAFTA agreement, Dr. Rogelio Ramírez De la O, President to Ecanal, and an expert on the subject, explained his vision.

Interview with Campbell Fleming

In an interview with Funds Society, Campbell Fleming, Global Head of Distribution, who has more than 20 years of experience in the LatAm market, shared the details of the merger and the management company’s new plans for the region.
With about 593 billion pounds, approximately 775 billion dollars in assets under management, the new firm is now the twenty-fifth largest asset management company worldwide, the first in the United Kingdom and the second in Europe. An operation that the market perceived as defensive, something with which Campbell Fleming agrees, as in an environment with an incessant consolidation in the industry, the two management companies thought it was a better strategy to become one of the biggest players in the market.

“With the merger, the firm has expanded all of its capabilities in the six main asset classes, including equities, fixed income, real estate, investment solutions, alternative assets, and private markets. In each of them we are acquiring a significant size. In the equity franchise we have reached 159 billion pounds, in fixed income we exceeded 160 billion, and in the investment solutions franchise close to 150. Prior to the merger, Aberdeen had always questioned whether it was too focused on the equity business. While Standard Life was more focused on the investment solutions business and absolute return strategies. There is a minimum overlap between the initial offers of each of the management companies, being a highly complementary offer when consolidated. In addition, only 4.5% of our worldwide clients overlap.Obviously, the opportunity is based on presenting Aberdeen products to Standard Life clients or Standard Life products to Aberdeen clients. A great opportunity for us, as we can now combine the capabilities of the two firms and become a solid global company,” says Campbell.

After the consolidation, the new firm has more than 1,000 investment professionals worldwide, investment managers in 24 different offices, offers client support in 50 locations and conducts business in 80 countries. A massive presence in order to be a management company that offers a complete service and more solutions and products to investment platforms.

“The new firm has been established very quickly, soon the sales teams and the client structure were formed, and gradually the announcements of who will lead the investment teams are being made.”
According to Campbell, the US business represents 11% of the assets under management, about 82 billion dollars and about 100 professionals dedicated to the distribution of funds.

“We manage around 100 billion dollars in the United States, and we will be able to develop more business in the country with greater authority than we have in the past. We are interested in the growth of US business, both on the domestic and international sides; with the combined resources of both firms we now have enough people to do business in the US more thoroughly than we have ever done before.The LatAm and US Offshore businesses in particular, are a strategic priority for us in the medium-long term. In the United States we have offices in Philadelphia, Boston, Stamford and New York and soon we will have someone permanently based in Miami for the US Offshore team. We manage over 4 billion in this business directly, with the help of Menno de Vreeze who is responsible for the US Offshore business and Linda Cartusciello, who is in charge of the institutional side of the business in Latin America. And, indirectly, we probably manage a larger amount via other booking centres. “

Under Menno’s leadership, the private banking business and the US Offshore distribution channels have grown very fast. “We are delighted to see growth in Latin America and how investors in the region are diversifying with investments abroad. We have received a great deal of interest from frontier-market debt funds or Indian fixed-income funds, as well as equity funds, which are of great interest to all those clients who wish to diversify.”

With the regulatory changes in transparency, business has decreased in Switzerland and elsewhere in terms of client identification and bank secrecy, increasing outflows, something that Campbell perceives as an opportunity for growth in the US offshore business.

Meanwhile, in Latin America they have increased their visits particurlarly to Uruguay and Santiago to channel more business development. They also have an office in Brazil, so they are covering practically the most important points in the region. “There is not a single model for the region. Some countries are more advanced institutionally, while others are beginning to build good wholesale and private banking relationships.”

With regards to the goals that have been set for the region, Campbell says that they want to double the assets in terms of their current market share. “At this moment, between the two firms we could reach that volume and we should get it. If we could globally double the assets within the next three to five years we would be looking very healthy.”

Lastly, in the Allfunds fund platform, Aberdeen Standard Investments has experienced continuous growth, managing close to 5 billion dollars from its relations with global banks and the business of institutions and consultants. “A lot of these assets are concentrated in Europe, particularly in Spain, but the platform is starting to build in Latin America and Asia,” concludes Campbell.

The event’s agenda

The event was attended by Brett Diment, Head of Global Emerging Market Debt, who described how the macroeconomic stability of emerging markets has improved significantly in terms of nominal gross domestic product growth, the deleveraging of the private sector, the recovery in the current account balance and the moderation of inflation. He also explained how the opportunities in traditional emerging debt are in Argentina, where economic recovery supports fiscal reform, in Brazil, where economic growth is about to return after a severe crisis, in India, where India’s Reserve Bank is expected to keep interest rates at lower levels, and in Russia, where disinflation paves the way for further cuts in rates. While in frontier markets, opportunities are centered in Egypt, where government reforms have significantly reduced the primary deficit, in Ghana, where interest rates have fallen due to lower inflation, in Sri Lanka, where the increase in tourism supports the commercial account, and in Ecuador, which offers attractive valuation levels compared to other competitors in emerging markets. However, according to Diment, the greatest investment opportunities come from the Asian giant: China is narrowing its research and development spending gap with respect to the most innovative economies, Japan, Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom. China has changed its investment structure towards a more technologically intensive one, aggressively closing the IT investment gap it has with the United States. In addition, the local Chinese debt market, the third largest debt market worldwide, is open to international investors.

Next, Nick Robison, Senior Investment Manager of Global Emerging Market Equities, recommended some caution in the short term, although the asset class continues to offer attractive valuations and seems to be enjoying a recovery in economic terms and profits. The two main reasons for raising caution in this type of assets are the normalization process of the Fed’s policy and that of the rest of the central banks, which is expected to be gradual, but may still mean a risk for the region; and the fall of growth momentum in China.

Closing the presentations, Dr. Rogelio Ramírez De la O, President of Ecanal, explained the economic repercussions for Mexico of the renegotiation of the NAFTA treaty. After 24 years of the treaty, Mexico has not been able to develop a long-term development policy to achieve a significant advantage with the signing of the treaty. In these years, the wage spread between the US and Mexico has not diminished because Mexico has not managed to increase the domestic added value in its exports to the United States. While manufacturing exports have multiplied sevenfold in the period from 1993 to 2017, the value added in production has increased only 1.8 times, there being a disconnection between the NAFTA treaty and GDP growth.

Since the NAFTA treaty is a pillar of macroeconomic stability and an indirect guarantee for investment, it is very likely that Mexico will have to make substantial concessions to the demands of the United States, as Mexico has a greater dependence on the treaty and very little margin of leverage. If Mexico makes these concessions, the peso will most likely stabilize and continue to grow after the negotiations. The main obstacle is the pace of negotiations, since there are presidential elections in Mexico in July and elections in the US Congress in November 2018.

Bolton Adds New York City Team with USD 315 Million AUM

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Bolton incorpora en Nueva York un equipo con 315 millones de dólares en activos administrados — Photo: Michael Dejana and Adelfa Rosario . Bolton Adds New York City Team with USD 315 Million AUM

Bolton Global is pleased to announce the addition of a New York City based team with more than US$ 315 million in client assets. Adelfa Rosario and Michael Dejena, formerly with Safra Securities and Safra Asset Management, have formed AiM Fidelis Wealth Solutions located at 555 Madison Avenue. They each have over 35 years in the wealth management business serving clients in the US, Europe and Latin America.

Ms. Rosario began her career in 1980 at The Bank of New York in Manhattan. She then joined Citibank International Private Banking in 1983 where she managed high net worth and ultra high net worth clients. Adelfamoved to Barclays Bank International Private Banking in 1990 until it was acquired in 2002 by Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) where she remained for 13 years. The team joined Safra after RBC’s exit from the international wealth management business in 2015.

Mr. Dejena played a key role in establishing the discretionary investment business of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) International Wealth Management where he was responsible for US$ 2.0 billion in client assets. He was Chief Investment Officer, Chairman of the Investment Committee and a member of the Executive Committee. He was Co-Chair of RBC’s International Wealth Diversity Council and played a key role in promoting a diverse workplace.

Adelfa has been recognized for achievements throughout her career including thirteen consecutive nominations to RBC Chairman and Executive Council’s awards. She is a graduate of New York University Stern School of Business and holds FINRA licenses Series 7 and 66. She resides in New York City with her two daughters and family. She is a member and donor of the Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Brooklyn Botanical Garden.

Michael is a graduate of Fairfield University and holds FINRA licenses Series 7 and 65. He speaks Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. He resides in New York City with his son and family where he is a member and supporter of the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Opera.

Clearing and custody for AiM Fidelis’ client accounts will be through BNY Mellon Pershing. The addition of the AiM Fidelis team continues a successful year in Bolton Global‘s growth. In 2017, the firm recruited wealth management teams in the US with over US$ 2.2 billion in client assets.

Charitable Giving to Maximize Your Tax Benefits

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According to Raymond James & Associates SVP Lisa Detanna, the process of estate planning when it involves a gifting strategy is to give what you want, to whom you want, when you want, and how you want and if possible save on taxes and expenses.

Financial planners and investment advisors help families develop an estate plan with the client’s trusted accountant and estate lawyer that utilizes current gifting laws to be efficient when passing assets to the next generation and the charities that the individual or families are dear to.

Generally, they start with a cash flow model and retirement plan whereby they determine if the client and their family have enough to live like their highest earning income years throughout retirement. Then, they run these future cash flow models out to age 110 with rich assumptions on the expense side of the ledger and conservative assumptions on the asset to err on the side of caution.

When there is a surplus, they work with a client and their families to identify if there are heirs that the family wishes to inherit the wealth at their passing and how much. It is not an “all or none” answer and is different for every person with no right or wrong answers. If there are not for profits or charities that are important to the client, they then look at developing a gifting strategy that fits into the client’s wishes and maximizes the tax efficient benefits under current gifting laws.

There are 3 options in estate tax: Avoid the tax: give assets away before death; Pay the tax: sell assets or transfer assets; and Insure the tax: use discounted dollars to pay the tax, preserve assets and estate.

Like the slogan “death and taxes are inevitable,” estate taxes are due in cash within nine months of death and they are progressive.

Currently, one can gift US$14,000 maximum per beneficiary per year (called annual gift) without filing a gift tax return or it eating into one’s lifetime gift credit or estate tax exemption at death. In addition, one can pay educational expenses or medical expenses if directly paid to the provider. This is the simplest way to make a gift and many charities will accept highly appreciated stocks, bonds or real estate which can be tax friendly to the grantor.

If one is fortunate enough to have over the exemption gifting amount, this is where the estate planning begins. One can gift to bonafide 501(c)(3) charities the overage of the exemption amounts and if they utilize some estate planning techniques they may be able to get some tax benefits on those gift that they can benefit from while they are still alive. Of course one can also gift with any level of wealth and these gifts can be tax efficient. Always consult your accountant, financial advisor and attorney prior to making the gift so there can be a discussion on how best to do it.

“Charitable giving is important within wealthy families as it instills the concept of giving back as assets are passed from one generation to the next and helps prepare heirs to be good stewards of wealth. Involving heirs early on to prepare them to be able to handle how to help others and utilize the wealth as well as finding purpose in life by helping others through philanthropic efforts is key for a family in creating a meaningful legacy. In fact, there are a wealth of gifting strategies and changes in tax laws or regulations may occur at any time. Be sure to discuss any tax or legal matters with the appropriate professional. ” Detanna concludes.

Rebecca Crockett Joins Legg Mason as International Sales Director for Americas International

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Rebecca Crockett joined Legg Mason Global Asset Management in December as the International Sales Director for the Americas International team. Rebecca’s core responsibility will be to cover the clients in the Northeast region and she will report directly to Lars Jensen in Miami.

Prior to joining Legg Mason, Rebecca worked with Morgan Stanley for twelve years. During her time with Morgan Stanley, Rebecca held multiple sales positions within the Wealth Management and Investment Management divisions. Her previous experience includes roles as a business analyst and equity research associate covering Latin American companies. Rebecca received a Bachelor in Science from the Wake Forest University with a dual major in Spanish and Business. She holds her Masters of International Business Studies from the University of South Carolina.

Casellas, Bernal and Vilchis Join Vanguard Mexico

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Vanguard continues to grow in Mexico. The firm that last summer hired Juan Manuel Hernandez to lead its business in Mexico as the company expands its efforts to meet local investors’ needs for low-cost and broadly diversified investment products, has hired three new sales employees.

Denise Casellas joins as Sales Consultant, while Guillermo Vilchis and Pablo Bernal join as Sales Executives. Juan Manuel Hernandez told Funds Society: “I am delighted that Denise, Guillermo, and Pablo are joining Vanguard to bring the Vanguard way of investing to Mexican investors. Their deep knowledge and expertise will serve our clients well.”

Denise Casellas joins Vanguard most recently from SURA Asset Management where she spent the last year as a Product Specialist. Before SURA, she spent almost 4 years at Santander Asset Management and earlier in her career, she worked for UBS Wealth Management and Prudential Financial. Denise holds a BS in Finance from ITESM, has a Banking and Finance Diploma from IEB Spain and is a Certified Financial Advisor per the Mexican AMIB.

Guillermo Vilchis joins Vanguard most recently from Citigroup´s Mexico broker dealer, Citibanamex where he spent the last 4 years as an equity sales trader. Previously, he spent 7 years at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Guillermo holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Universidad Iberoamericana and an MBA from ITAM. He is also a certified Mexican stock exchange trader and holds FINRA Series 7 Certification.

Pablo Bernal joins Vanguard from Sherpa Capital, a boutique asset management firm specialized in Mexican equities where he spent the last 5 years as an Associate Portfolio Manager. Previously, Pablo worked at BlackRock´s iShares, the United Nations, and Deloitte. Pablo holds a BA in Public Accounting and Finance from ITAM and is a CFA Chart holder.

Vanguard, the world’s second-largest ETF provider, offers 65 US-domiciled ETFs in Mexico.

Beamonte Investments Committed 1 Billion Mexican Pesos to Axman Holdings

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Beamonte Investments, has committed 1 billion mexican pesos over the next two years to Axman Holdings, a diversified company focused on manufacturing investments in Canada and Mexico.

Axman Holdings is a new company looking to take advantage of the arbitrage of NAFTA with the current geo-political situation focusing on distressed manufacturing companies in Canada and Mexico. Axman will be headquartered in Mexico City with offices in Toronto, Ontario.

Eliminating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which was crafted by former President Bill Clinton and enacted in 1994, was a frequent Trump campaign promise. The deal was intended to eliminate most trade tariffs between the three nations, increase investment, and tighten protection and enforcement of intellectual property. U.S. manufacturing exports to Canada and Mexico, the United States’ two largest export markets, increased 258 percent under the agreement.

“Building on Beamonte’s expertise in analyzing and managing performance risk, we believe Axman Holdings will offer many incumbents the ability to modernize their plant operations and equipment in order to become more institutional, efficient and Profitable,” said Luis Felipe Trevino, Senior Managing Director at Beamonte Investments and Chairman of the Board of Axman Holdings.

What Sanctions Would the 5 Latin America and the Caribbean Countries Included in the EU’s Tax- Haven Blacklist Face?

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¿A qué sanciones se enfrentan los 5 países de América Latina y el Caribe que la UE ha incluido en su lista negra de paraísos fiscales? — CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrPhoto: Walter . What Sanctions Would the 5 Latin America and the Caribbean Countries Included in the EU's Tax- Haven Blacklist Face?

After two years of negotiations, the Finance Ministers of the EU Member States approved in Brussels, the first list of jurisdictions that do not cooperate in tax matters.

Of the 17 states included in this list of tax havens, there are five from Latin America and the Caribbean: Barbados, Panama, Grenada, Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago. All have been singled out for not making sufficient efforts in the fight against tax evasion and they are also included in the list that the OECD produces each year.

These five are joined by 12 other countries: American Samoa, Bahrain, Guam, South Korea, Macao, the Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Namibia, Palau, Samoa, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Bahamas and the British and United States Virgin Islands were supposed to be blacklisted, as were Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda or Dominica, but the European Union has postponed the analysis until 2018 so that these small Caribbean islands have time to recover from the devastating hurricane season.

In addition, 47 countries have committed to address the deficiencies in their tax systems and meet the required criteria. Uruguay is on this gray list. This is due to its legislation on Free Zones indicated this year as a “harmful legal incentive” by the OECD.

The parliamentary procedure of a reform of the Free Zones Law that subjects companies to greater controls, should finish removing Uruguay from the zone of doubt.

What does it mean to be included in this list?

Recognition of the countries that encourage abusive tax practices, according to the European Commission, should have a real impact on the affected countries, thanks to the new EU legislative measures.

First, following the Commission’s proposals, the EU list is now linked to funding in the context of the European Sustainable Development Fund (EFSF), the European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI) and the External Loan Mandate (ELM). Their funds can not be channeled through entities in the listed countries. Only direct investment in these countries (that is, financing of projects on the ground) will be allowed in order to to preserve development and sustainability objectives.

Second, the Commission has proposed that multinationals with activities in these jurisdictions be required to have much stricter reporting requirements. In addition, any fiscal scheme that includes operations in any of the countries included in the EU list will be automatically reported to the tax authorities.

Finally, the Commission has already taken steps for Member States to impose coordinated sanctions on these countries that include measures such as increased monitoring and audits, withholding taxes, special documentation requirements and anti-abuse provisions.

The EU’s reasons

These 17 countries on the blacklist have been identified after finding out that they do not comply with international transparency standards on automatic exchange of information or encourage unfair tax competition.

“Those countries that choose not to have a business tax or to offer a zero rate should ensure that this does not encourage artificial offshore structures without real economic activity,” the Commission explains in its statement.

How will Trump’s Fiscal Reform Affect Different Asset Classes?

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Así impactará la reforma fiscal de Trump en los diferentes activos — CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrPhoto: White House. How will Trump's Fiscal Reform Affect Different Asset Classes?

After passing 51-49 in the Senate Trump’s tax reform is one step further towards becoming a reality, which is expected to provide a moderate boost to US growth.

According to a survey of 51 analysts conducted by the National Association of Business Economics, around half of economists expect that changes in fiscal policy will increase the growth of the world’s leading economy by between 0.28 and 0.39 percentage points next year.

“We believe that the success of a package of fiscal measures will probably be accompanied by a slight rise in prices in the short term, of a magnitude practically similar to the setback that would result from a legislative failure,” explained Mark Burgess, Deputy Global Chief Investment Officer at Columbia Threadneedle Investments.

Small caps, consumption and finance

In general, the impact is expected to be limited, but small caps, consumer-related stocks and financial securities will be the most benefited according to Patrik Lang, Head Equity Research at Julius Baer.

“The final result will still be subject to some changes, but now it seems increasingly likely that the tax reform will take effect in the coming weeks. We maintain our opinion that the direct impact on the S&P 500 will be limited, while small caps and the consumer and finance sectors will be the most favored by the reform”.

Equities

For Peter Garnry, Head of Equity Strategy at Saxo Bank, the tax rebates will especially benefit companies with a more national orientation, as it will be positive in terms of cash flow available after taxes. With the corporate tax rate decreasing from 35% to 20%, net operating profits will increase by 20% nationwide.

“Among the sectors that are being targeted by the US tax reform is the technological sector, since a repatriation tax of 12% could be imposed. This tax would encourage companies with money abroad to return to the US. It is estimated that around $2.5 trillion in cash are abroad and that around 50% of this money would go back home and be used for the repurchase of shares,” he estimates.

High yield debt market

The tax rates high yield debt issuers pay in the United States are, on average, 28%, recalls SKY Harbor Capital Management, so with everything else equal, the proposed tax cuts will modestly improve the free cash flow for issuers.

In addition, they explain, the issuers of lower rating and with greater leverage will be negatively affected by the reform, since a reduced tax shield will offset the benefits of a reduced tax rate. And on the other hand, issuers of higher quality and investment grade will be te ones that benefit the most of repatriation.

For the firm, sectors with high average tax rates, high interest coverage rates and capital intensive operating models should be the main beneficiaries of the tax reform.

Gold waiting for political events

The tax reform should have a more lasting impact on the gold market, since it is likely to reactivate optimism regarding a higher growth rate in the United States, support the idea of rate increases and encourage a rebound of the US dollar.

“The sustainable rise in gold should materialize once growth concerns creep into the financial markets and reactivate investor demand for gold as a safe haven,” says Carsten Menke, Commodity Analyst at Julius Baer.